A rattled cry came from the kitchen. When I ran to see what was the matter, I found Roy standing with the refrigerator door open, holding the most beautiful pale green bulb of fennel in his hand, asking how the celery had grown so ugly.

Unique refrigerator items are a fairly common occurrence in the life of a food professional since our business and passion includes thorough food investigations. This time, however, I found my favorite vegetable taster proclaiming all the reasons that "anise" was his least favorite vegetable, followed by our favorite expression from Brooklyn - "fuhgeddaboudit."

The adventurous challenge was set: how to create some fennel recipes that could convert a non-anise lover into a pleasant appreciator of this popular Italian and Mediterranean vegetable.

Fennel, the vegetable bulb, is different from the herb anise, which is grown for its seeds and the oil from its leaves. Grown from a root crown, fennel's bulb, stems and fern all appear above ground. It is a member of the parsley family. Some folks interchange the terms fennel and anise because both have mild licorice flavors. Grocery stores label fennel bulbs as fennel, Florence fennel, finocchio and sometimes mistakenly "anise."

There is more than one reason to open your refrigerator to this ugly celery. First of all, consider Thomas Jefferson's writing about fennel in his Garden Book, "The fennel is beyond every other vegetable, delicious." Remember, he was also the guy who led America to the delights of ice cream.

Secondly, fennel is low in calories (27 in 1 cup of raw slices) with a nice amount of fiber and vitamin C along with smaller amounts of calcium and iron.

The most compelling reason to be fair to fennel's future in your recipe repertoire is its phytonutrient compound, anethole. Anethole has been shown in animal studies to reduce inflammation and to help prevent the recurrence of cancer.

Next reason: It is easy to prepare. When choosing a fresh bulb, look for one without a lot of brown spots. Store in the refrigerator and when ready to use it, cut off the stalks where the bulb starts. Save the stalks to flavor soups and stews and remove them before serving. Save the leaves for garnish and add to finished recipes (use like fresh dill).

Wash the bulb. Slightly trim the base. If halving, quartering or slivering, cut out the dense core and discard. If slicing vertically, leave the core intact, so that it holds the layers together.

Lastly, when cooked, the flavor of fennel becomes more delicately licorice. In Provence, where fish stews abound, chefs combine chopped fennel with tomatoes, broth, rosemary and orange rind to produce a most flavorful stew with whatever seafood is fresh.

Andy Boy Produce Co. offers tempting fennel recipes online including recipes for Charred Fennel Potato Salad and Fennel, Cucumber Salad with Orange Mint Dressing. Check out other appetizer, salad, soup and main dishes online at www.andyboy.com.

Convincing Tomato Fennel Soup

Dinner was rushed one evening, so I was not in the kitchen when Roy served himself soup. Later, he commented on the delicious tomato soup. He now admits he is open to fennel recipes.

Ingredients:

2 small fennel bulbs

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

8 thin slices pepperoni, diced

28-ounce can kitchen-cut Roma tomatoes with basil

3 cups Pacific organic French onion soup

Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind piece

Kosher salt and pepper

Preparation:

Trim fennel bulb as above, removing core and slicing bulb lengthwise through the middle and then into ë-inch slices. Save some "feather leaves" for garnish.

Heat the olive oil in a 5-quart pot. When the oil is hot, add the fennel and pepperoni. Saute for 5 minutes to maximize flavors. Add the tomatoes, broth and cheese rind. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

When the mixture comes to a boil, turn the heat to medium low, cover and simmer 30 minutes. Remove rind. Puree or serve chunky. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with chopped fennel "feathers." Yield 6 cups.

Pat Ernst Dugan is a private chef, educator and food/recipe writer. E-mail her at foodlyyours@aol.com or send comments and questions to be forwarded to: Foodly Yours, Star-Gazette, Attn: Features Department, 201 Baldwin St., P.O. Box 285, Elmira, NY 14902.