Celery Root

This recipe is an accompaniment for Daniel Boulud's Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine with Celery Duo.

The duck leg confit brings added richness to the bisque, but the soup is also delicious without it.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Root vegetables have always been popular in Scandinavia because they store well during the long winter months and are therefore available year-round.

Roast these up to four hours ahead; put them in to reheat when the prime rib is done.

Pair this with a crisp French Chablis, the Chardonnay-based white from Burgundy.

"I recently had lunch at Café Boulud here in New York," says Shelli Rafkin of New York, New York. "My entrée, blanquette de veau, had the most incredible sauce I've ever tasted. The whole dish, in fact, was sensational." In this variation on the classic stew, the veal and the vegetables are cooked separately and combined at the end, when they're topped with a rich white sauce.

"As a confirmed New Englander, I was surprised to find a terrific seafood restaurant in Phoenix: Steamers Genuine," says Barbara J. Johnson of Worcester, Massachusetts. "The baked halibut was perfectly complemented by roasted vegetables and potatoes au gratin. I know how to make the fish, but I wouldn't know where to start with the other two dishes." This side dish and the Potato Gratin with White Cheddar Cheese would also be good with roast chicken or beef.

Here's a colorful make-ahead starter that's perfect for entertaining. Serve this bistro tradition-called assiette de crudité-with a baguette and butter.

Using a mandoline (inexpensive versions are now widely available at cookware shops) makes short work of slicing the vegetables.

Active time: 50 min Start to finish: 50 min

(Purée de Pommes de Terre, de Topinambours, et de Céleri-rave) At the market in Le Neubourg, not far from where I live in Normandy, each Wednesday farmers bring out their produce in a panoply that directly mirrors the seasons. This dish, which I make with vegetables from that market, is a celebration of fall. Farmers in Le Neubourg are really mostly market gardeners or truck farmers, or maraîchers. They and others like them are the backbone of the French agricultural system, providing from their small plots the best and the freshest produce in the country. Because they are small and sell direct, they can grow a wide variety of vegetables, which is why I can find Jerusalem artichokes alongside potatoes and celery root, dandelion greens, and wild mushrooms gathered in the surrounding woods. Though the vegetables in this dish are unglamorous, the balance here is luscious, rich, and satisfying.

This recipe is a yummy one-pot entrée from The Elements of Taste, by Gray Kunz and Peter Kaminsky. The secret here is browning the meat.

Celery root, a popular fall vegetable, tastes like a cross between celery and parsley.