Celeriac Steaks with Sweet Potato & Watercress Mash
It’s a New Year, so I thought we should start things off with a new to me, and maybe to you, vegetable. Celeriac, aka Celery Root, is pretty ugly to look at, but pretty delicious to eat. Step aside, cauliflower - there's a new vegetable steak in town. This often-overlooked member of the cold-weather root vegetable club can be described as tasting and behaving like a cross between a potato, a turnip, and a parsnip. With thick, knobby skin requiring a strong, sharp knife for trimming, its ivory-colored flesh is dense, earthy, slightly sweet and nutty, with peppery undertones. Packed full of vitamins C and K, and rich in fiber for good digestion, Celeriac is also low in carbs and low in calories, all highly desirable qualities in anyone's vegetable repertoire.
To turn Celeriac or any root vegetable into a "steak", first trim off the gnarly bits and cut off the top and bottom. Peel off the outer skin and cut the Celeriac into thick steak-sized slices and then take a paring knife and score the bottom and top of each slice in a crosshatch pattern to maximize marination of the basting sauce. Place the steaks in a parchment-lined baking pan and generously brush each side before roasting.
The perfect companion to the roasted Celeriac steak is a sweet potato and watercress mash, made with more of the rich and savory basting butter and chopped fresh watercress leaves. And did you know that watercress is ranked #1 by the CDC as the most nutrient-dense vegetable in the world? It's like another bonus for trying this recipe.
The roasted Celeriac steaks were a very tender and tasty revelation, and when I made this dish, I also included some thick-sliced Rutabaga and was very happy with how they turned out, too. Of course, both of these and other root vegetables, e.g., parsnips, turnips, beets, etc., are wonderful in stews and soups, but I hope you'll give this take on steak and mashed potatoes a try.
Celeriac Steak with Sweet Potato & Watercress Mash
Ingredients
2 medium-large Celeriac/Celery Roots, trimmed, peeled, cut into 4 "steaks", and scored
Lemon Miso Butter Sauce:
6 tablespoons plant-based butter
2 tablespoons miso paste
juice of 1 lemon
2 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Sweet Potato & Watercress Mash:
2 large, orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
4-5 tablespoons Lemon Miso Butter Sauce
2 handfuls of watercress, chopped
salt & pepper to taste
To make the Lemon Miso Butter Sauce, place all the ingredients in a bowl and microwave on high for 1 1/2-2 minutes until the butter is melted. Whisk the sauce and set it aside. Preheat the oven to 400º.
To make the Celeriac steaks, place them on a parchment sheet-lined baking pan and baste each side with the Lemon Miso Butter Sauce. Place the pan in the oven and roast for 20 minutes, and then flip the steaks over, baste again, and return to the oven to roast another 20 minutes. Turn off the oven, leaving the pan inside.
To make the Sweet Potato & Watercress Mash, boil the cubed sweet potatoes for about 15-20 minutes until tender. Drain and then return the potatoes to the pan. Add in the Lemon Miso Butter Sauce, mash the potatoes, and then mix in the chopped watercress. Season to taste with salt & pepper.
Remove the Celeriac steaks from the oven. To serve, place the Sweet Potato & Watercress Mash on the bottom of a serving platter. Place the Celeriac Steaks on top of the mash. Drizzle the remaining Lemon Miso Butter Sauce over the steaks.
