Ingredients

• 12  baby artichokes
• 6  cups chicken broth or reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1  cup small boiling onions, peeled and halved, or pearl onions
• 4  ounces pancetta or 5 slices bacon, crisp-cooked, drained, and cut into small pieces
• 1  teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
• 1/4  teaspoon pepper
• 2  cups cooked* or canned fava or lima beans, rinsed and drained
• 12  ounces fresh asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1  medium fennel bulb, chopped
• 1/4  cup snipped fennel leaves

Directions

1. Remove tough outer green leaves from artichokes. The inside leaves will be more tender and greenish-yellow. Snip off about 1 inch from the leaf tops, cutting where the green meets the yellow. Trim the stems. Quarter the artichokes lengthwise; set aside.

2. Combine broth, onions, pancetta or bacon, fennel seed, and pepper in a 4-quart Dutch oven; bring to boiling. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add artichokes and beans; cook for 5 minutes. Add asparagus and fennel; cook for 5 minutes more or till vegetables are tender.

3. To serve, ladle into soup bowls. Top with snipped fennel leaves. Makes 8 side-dish servings or 4 main-dish servings.

*Note: To cook fresh or frozen fava or lima beans, simmer, covered, in a small amount of boiling water for 15 to 25 minutes or until tender. Drain and cool slightly. When cool, remove skins from fava beans. For 2 cups of cooked fava beans, purchase 2 pounds of fava beans in the pod.