Slow Cooker Easy Multi-Bean Soup I tried making this today, and I followed the directions exactly. It is very easy to put all the ingredients together, and it smelled very good while cooking. Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to eat it. After it had been cooking for a while, I happened to learn that kidney beans (which were included in my bean mix -- I think they're pretty common) need to be boiled thoroughly for at least 10 minutes before cooking in a slow cooker. Apparently if you don't do this, they are toxic, and cooking at a low temperature actually increases the amount of poison. To be safe, I am going to throw out my soup and start over tomorrow :-( But I am extremely frustrated and disappointed that this was not pointed out in the recipe. Sources: http://www.fda.gov/food/foodsafety/foodborneillness/foodborneillnessfoodbornepathogensnaturaltoxins/badbugbook/ucm071092.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slow_cooker http://www.dadcooksdinner.com/2010/09/slow-cookers-and-red-kidney-bean.html