A few weeks ago, gardening season officially ended for us- the plants have been dug up, the protective fence remove-  and we were left with  a few tomatoes, two eggplants, and a handful of tiny white onions. So I used what we had and whipped up a tasty pot of Slow Roasted Pulled Pork and Veggie Soup in the Crockpot.Read the full article in this week’s issue of whatzup.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. slow roasted pulled pork
• 1 can chickpeas, drained
• 1 can stewed tomatoes, drained
• 1 large white onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 small eggplant, cut into 1 inch pieces, skin on
• 4 large carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 cans low sodium chicken broth
• 2 tbsp. cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• Salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, and parsley to taste

Preparation:
Make ahead: Slow roast the pork ribs in the oven, 3-4 hours, until easily pulled from the bone. Store pork in an airtight
container in the refrigerator. This can be done a couple of days ahead. Place pork in bottom of the crock pot, 2 inches deep. Layer in chickpeas, tomatoes, onion, eggplant, carrots and garlic. Add remaining ingredients and set crock pot to low. Cook for 8-10 hours. To speed cooking time, increase heat to high and cook for 4-6 hours, stirring occasionally. To make this a stew, simply add flour to your broth.