Celebrate Sauvignon Blanc Day!

By Beth Heiserman

I’ve been in the mood for a green bean casserole. So, I went to the market the other day to get all the fixings that I would need. The first thing that I needed to put on my shopping list was celery to make cream of celery soup. Believe it or not they were out of celery. I had a very difficult time for a couple days finding a market that had celery. I went to another market and it was so sad I didn’t want to buy it just because I wanted it for my recipe. I then went to the farmers market and found the best-looking celery there was and then I gathered up the rest of my ingredients; leeks, onions, Green beans, mushrooms and chives.

This trip to the farmers market was a definite success. Everything we sampled was so delicious. I also bought blood orange juice that was probably the best I’ve ever had. The farm sold oranges and freshly squeezed juice and when I mean freshly squeezed, they squeezed it and put it in the bottle to order.

People always associate this dish with Thanksgiving, but it is also a wonderful spring dish. I love this comfort food with rainbow trout and a cold glass of Reyes 2013 Sauvignon Blanc. Today is #SauvBlancDay and how better else to celebrate.

The first part of my recipe is cream of celery soup. Why buy canned soup when fresh is available? I understand that many people like the convenience of a canned soup but when you taste this recipe you won’t ever substitute again. 15 years ago, I had to cut out salt from my diet and canned soup has an extreme amount of sodium which isn’t healthy. A half a cup of canned soup is approximately 35% of your sodium intake for one day. Why waste your sodium all on one dish? I learned to pick and choose the items I eat. I generally save it for pretzels, one of my indulgences. Plus, the time to make this healthy dish is about 45 minutes for the soup and then an additional 30 minutes in the oven for the casserole to bake.

I add salt to taste after I have finished making the soup. When adding salt while it’s cooking the salt can intensify.

The original recipe was created in 1955 and called for cream of mushroom soup. I prefer cream of celery soup and adding fresh mushrooms. I love the aromatics that celery gives to a dish.

Cream of Celery Soup

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 1/2 cups sliced leeks, white and light green parts only
• 5 cups of chopped celery, and 2 cups of diced celery (from one large bunch of celery or two small bunches)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 2 cups Reyes 2013 Sauvignon Blanc
• ½ teaspoon salt, kosher
• ¼ cup of nonfat milk
• 1 tsp Freshly ground black pepper
• Fresh chopped chives

Directions

1. Melt olive oil in a 4 ½ quart cast iron pot on medium heat.
2. Sauté onions, leeks and celery for about 10 minutes.
3. Remove 2 cups of sautéed celery to add later
4. Add garlic, bay leaf, vegetable stock and Reyes 2013 Sauvignon Blanc and continue to cook on a medium heat until it boils.
5. Reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook for about 10 minutes.
6. With a stick blender, blend the soup into a puree. (You can use a regular blender but be careful when blender hot ingredients.
7. In the same pot, add the nonfat milk and remaining 2 cups of celery.
8. Finish with salt and pepper to taste
9. Sprinkle fresh chives
10. Serve with a glass of Reyes 2013 Sauvignon Blanc

Green Bean Casserole

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups of cream of celery soup
• 12oz package of mushrooms
• 1 pound (3 cups) of fresh green beans, chopped
• 1 cup fried onions + extra for topping
• 1 tsp of Worcestershire sauce

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray nonstick spray into a 9×9 square baking dish
3. Combine all ingredients and put into baking dish.
4. Top with additional fried onions.
5. Bake for 20 minutes.
6. Serve with a glass of Reyes 2013 Sauvignon Blanc.