Cooked Celery, Ready to Serve

Cindy Woodsmall is a best-selling author of seven books, including her most recent book, Plain Wisdom. Her ability to authentically capture the heart of her characters comes from her real-life connections with Amish Mennonite and Old Order Amish families.

My Old Order Amish friend Rachel made an entire wedding meal for me during one of my visits. She invited some mutual friends, and we had a marvelous time! The food and fellowship were outstanding, but I’ve yet to get comfortable with her sacrifice of time. Of all the foods she’d prepared as part of the typical Amish wedding feast, I saw one I hadn’t expected to like—cooked celery. I like celery, but I’d never eaten it cooked. It was so good I had a second helping. Rachel’s mother even prepared a bowl of it for me to take back to Miriam’s so I could have more at lunch the next day.


All of the Ingredients for Cooked Celery

Cooked Celery for Six

• 2 quarts celery, cut into bite-size pieces (Note: 11/2 to 2 stalks of celery equal two quarts, and a stalk consists of approximately a dozen individual ribs.)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• butter, the size of a walnut
• 2 teaspoons vinegar
• 2 cups whole milk, approximately
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 21/2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons flour

Slowly bring the celery, salt, water, white sugar, butter, and vinegar to a low boil. Cook ingredients for about 10 minutes or until celery is soft. Once the celery is soft, cover with whole milk, and slowly heat to almost boiling. (Don’t bring to a second boil.) Then in a separate bowl, mix the evaporated milk, brown sugar, and flour until the mixture is smooth, and slowly add it to the rest of the ingredients. Stir until thoroughly heated, and serve it warm.


Cooking the Celery