Celery root risotto

There was this big old celery root in my fridge..the last thing that had to go before the shopping day. And I was desperate to make something that I would want to eat. Often, that's the part of cooking that takes most of my concentration and energy. The good news is there are things like risottos that still surprise me. And celery...that surprises me too.

Recipe by Gray Apron
time: 40 min

 ingredients 
for celery puree (adapted from Giallo Zafferano)
1 large celery root (500g/1lb)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1/8 teaspoon dry thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
for risotto
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup (120 ml) dry white wine (I used sparkling)
1 1/2 cup (320 g) rice
4 cups (1 l) boiling water with 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 oz (28 g) Parmesan, grated
1 oz (28 g) butter, diced
zest from 1/2 medium lemon, grated

 instructions 
prepare puree:
Peel and cut celery in 2-3 mm (1/8 inch) thick pieces, finger-wide. In a small pot, bring 2 -3 cups water to boil. Drop in celery pieces and boil for 3 minutes. Drain (save 1 cup of cooking water).

Meanwhile, on a medium/large skillet, heat oil on medium/high. Add celery pieces, add 1 cup of saved water, salt, thyme and and cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, till almost all water is gone (and the celery is not dry). Add pepper at the end.

In a food processor with steal blades, blend celery till smooth, for 10 - 20 seconds.

prepare risotto:
In a medium pot, heat oil on medium/high. Add onions and sauté for about 8-10 minutes (not allowing any color change). Add rice and wine, sauté till wine has evaporated (2-3 minutes). Pour in 1/2 cup boiling water. Stir till liquid is absorbed...add another 1/2 cup water and repeat the process till you used all the water, stirring rice almost constantly to prevent sticking to the bottom of the pan. This should last about 25 minutes. 5 minutes before the end, add celery puree, lemon zest and more water if risotto got too dry.

Check if rice is cooked. Take it off the heat, incorporate cheese and butter. Adjust seasoning and serve. If you plan to serve risotto later, wait and add cheese and butter when you are ready.

NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES NOTES 

• the puree had a texture of a cloud, surprisingly good just straight from the blander;
• it could make for a nice side dish; the Italian recipe had cream and cheese in the puree, but the taste of celery root was rich and interesting enough to leave the extras off;
• I went downstairs to a near-by store to get fresh parsley...I decided against it after all;
• lemon zest gave the celery root the necessary kick without changing the flavor; Parmesan did the rest;
• Hania that doesn't care about celery root (she calls it "pineapple" when I roast it) asked for more risotto and cleaned up the pot;
• about rice: here I used arborio (the one you are supposed to use for risotto), but I've done it before with basmanti and brown rice and it worked too.