RECIPES
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Celery
The following recipes show you why Celery is such a great vegetable to dehydrate!
With an Ezidri dehydrator you can create dried Celery slices, flakes & powder and more in no time at all! Dried celery makes a flavoursome addition when used in a variety of recipes like soups, casseroles & more! It is handy to keep some dried celery in a glass jar at all time - you will be surprised at how often you'll use it!
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HOW TO DRY CELERY
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Celery can be dried as pieces, flakes or powder, all of which are extremely useful! Celery powder for instance provides a very intense flavour ideal for adding to any soups or casseroles & even as a topping for your baked potatoes! If you choose to add dehydrated celery pieces to your soups etc, you may wish to rehydrate it first as it will draw a lot of the cooking liquid.
To dry your celery remove the root & leaves and wash well. Cut the celery into 1-2cm lengths - any smaller & they'll drop through your Ezidri trays when drying due to the extreme shrinkage! Place the lengths on your Ezidri trays & dry at 55 deg C (Snackmaker - Medium) for 6-10 hours.
You can also choose to grate your celery & create your own dehydrated celery flakes. These should take between 6 & 10 hours to dry, and should be placed on Mesh Sheets.
Celery leaves are also useful to flavour recipes - to dry simply pull the leaves from the stalks, spread onto Solid Sheets and dry at 35 deg C (Snackmaker - Low) for 6 hours.
Celery is 94% water so it will reduce in size dramatically. You may want to condense the trays a few hours into the drying process. When ready, celery should be quite crisp.
To create your own celery powder, simply place the dried celery pieces or leaves into a food processor and make into a fine powder. You may need to put the powder through a sieve & place the lumps into a food processor for a second time to achieve this. The end result will be a wonderful powder with a strong celery flavour ideal for cooking!
To make celery salt, mix equal parts of salt with the finely ground celery powder.
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CELERY & CHEESE BAKE
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Ingredients
2 cups dehydrated celery
1 cup sour cream
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp orange juice
1/2 tsp dehydrated orange rind
1 1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
Method
Place celery in a saucepan & barely cover with boiling water. Simmer for 15 minutes, drain & cool slightly. Stir in sour cream, grated cheese, orange juice, orange rind, mustard, salt & pepper.
Blend well & pour into a small, lightly greased baking dish. Sprinkle with sesame seeds & bake in a hot oven at 200 deg C. Remove from oven as soon as sesame seeds turn colour.
Cut into slices and enjoy!
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Recipe courtesy of Drying Food, by Ricky M Gribling.
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WILD RICE & VEGETABLE PILAF
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Ingredients
1 1/2 cups wild rice
1 1/2 cups white rice
6 1/2 cups chicken stock or water
500g bacon
2 cups rehydrated diced onions
2 cups chopped rehydrated celery
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, loosely packed
3/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
Salt & pepper, to taste
Method
Cook rices separately, each in 3 1/4 cups of the stock, following package directions.
Chop bacon into small pieces & saute in a large pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan & drain off most of the fat.
Saute onions & celery over medium heat in pan until tender. Add parsley, cooked rice & pine nuts. Season to taste with salt & pepper.
Serve immediately & enjoy!
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Recipe courtesy of The Dehydrator Cookbook, by Joanna White.
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