As referenced in last week's post, it's National Celery Month! Here's a recipe and a couple of fun facts to help celebrate (celery-brate? We'll see ourselves out).

Creamy celery and broccoli soup

Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients

•1 teaspoon olive oil
•1½ cups celery, chopped
•1 cup broccoli crowns, chopped
•½ cup onion, chopped
•2 tablespoons butter
•3 tablespoons flour
•3 cups milk
•½ teaspoon celery seed
•¼ teaspoon pepper
•1 cup water (optional)

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, heat olive oil over medium heat and cook celery, broccoli and onion until they are soft and translucent, but not brown. Carefully remove the vegetables from saucepan and set aside in a bowl. Return saucepan to stovetop and melt butter over medium heat. Add flour to melted butter, stirring it in with a wooden spoon until it has the texture of wet sand. Allow flour mixture to cook 2-3 minutes, but do not allow to brown. Whisk in milk, making a smooth liquid. Return celery and onion to saucepan, and add celery seed and pepper. Simmer until thickened. If soup is too thick, add up to a cup of water bit by bit until it is the way you like it.

Tip: pair this soup with a spinach salad for a mega-green dinner.

Fun facts

The average American eats about 9 pounds of celery per year.

Celery leaves were found in King Tutankhamun's tomb wrapped in his shroud.

A nickname for Kalamazoo, Michigan is Celery City. Read last week's post to find out why!