Tuscan Bean Soup

Ok, this is one of my attempts to mix a few different recipes into one and I'm not convinced it was successful. I've been enjoying leftovers for a week, which tells me at least I like it! I've had white bean soup a few times with different accoutrements like sausage and bell pepper; I've also read recipes for rustic bean soups with chard and crusty bread....so I filled the slow-cooker with broth, chard, sliced red pepper and italian sausage before I left for work. When I came home, I added 2 cans of white beans and cracked pepper for 20 more minutes. In each bowl, I sliced up cubes of super stale, crusty sourdough bread and poured the soup over them. Fresh parmesan cheese was then sprinkled on top for presentation.
The result was all good for me: yummy random Italian stuff thrown in a pot. All good! Except the bread got gooey and doughy and soaked up most of the soup so it became a bowl of goo and beans. I think John would vote against making this a recurring event but like I said, I've been enjoying leftovers all week!