Is this the ugliest vegetable ever?

I saw this odd looking creature (and his buddies) at a Farmer's Market a week or so back and just had to buy it! It's a celeriac, in case you're unfamiliar, and it's not a vegetable I've ever eaten before - and certainly not one I've ever cooked. But I've been making a concerted effort to try new fruit and vege of late, so the celeriac came home with me. It sat on the bench for quite a while as I really wasn't sure how to approach it, but in the end I went with creamy celeriac soup. Dull, perhaps, but I did want to actually taste the thing. And the outcome? A bit of a revelation, actually! A smooth, creamy, thick soup which smelled strongly of celery but tasted more like a slightly sweet and starchy carrot (I think). Even the lad liked it and he's very much anti-celery! Ugly vege will be on our menu more often I think!

And so to prettier vegetables...



This beautiful bouquet of black and green came from a tiny organic farmer's market in North Wales. It was positively pouring down when we came across the market in a village which consisted of maybe 5 houses, but it was such a lovely community event! It seemed like everyone from all the surrounding villages and farms had come out for the day, regardless of the downpour. I got the biggest carrots I've ever seen (seriously, one would feed 5 people for a week - they grow 'em big in North Wales!) and this bunch of cavalo nero...continuing my voyage of vegetable discovery! So far I've just made myself a potato, crispy onion and garlic (crispy because I got distracted while cooking!) and cavolo nero frittata for lunch which I grilled with chunks of camembert on top after cooking for a while on the stove. Goats cheese would probably work too but I had a camembert, so that's what I used. It was a proper sit-down lunch - the first I've had all week - and I really rather enjoyed it. What next for my bunch of brassica??