Who doesn't love Bean Soup, because Ham Hocks are awesome

This cookbook sounds like yum city so I'm glad Serious Eats is posting recipes from it all week.

Zuppa di Fagioli with Rosemary Oil
- makes 8 to 10 servings -
Adapted from A Platter of Figs by David Tanis.

Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 large onions, finely diced
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 bay leaves
4 cups (2 pounds) dried white beans, preferably new-crop, picked over and rinsed
2 pounds smoked ham hocks
12 cups water
1 tablespoon fennel seeds, ground fine in a mortar or spice mill
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
1 teaspoon Rosemary Oil (recipe follows)

Procedure
1. Warm the 3 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy-bottomed soup pot over medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook gently until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and bay leaves and cook for a minute more.

2. Add the white beans and smoked ham hocks. Cover with the water and bring to a boil. Skim off any surface foam and turn the heat to low. Simmer gently for an hour, stirring occasionally.

3. Add the ground fennel, red pepper flakes, and a good spoonful of salt. Continue cooking for 1 hour more, or until the beans are quite tender and the smoked pork has begun to fall apart.

4. Taste the soup and season with salt and pepper. Cool to room temperature, the refrigerate, uncovered, overnight.

5. To serve, reheat the soup over a medium flame, stirring frequently. Thin with water if it has thickened too much overnight. Check the seasoning and adjust.

6. Drizzle a teaspoon of Rosemary Oil on top of each bowl of soup.


Rosemary Oil

To make the Rosemary Oil, warm 1/2 cup of olive oil in a small saucepan. Chop about a tablespoon of fresh rosemary and stir it into the oil. Turn off the heat.