Excellent Birds, Laurie Anderson's Birdhouse Potatoes with Brussels Sprouts, Snap Peas, and Mushrooms from The Ladies Village Improvement Society Cookbook by Florence Fabricant (Rizzoli, April 2020/ Photo © Doug Young)

Yes from that Laurie Anderson, another facet of the multi-media artist

Birdhouse Potatoes with Brussels Sprouts, Snap Peas, and Mushrooms by Laurie Anderson

This recipe, from the performance artist who lives part time in Springs, is flat-out delicious—so much so that when I made it for Thanksgiving instead of my usual potato gratin, no one missed the dish. The mushrooms were my idea, added with Laurie’s approval.

SERVES 6 TO 8

Ingredients:

salt
10 small Yukon gold potatoes
1 cup sugar snap peas
1 pint brussels sprouts (about 20), rinsed, trimmed, and halved
1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
zest of 1 lemon
½ cup minced shallots
4 ounces medium cremini mushrooms, stemmed and quartered 1¼
cups heavy cream or half-and-half
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

Directions:

Bring a pot of water with ½ teaspoon salt to boil. Add the potatoes, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the potatoes and set them aside to cool. Add the peas to the pot, cook for 5 minutes, then drain them.

Toss the Brussels sprouts with 1½ teaspoons of the olive oil and the lemon zest and season with salt. Arrange them cut side down in a large heavy skillet. Place over high heat, and when the Brussels sprouts start to sizzle, lower the heat to medium and cook for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Remove them from the pan. Add the shallots to the pan and cook until they have softened, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining oil. Stir in the mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms have wilted, another 5 minutes or so. Add the peas and cook briefly, stirring, until they have softened a bit, about 3 minutes. Quarter the potatoes and add them.

In a small bowl, whisk the cream and mustard together and add to the pan. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes to slightly thicken the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a warm dish, scatter with the thyme, and serve.

Thanksgiving classics

(*Laurie Anderson's Birdhouse Potatoes with Brussels Sprouts, Snap Peas, and Mushrooms from The Ladies Village Improvement Society Cookbook by Florence Fabricant published by Rizzoli, April 2020/ Photo © Doug Young, reproduced with permission)