Cannellini bean soup/stew

Place the onion and olive oil into your slow cooker and cook on high for about an hour.

Then add the garlic, drained beans, carrots, herbs and enough water to come about an inch over the rest.

(Alternatively, if you're not going to be around for the first hour, just shove it all in at once.)

Cook for 4 hours on high, or for about 6 on low and 2 on high.

A hour before you want to eat add the chopped spinanch and give it all a good stir. Pop the lid back on and let it cook for another hour. This is very flexible, so it could be 3 hours in to your 4 hour cooking time, or after 4 hours, then giving it another hour.

Taste your stew/soup and, if you feel it needs a bit of extra voom, add some bouillon or dried stock. Season with salt and pepper.

Add water to make to your required consistency - stew or soup as the occasion demands.

The stew version is great with baked potatoes or rice. Or you could add some pot barley when you add the spinach.