The past December feastings have seen us enjoying a lot of different kinds of salads: Variety of fruit salads, vegetable salads and also many kinds of pasta salads. Fruit salads were enjoyed for its sweet taste and colorful presentations. The health conscious were delighted with veggies served with a little twist on their dressings, and those that were served salads made with pasta were happy with the creamy taste of mayonnaise or sauces on their platters.

The typical fruit salad is made with canned fruits, but those who were more on the healthier side, had their fruit salads with freshly cut apples, pears, pineapple and banana. Salads made with pasta may be made with either of these types of pasta: round rod pasta, thick or thin spaghetti, hallowed spaghetti, long coiled tubes, thick flat ribbon pasta or fettuccine noodles. Other than the highlight on the pasta used the ingredients that give the flavors make the salad unique in its taste. One salient and yet important flavor ingredient is celery.

Along with carrots, onions and potatoes, celery has become a household staple. Celery contains a lot of vitamins (B1, B2, B6, B9, A, C and K) and minerals (Potassium, Molybdenum, Manganese, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Iron). Aside from vitamins and minerals, celery is known to contain active compounds like coumarin and phthalides that are known for cancer prevention and lowering cholesterol respectively. When used as an ingredient for cold salads, you can get a good amount of vitamin C from celery. Consumption of vitamin C has long been associated with reduced cold symptoms and reduced severity of inflammatory conditions.

While they say that celery is naturally high in sodium, the actual amount of sodium per 100 grams (one full cup- 2 stalks worth) of celery is only 100 mg; thus, an individual may be able to include 2 stalks of celery a day while keeping their total sodium intake low to keep to the recommended amount of 2400 mg sodium per day for most adults. For some adults who are actively into sports, it is for the sodium content of celery that they go after in making it into a juice.

Celery is not just for salads, it can be added into soups, and stews. The flavor is most intense in the leaves and outer stalks. Those growing celery for the gourmet market shield the stalks from steady sun during the plant’s long growing period. Here now is a salad recipe with your flavourful and nutritious celery.

Shrimps with Celery

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked shrimp, halved lengthwise and chilled
1 cup thinly sliced celery
1 tablespoon finely minced onion
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
shredded cabbage
thinly sliced tomatoes
¼ cup raisins

Preparation:

In a medium bowl, mix shrimp with celery, onion, lemon juice, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve on a bowl with thinly sliced tomatoes and shredded cabbage. Garnish with raisins.