Scalloped Celeriac & Potatoes

"Celeriac" is also called "celery root" by some, and it looks absolutely awful. If you want to scare someone on Halloween, go out dressed like a bulb of celeriac. Celeriac has a mild taste of celery and it's great in a dish like this. This is a gratin; that is, it has a bit of a crispy topping to it (see "Word History"). 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup celeriac, peeled and sliced or chopped
1 large potato, peeled and sliced
1 medium onion, chopped (don't leave big pieces, they take longer to cook)
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoons flour
2 tablespoons (approximately) butter or oil to grease the dish
1 1/4 cup shredded or chopped cheddar cheese or sharp American cheese
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon celery salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2/3 cup chicken broth
1 can evaporated milk (12 ounce)
1/2 to 2/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 to 3 tablespoons butter to top

In a sauce pan over low heat, add the butter and oil. Melt the butter and then gradually whisk in the flour until it forms a roux or paste. Now gradually add the chicken broth, whisking constantly until the broth has been completely added and it is combined and smooth. Now gradually add the milk in the same way, until it too is combined and smooth. Heat the oven to 400 F. In a bowl, mix together the celeriac, potato, onion, garlic, thyme, celery salt, black pepper and chopped parsley. Use some oil or butter to grease a baking dish, then add about half of the celeriac/potato mixture to the baking dish. Pour half of the milk/chicken broth sauce over the celeriac/potato mixture. Add the rest of the celeriac/potato mixture, and then add the rest of the sauce. Lightly shake the dish to make sure the contents settle. Scatter the cheese over the top, then sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the cheese. Cut the butter into small portions and scatter it over the top. Put the lid or aluminum foil over the dish. Bake at 400 degrees (F) for 45 minutes covered, then about 20 to 30 minutes uncovered, or until the potatoes and celeriac are tender, and the topping is somewhat crispy. (NOTE: You can place the dish under the broiler briefly at the end to crisp up the topping, too, but be careful that it doesn't burn; it will need your constant attention.)

WORD HISTORY:
Grate (Gratin)-These words are closely related, going back to Indo European "gred/gret," with the meaning, "to scratch, to scrape." This gave Old Germanic "krattojanan," also meaning, "to scratch, to scrape," and this gave Frankish, a Germanic dialect of western Europe, "kratton," with the same meaning. This was absorbed by Old French, a Latin-based, but Germanic influenced language, as "grat(t)er," with the meaning, "to scrape, to scratch away, to rub or scrape away;" thus, "eradicate;" thus too, "destroy." This was borrowed by English as "grate" ("to scratch, to rub vigorously") in the latter 1300s.^ French also had "gratin," a noun for "crust" ("that which is scraped onto the top of food to form a top crust;" the word "seemingly" formed in the late 1500s?), which was borrowed by English, or at least popularized in English, circa 1800. "Grate" and "gratin"  are examples of  words of Germanic origin that were borrowed into other Germanic languages from a non Germanic-based language; in this case, French. I could not find a word in Old English that was a relative of "grate," or more precisely, Frankish "kratton," although there may have been one that was unrecorded (the common people usually could not read nor write) or that died out, but it seems strange to me, as other Germanic languages had forms. Back then, English used a number of words to say "scratch" or "scrape," including "screpan," which became modern "scrape."   

^ English also has the noun "grate," used for "a grill, a stove or a fireplace," or "a series of crisscrossed bars or strips (usually metal), used as a covering," but it is from a different source (I'll cover this word soon).