Name: French Onion & Endive Soup Recipe with Pancetta
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 65 min
Ingredients: 2 ounces pancetta (chopped); 1 teaspoon olive oil; 4 cloves garlic (minced); 4 cups thinly sliced onions; 2 heads Belgian endive (halved lengthwise and thinly sliced); 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper; 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; 1/2 cup red wine; 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar; 4 1/2 cups canned low-fat beef broth; 4 large baguette slices (preferably whole wheat); 1/4 cup packed grated white cheddar cheese

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Salty, crumbly pancetta and endive elevate this French onion soup recipe to something really special. Hearty, comforting and lightened up!

Before jumping into the French Onion & Endive Soup recipe (with my favorite pairing of pancetta), I want to sincerely thank each and every one of you who left comments and sent me emails and tweets after I posted My Health & Weight Loss Journey: Before & After Photos. Your support and kind comments, as well as the personal stories that some of you shared, made the whole experience of posting my journey so worthwhile.

Part of sticking with a healthy eating lifestyle is using a variety of ingredients to keep the meals interesting. Endive is one of those vegetables that recently took a place in our repertoire.

Jump directly to the recipe for French Onion & Endive Soup with Pancetta.

Ever since I became a part of the OnDiva team with Discover Endive, I gained a new appreciation for the health benefits of this power-packed vegetable, which can easily be tossed into salads or cooked down to mellow the distinctive flavor.

Earlier this month, Rachael of La Fujimama put together a video of all the OnDiva bloggers. We each talked about about our favorite pairings with endive. They range from avocados to Gruyere cheese. What is my favorite pairing for endive? You guessed it - pancetta.

Pancetta is an Italian bacon that is cured with salt and seasoned with various spices such as garlic, fennel and peppercorns. I find the easiest way to cook pancetta is to chop it and throw it into a pan set over medium-high heat. In this recipe, a small amount of the pancetta drippings is combined with olive oil and used to saute the sliced onions and endive. The crumbled, cooked pancetta is stirred into the vegetables for a comforting, flavorful base for a take on French onion soup.

When I talked about moderation in my weight loss post, this is exactly what I meant. Is pancetta a healthy ingredient? Of course not. But there's nothing wrong with using a small amount of a flavor-packed ingredient to add a salty, savory touch to a dish. The extra fat in French onion soup typically comes from the cheese-laden crouton on top. I tried to lower the potential calorie damage by using a whole wheat bread and using a mere tablespoon of cheese. Let me tell you, I didn't miss the extra cheese. The flavor of the endive, onions and rich broth saw to that.

The Endive & French Onion Soup recipe:

Cut eat onion in half through the root, peel and thinly slice. Cut each head of endive in half lengthwise and thinly slice crosswise.

Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat and add the chopped pancetta. Cook until golden brown. Remove the pancetta with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel.

Discard all but 1 teaspoon of the pancetta, add 1 teaspoon olive oil and set the saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add onions and endive and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are very soft and light golden brown.

Reduce heat to medium heat and cook until the onions and endive are golden brown, about 15 minutes

Add the wine and balsamic vinegar and stir until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 3 minutes. Add the beef broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer about 20 minutes. Stir in the cooked pancetta.

Place the baguette slices on a cookie sheet and toast in a 350 degree oven for about 5 minutes.

Preheat the broiler. Ladle the soup into ovenproof bowls and top each with 1 baguette slices and 1 tablespoon cheese.

Broil until the cheese is bubbling and slightly brown. Serve.

Other endive recipes with pancetta or bacon:

All Day I Dream About Food's Bacon, Gruyere & Endive Quiche
Savour Fare's Endive & Bacon Salad
Souffle Bombay's Endive with Sweet Potato, Bacon & Chives