sweater weather

The first snow just blanketed the peaks of our Wasatch Mountains. As the temperatures dipped and the aspens turned the most brilliant gold, I knew it was time for soups and sweaters.

Last year I fell in love with celery root soup. I spent much of that midwinter tweaking and perfecting the recipe.

What's key is letting the soup gently simmer for an hour or two on top of the stove. Something magical occurs as all of the root vegetables meld together. Then a quick puree with a hand blender and a swirl of heavy cream…

well, it's like sipping on cashmere itself.

The obvious base of cream of celery root soup is celery root.

Peeled and diced.

Along with leeks, thoroughly cleaned and sliced.

In a heavy-bottom stock pot over medium-low heat, melt four tablespoons of butter and add two chopped stalks of celery and two leeks with a pinch of kosher salt. Sauté until wilted, about 7 minutes.

Add the celery root and sauté for 5 minutes. Add a peeled and diced Yukon gold potato and two finely sliced cloves of garlic. Sauté for another five minutes.

Add the salt, thyme, and bay leaf. Stir. Add six cups of chicken broth, bring to a boil, and lower the heat to medium-low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 45 minutes and up to two hours.

Remove the bay leaf. With a hand blender, carefully puree the soup.

Stir in the heavy cream and heat through.

Garnish with crisp crumbled bacon and sautéed diced apples.

Both can be made ahead of time while the soup simmers.

This velvety soup is as cozy as your favorite sweater.

Because this soup is best made a day or two ahead of time, you'll be ready to greet any guest that might just mosey by.