Celery Leaves

When we first began isolating ourselves and social distancing, I was especially careful not to waste any food. Many businesses were shut down and trips to any market were nerve-racking. I just so happened to come across an article that explained hot to regrow many common vegetables.

For many years I’ve been reviving small pieces of scallions in water with great success so I decided to give it a try with other vegetables as well. With onions, turnips and carrot tops, I also kept a 2-inch base from each stalk of celery, a head of romaine lettuce and a baby bok choy. I kept these in shallow bowls of water about ½ inch deep, rinsing and changing the water each day. Just like the article said - but much to my amazement - the celery, romaine and bok choy began to regrow inner leaves within a week! After a second week I planted the newly forming plants about an inch-deep in garden soil and kept them watered.

It’s always refreshing to see signs of new life in a garden but especially when it emerges from a part of the vegetable that you would tend to toss away. My romaine and bok choys aren’t quite large enough to make a salad yet but I have a lot of celery leaves with new stalks forming. Then I began to ask – what am I going to do with all these celery leaves? Celery leaves, like their cousin the celeriac’s leaves, are edible and delicious. Their refreshing flavor can be used in place of parsley in tabbouleh or in a gremolata or added to mashed potatoes to make a celery-colcannon.

Since my basil hasn’t grown very large yet this year, I’m using some of my celery leaves to make a Celery Leaf Pesto. Its bright color and flavor add a delicate touch to summer pasta salads. You can also mix a little with some mayonnaise for a delicious sandwich spread, perfect with some homemade bread and those first ripe tomatoes of summer!

CELERY LEAF PESTO

1½ cups packed celery leaves, rinsed and dried (or a combination of celery leaves and parsley leaves)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup grated Parmesan Reggiano Cheese
1 tablespoon pine nuts (pignoli)
1 teaspoon fresh garlic, finely minced
½ cup extra virgin olive oil

In a food processor, combine the celery leaves, salt and pepper. Briefly pulse to combine.

Add the cheese, pine nuts and garlic. With the processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil through the feeder tube.

Mix well to totally emulsify. Pour the pesto into a covered container and set aside until ready to use. If you are making it in advance, cover the pesto sauce with a thin layer of additional olive oil to prevent darkening, although celery leaves do not tend to darken as basil leaves would when bruised.