Louisiana Mirliton Dressing

Begin by filling a large container with water, then place it on the stovetop and bring it to a rolling boil. Next, add sliced mirliton to the boiling water and continue cooking until it reaches your desired level of tenderness, approximately 45 minutes. Remove the mirliton from the water with a slotted spoon and let it cool down before proceeding.

While the mirliton is cooking, prepare another pot of water for boiling. Add peeled and deveined shrimp to the water and cook until they turn pink, roughly 5 minutes. Remove the cooked shrimp from the pot with a slotted spoon and set it aside, reserving the cooking water for later use.

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit (that's 120 degrees Celsius for those using metric measurements).

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add sliced onions and minced garlic to the skillet and cook until they are soft and fragrant. Transfer the cooked onion mixture to a 9x13-inch baking dish.

Mix the cooked mirliton, shrimp, diced ham, and a beaten egg in the baking dish. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and 1 tablespoon of shrimp cooking water until well combined. Stir this mixture into the baking dish, followed by 1 cup of bread crumbs, chopped parsley, dried thyme, salt, and black pepper. If the mixture seems a bit dry, add a little more shrimp cooking water to achieve your desired consistency.

At this point, you can choose to bake the dish immediately, refrigerate it for later use, or freeze it. If desired, sprinkle a little more bread crumbs on top of the dish before baking.

Bake the dish in your preheated oven until it reaches a golden brown color on top, approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes.