Escarole Soup with White Beans and Roasted Garlic

3 tablespoons olive oil
6 ounces pancetta, fi nely chopped
2 medium onions, fi nely chopped
2 medium heads escarole (about 1 pound each cored, shredded, and washed, but not dried
6 cups (11â„2 quarts) chicken broth
1 tablespoon chopped sage leaves or
1 teaspoon rubbed sage
3 cups canned cannellini or other small white beans, drained and rinsed
1 garlic head, roasted
3 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, fi nely grated
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1â„2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 large eggs

Heat a large saucepan or soup pot over medium heat. Swirl in the olive oil, add the pancetta, and sautÃ© until browned and frizzled at the edges, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes.
Add the onions and cook until pale but very fragrant, stirring often, about 2 minutes.
Add the escarole and cook just until the greens begin to wilt, tossing constantly, about 1 minute. Stir in the broth and sage, raise the heat to high, and bring to a simmer.
Reserve 1 cup of the beans in a small bowl; stir the remainder into the soup. Cover the saucepan, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, squeeze the roasted garlic pulp from its hulls into the bowl with the reserved beans. Mash with a fork until smooth.
After the soup has cooked for 20 minutes, whisk a small amount of the soup broth into the garlic-bean puree, just to dissolve it; then stir this combined mixture back into the soup. Stir in the cheese, salt, and pepper until the cheese melts.
Reduce the heat to very low so the soup stays hot without bubbling. Crack the eggs, one at a time, into a small custard cup or other small bowl, slip them into the soup, and cook until soft-set, about 3 minutes.
Use a large ladle to gather up the eggs one by one from the soup, place them in individual serving bowls, and ladle the soup around them.