Celery root and potato latkes

I tagged this recipe when I bought my first celery root this past fall, and although I didn't make it back then, I'm glad I remembered it when I bought celery root again this week. The celery root makes these latkes really unique and flavorful, and I enjoyed them quite a bit. I suppose it is a bit late in the holiday season to be posting a latke recipe...however, I think these could be a good addition to a New Year's Eve meal.  They'd make great appetizers to go along with some beer, and would also be a nice side dish, if you're looking for something starchy. And you might as well get some fried food in before those resolutions kick in!

While these latkes are delicious on their own, I do think they'd be best with some kind of sauce or chutney as an accompaniment. The recipe suggests applesauce or sour cream, but I didn't have either of those around. I ate mine with ketchup, but that was kind of boring and didn't really complement the celery root that well. I'm thinking that a spicy apple chutney would be great. I'd love to hear any ideas you have!

Quick chicken pot pie

I bought some celery root last week. I've heard good things about this ugly little vegetable, but I didn't know quite what to do with it. I finally ended up using it in a quick chicken pot pie, thinking that a warm, hearty dish would be appropriate for the rainy, windy weather that hurricane Earl was supposed to bring us. Although the hurricane never quite materialized, the pot pie was still delicious!

This recipe is from The Best 30-Minute Recipe. It's a quick version of chicken pot pie that is still really flavorful. I made the biscuits for the topping from scratch, which takes the recipe a bit over the 30-minute mark, but not by much. I really liked the addition of celery root here - the flavor and texture both worked well. But you can certainly use regular celery if that's what you have available.