Celery as a Fast Food

As soon as you get home from the grocery store, prepare your celery.  Hesitation may turn into procrastination, and you want fresh celery.

Find a vessel that will hold an entire bunch of celery.  I found a glass vase that fits perfectly on my refrigerator door.  It is not necessary to have a lid for this container.  Plastic will work, but I like the look of glass.

Using a sharp knife, slice the end of the bunch.  This is quicker to do than to explain.

You now have a pretty veggie rose, but discard it, unless, it is needed as stamping tool to make poster paint rose patterns.

Also toss the leaves, unless you are making a pot of soup, in that case, rinse and chop and add wonderful flavor to your soup pot.  Sometimes I only cut the bottom and let the foliage hang out the the refrigerator.  It kind of looks pretty, but you have to deal with leaves every time you use a rib.

Rinse the prepared celery ribs well, but keep them kind of in the order they grew, so that they will fit into your vase.

Plunge your handful of clean, prepared celery ribs into your water-filled vase.

Store your instant fresh veggie vase on the refrigerator door.   It is quick to grab and go.  Snack accompaniments include:  any variation of cheese, peanut butter, hummus, or dip.  You probably will prefer just the plain celery.  It is crunchy and cold and delicious by itself.  This is also perfect to add to dinner entrees.  Stir fry, chicken pot pie, soups,salads and sandwiches, all benefit by having prepared celery ready to chop or slice and use.  My celery lasts in the fridge for about two weeks, but we usually eat it all in less than a week.