Celery Root Soup (With Other Root Veggies)

Name: Celery Root Soup (With Other Root Veggies)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 65 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup unsalted cashews; 2 cups water; 1/2 cup low sodium vegetable broth; 1 to 1.5 tablespoons nutritional yeast; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 small leek; 1 large carrot (peeled and cut small (about 1 cup)); 4 cloves garlic (minced); 2 pounds celery root (peeled and cut into small cubes (about 7 cups)); 1 pound potatoes (white or yellow) (peeled and cut into small cubes (about 3 cups)); 1 teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 tablespoon of chopped fresh thyme leaves); 5 to 6 cups low sodium vegetable broth; Croutons (garnish to taste (optional))

Published: January 9, 2020 Updated: January 19, 2020 / By: Dawn | Girl Heart Food 30 Comments

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Chunky vegetable soup to warm ya up? Sounds good, huh? This celery root soup (or celeriac soup) is jam-packed with celery root and other hearty root veggies, like potato, carrot, and leek. It’s seriously delicious and just what you want on a cold winter day.

Bowl of celery root soup topped with croutons and green onion.

Hi friends!

Bringing you a hearty vegetable soup recipe today and I couldn’t be happier!

There’s definitely nothing fancy here. Not even close.

I’d even go ahead and say this one is pretty rustic.

Who says something has to be fancy to taste good?

Certainly not me!

Once you give this celery root soup a try, you’ll be hooked. Promise.

Ingredients for Celery Root Soup

Celery root (of course), plus other root veggies, like potato, carrot, and leek
Garlic
Veggie broth
Salt, pepper, and thyme
Olive oil
Cashews & nutritional yeast (or your favourite dairy, if you want)

What Is Celery Root?

Celery root or celeriac is a hearty root veggie that’s almost like a cross between turnip and parsnip/celery.

Though the name has “root” in it, it’s definitely not the root of celery. Nope, it’s something entirely unique on its own and deserves to shine!

You can find it along other root veggies, like beets, turnips, parsnips, and so forth right in your local grocery store or farmers’ market.

Friends, please don’t judge this veggie by how it looks.

This ain’t the prettiest veggie in the world.

One may say kinda ugly.

What this bad boy lacks in appearance, it makes up for in the flavour department. It’s also quite versatile! Celery root is lovely in soups and stews, mashed, pureed, and roasted.

The exterior and interior looks somewhat like a turnip, but it has a lot of celery/parsnip vibes in the smell and taste.

To prepare, you clean up, cut off the knobby bits, peel, and carefully cut into chunks. Basically, prepare it like you would a turnip or some beets.

You should definitely consider adding this veggie to your menu soon and, if ya do, I’d love to hear how you enjoy it!

I couldn’t stop smelling my hands after I had cut into in. I know, I’m an odd one.

A bulb of uncooked and unpeeled celery root.

Cashew Cream

Replace dairy in this creamy veggie soup with cashew cream. It’s seriously amazing how some cashews can turn into a creamy dairy free (but dairy-like) replacement!

Tip: Want creamy vegetable soup without using cashew cream? No worries! Simply stir in a little half-and-half or heavy cream instead.

And, don’t worry. This isn’t going to taste overly nutty. Cashew cream has a pretty neutral flavour.

How To Make This Root Vegetable Soup

Full details are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:

In a large pot, heat olive oil and cook leek, carrot, and garlic.
Add celery root, potatoes, salt, pepper, and thyme. Stir. Pour in veggie broth.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until veggies have softened.
Remove a couple of cups of soup from the pot, place in a heat-safe container, blend the removed soup (with an immersion blender), and add back to the pot.
Add cashew cream to the pot, stirring in.
Now the delicious celery root soup is ready! Time to serve and enjoy!

Collage of steps to make celery root soup.

Can I Blend the Whole Batch?

Yes!

I happen to enjoy the texture of leaving some veggies chunky, but you do what makes your belly happy!

Close-up of a ladle of celery root soup.

Soup Topping Ideas

Homemade croutons
Chopped fresh thyme leaves
Shredded cheese or dollop of goat cheese
Sliced green onion or chives
Drizzle of cream or yogurt
Crushed crackers

Two bowls of celery root soup alongside croutons, crackers, and a dish of green onion.

Tips and Variations

Want even more celery root flavour? Replace the potato with more celery root!
If you have more or less of a particular veggie, no worries! Use what you have on hand.
Don’t have leek? Use white or yellow onion instead.
Nutritional yeast is used in the cashew cream. It thickens a little and and adds somewhat of a slight cheesy flavour. Prefer to omit? That’s okay! And, if you use dairy (as mentioned below), omit.
If you’d rather not use cashew cream, that’s fine. You can swirl in about ½ cup or so of half-and-half or heavy cream at the end of cook time instead.

More Delicious Veggie Soups

If you make this veggie soup, be sure to leave a comment below!