Mrs. Helena's Mirliton Dressing 

My husband came home a few nights before Thanksgiving so excited to give me this recipe.  One of my husbands most favorite people, Mr. Joe, came to his work to make copies of this recipe for his wife.  They were giving it to some friends and he told my husband to make an extra copy for him.  
At first, I didn't pay any mind to it, because I wasn't going to do a Mirliton dish this year.  But, I wanted to do it because it was from them and it was like having a part of them there with us.  He and his wife are so sweet and brighten my husband's work days.  It came out so awesome, so I am excited to share this with y'all! This will be a staple for our Thanksgiving from now on. 

Ingredients: 

• 4-6 mirlitons 
• 1 lb of peeled and deveined shrimp
• 1 tbsp Slap ya mama cajun seasoning 
• 1/2 stick butter 
• 1 large onion diced 
• 1/2 cup celery chopped 
• 1/2 cup bell pepper chopped 
• 3 tbsp garlic minced 
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 tsp pepper 
• 1/2 lb crab meat 
• 1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs 

Directions: 

• In a large pot, bring the mirlitons to a boil and boil until you can poke easily with a fork- about 25-30 minutes 
• Drain and cool 
• Chop up the shrimp and place in a bowl, season with half of the slap ya mama seasoning 
• Cover and refrigerate until use
• Remove the seeds from the mirlitons
• Scoop our the pulp and reserve (leave the shell about 1/4 inch thick if you want to stuff the shell with the dressing) 
• Preheat oven to 350
• Melt butter in a large sauté pan
• Sauté down the onions, celery, and bell pepper until tender- about 5 minutes 
• Add milliton pulp 
• Sprinkle remaining slap ya mama seasoning, salt and pepper 
• Cook for 8-10 minutes on low heat 
• Add shrimp and cook until pink
• Add breadcrumbs
• Adjust seasoning
• Stuff shells or bake in a baking dish for about 25 minutes