Marilyn Monroe’s Stuffing

A friend pointed me to this recipe on the NY Times, and it's officially on the must-try list for Thanksgiving! Adapted from “Fragments” by Marilyn Monroe (Farrar, Straus & Giroux; $30)

• Ready In: 4 hrs
• Yields: 20 cups

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 lb beef (ground round or other beef)
• 1  tablespoon  cooking oil
• 4  stalks celery, chopped
• 1  large onion, chopped
• 2  cups  chopped curly parsley
• 2  eggs, hard boiled, chopped
• 1 1⁄2 cups raisins
• 1  cup parmesan cheese, grated
• 1 1⁄4 cups  chopped walnuts (or pine nuts or roasted chestnuts)
• 2  teaspoons  dried crushed rosemary
• 2  teaspoons  dried crushed oregano
• 2  teaspoons  dried crushed thyme
• 3  bay leaves
• 1  tablespoon poultry seasoning (or 1 teaspoon dried sage, 1 teaspoon marjoram, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger and 1/2 teaspoon ground nu)
• 1  tablespoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1  tablespoon pepper

Directions

1. Split the bread loaf in half and soak it in a large bowl of cold water for 15 minutes. Wring out excess water over a colander and shred into pieces.
2. Boil the livers or hearts for 8 minutes in salted water, then chop until no piece is larger than a coffee bean.
3. In a skillet over medium-high heat, brown the ground beef in the oil, stirring occasionally and breaking up the meat, so no piece is larger than a pistachio.
4. In your largest mixing bowl, combine the sourdough, livers, ground beef, celery, onion, parsley, eggs, raisins, Parmesan and nuts, tossing gently with your hands to combine. Whisk the rosemary, oregano, thyme, bay leaves, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper together in a bowl, scatter over the stuffing and toss again with your hands. Taste and adjust for salt. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to use as a stuffing or to bake separately as dressing.