Smashed Celeriac

There are some foods at the grocery store that always seem to be in stock, and yet when you get to the check-out counter the cashier almost invariably says "what is this"? Celeriac is one of those foods. Dirty brown and rough to the touch, the pale smooth flesh of the root is mild and pleasantly celery-flavoured. This is a simple way of preparing it, but if serving to others, let them know it isn't mashed potatoes because the texture and flavour is very different! I haven't enthused about Laura Calder in a while, but this is one of her gifts to the world.

1 large large celeriac, about 2 lbs/1 kg
Juice of ½ lemon
¼ cup milk
1 bay leaf
1 tsp salt
3 Tbsps (42gr) butter
¼ cup cream
Pepper

1. Peel and cut the celeriac roughly into 1" pieces. Put the lemon juice, milk, and bay leaf in a large pot; pour over 8 cups water; add the salt; bring to a boil; and simmer until the celeriac is very tender.
2. Drain, reserving a cup of the liquid. Remove the bay leaf. Stir the butter and cream into the celeriac, then purée, either in a blender until very smooth or, more to my liking, with a potato masher until you get the consistency you want (I like it with some bits in to give a bit of a coarse texture. Add as much of the reserved cooking liquid as needed (this is more useful when puréeing in the blender). Season with pepper and salt, to taste, and serve hot.