Clean and trim, removing the sprigs that are too hard, and the leaves, that are to be cut where they begin to be green. Finally trim the stem. Then wash repeatedly in running water, drain and put to boil in salted boiling water. Remove when cooked and drain again.
About three quarters of an hour before serving, melt a piece of butter in a saucepan and brown the celery, turning them often for about ten minutes. After that pour over hot stock (soup stock or chicken broth) cover the saucepan and parboil. A few moments before serving season with brown stock, if you have any at hand, otherwise with salt and pepper only.
Select nine or ten heads, neither too hard nor too soft, and cut them about four inches from the root. Remove the green and hard branches and trim the root, cutting the latter to a point. Scald the celery, after washing well, in salted boiling water. Ten minutes will be sufficient. Dip in cold water, open well the leaves and wash again carefully. Drain and make bunches of two or three heads each that you will put in a saucepan with a pint of broth or water and half a cup of good fat, onion and carrot chopped, salt and pepper. Cover and let it simmer for about two hour. Then remove the celery, drain and serve.
The celery, prepared as above, are seasoned with the following sauce: Make a =roux= melting a piece of butter and browning an equal weight of flour; stir for about three minutes on the fire, after which thin the roux with a little brown stock or with bouillon cubes diluted in water. Continue stirring and reduce the sauce. Then rub through a sieve, pour over the celery and serve very hot.
This is a convenient way to prepare left-over celery that is still too good to be thrown away.
Clean the left-over celery removing as best you can the sauce in which they were served, dip in frying paste (flour and egg) fry and serve with lemon.
Take some big roots of celery, prepare as usual and wash in running water. Boil in salted water, crush and rub through a sieve. Put in a saucepan this purée, with a piece of butter, salt, flour and a little cream or milk. The milk may be substituted with good soup stock or brown stock. Just before serving add a little powdered sugar.