you’ll need:

-1 onion, sliced

-whatever amount of fennel you want, sliced and keep the fronds around for garnish. as someone living and cooking alone i had a weird amount (like half a bulb + a bunch of stalks) (DO NOT discard the stalks btw they’re perfectly edible. slice v thin and eat raw in a salad or slice pretty thin and throw in this. or add to your pile of future stock ingredients if you have one of those. but they’re just as tasty as the bulbs omg don’t throw them out /rant)

-maybe a cup of mushrooms that have likewise been hanging out in your fridge, whatever size you feel like (i chopped them up roughly) (these are optional but i wanted to both use them up and build some savory flavor i knew i’d be missing by omitting the pancetta ATK calls for)

-however many cloves of garlic your heart desires, smashed

-dried or fresh herb of choice. ATK calls for thyme, since this recipe is a play on french onion soup recipes but i didn’t have that so i used rosemary

-plenty of salt and pepper

-bread. ATK calls for a baguette but i literally just diced up some regular old american sandwich bread and it works just fine

-bay leaf

-1 can of white beans (i used cannellini) including the liquid

-1/2 c dry alcohol of choice. ATK calls for sherry, i’m still working through my bottle of white wine

-1 c beef broth (i used better than bouillon)

-shredded cheese (ATK calls for gruyère + parmesan, i only had parm)

-cooking fat(s) of choice

-sheet tray

-a dutch oven or something similar. if you’re cooking for multiple people make sure it’s oven safe

-if cooking for yourself i recommend a small vessel that is u guessed it, oven safe

cooking directions:

1) turn oven to its lowest setting

2) while oven is preheating, dice up your bread and spread it out on a sheet tray. i added some olive oil to the bottom of the tray + on top of the bread

3) bread goes in the oven until it’s dried out

4) while bread is dehydrating, prep your veg and start heating your cooking fat (i used butter for this)

5) add onion, fennel, smashed garlic, salt, pepper, and your herb/s to the pot over lower heat. you’re gonna caramelize it

6) once it’s mostly caramelized add your shrooms

7) your bread is probably done by now go ahead and take it out of the oven. if you don’t have a broiler (or a vessel that will work with one), turn the oven up either as high as it will go or as high as your cooking vessel is safe to

8) once your shrooms are also nice and browned, add a splash of the alcohol and scrape up all that excellent fond from the bottom and sides of the pot. once you’ve fully deglazed add all of it, the beans w their liquid, the beef broth, and the bay leaf.

9) bring to a vigorous simmer and let the liquids thicken a bit

10a) if cooking for multiple people: kill heat, fish out the leaf, and add the bread and shredded cheese to the top

10b) if you’re using more single serve vessel/s portion stuff into those

11) you’re gonna toast that bread and brown that cheese (unless it’s 8pm in which case you’ll settle for simply melting it)