Name: Slow-Cooker Tuscan White Bean Soup
Total time: 10 h
Ingredients: 2 onions , chopped fine; 6 ounces pancetta , chopped fine; 8 garlic cloves , minced; 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil , plus extra for serving; 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes; 4 cups chicken broth; 4 cups water; 1 pound (2 1/2 cups) dried great Northern or cannellini beans , picked over and rinsed; 1 Parmesan cheese rind (optional), plus grated Parmesan for serving; 2 bay leaves; 1 sprig fresh rosemary; Salt and pepper

Why This Recipe Works

With few ingredients to distract from flaws such as mushy beans or a thin broth, Tuscan White Bean Soup is rarely well prepared in a slow cooker. To create a richly perfumed base for our soup, we microwaved a hefty amount of flavorful pancetta along with a lot of onion and garlic. We added dried beans straight to the slow cooker, where the gentle simmering heat helped them cook through evenly. Rosemary is traditional in this soup, but after several hours it gave the broth a bitter, medicinal taste. Placing a sprig of rosemary in the soup to steep for a few minutes at the end of cooking allowed us to achieve just the right amount of fresh rosemary flavor.

Before You Begin

Serve with crusty bread or garlic toast to dip into the broth.

Instructions

1. Microwave onions, pancetta, garlic, oil, and pepper flakes in bowl, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes; transfer to slow cooker. Stir in broth, water, beans, Parmesan rind (if using), and bay leaves. Cover and cook until beans are tender, 8 to 10 hours on high.

Nestle rosemary sprig into soup, cover, and cook on high until rosemary is fragrant, about 15 minutes.

Discard rosemary sprig, bay leaves, and Parmesan rind, if using. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve, passing grated Parmesan and extra oil separately.