If you already know how to make twice baked potatoes, this post may seem unnecessary. And indeed, I won’t be blowing the lid off of the things, as mine are about as basic and straightforward as they get. But see, I believe I’m performing a bit of a service with this website. I really want to show people how to cook simple, delicious things they may never have learned to cook before. And that’s what this post is about.
The great thing about twice baked potatoes is,precise measurements really aren’t necessary. Basically, what you do is you bake some potatoes, scrape out the insides, then add a bunch of yummy stuff and mix it together. Then you fill the scraped-out potato shells with the new potato mixture, top with cheese, and bake again, just to warm it up. So you bake them twice. Get it? Twicebakedpotatoes? I’m so glad I’m here to explain these things to you.
I’ve provided precise measurements here, just to give you a little starting point. But adding the ingredients really should be an organic process: plop in some softened butter, sour cream, bacon bits, cheese, and seasonings. Taste the mixture and add more of whatever it needs. If you like, add some chopped green onions. Then if the mixture is a little too thick, add a splash or milk or even buttermilk, for some extra dimension. Then stir it together, add it to the potato shells, and you’re good to go!
Let’s do it together, shall we?
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- Yields:
- 8 - 12 serving(s)
- Prep Time:
- 30 mins
- Total Time:
- 1 hr 45 mins
Ingredients
- 8
baking potatoes, washed
- 2
sticks of butter, cubed
- 8
slices cooked bacon, crumbled or finely chopped
- 1 c.
sour cream
- 2 c.
cheddar jack cheese, divided
- 1 c.
whole milk
- 2 tsp.
seasoned salt
- 1/2 tsp.
ground black pepper, plus more for serving
- 4
green onions, thinly sliced
Directions
- Step1Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prick each potato with a fork, 3-4 times. Place on a baking sheet and roast for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until tender when pressed. Let rest until cool enough to handle. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees.
- Step2 Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add the bacon and sour cream. With a sharp knife, cut each potato in half lengthwise. Scrape out the flesh of the potato and add it to the the mixing bowl, being careful not to tear the skin. (Leave a thin layer of potato intact all over the skin so that the filling has some support). Place the potato skins on a baking sheet.
- Step3Using a potato masher, mash the potatoes into the butter, bacon and sour cream. Add 1 cup of cheese, milk, seasoned salt, ¾’s of the green onions and black pepper. Mix well to combine.
- Step4Fill the potato shells evenly with the mashed potato mixture. Divide the remaining 1 cup of cheese evenly over top of each potato piece. Bake the potatoes once again until golden brown on top and heated through, about 20 minutes. Top evenly with the remaining scallions and a little more black pepper before serving.
The Cast of Characters: Potatoes, Butter, Sour Cream, Cheddar/Jack Cheese, Bacon Bits, Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, Black Pepper, milk (if necessary) and Green Onion (optional).
FIRST THINGS FIRST: Wash, then place eight baking potatoes on a cookie sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 1 hour, 15 minutes, making sure they’re sufficiently cooked through.
Now begin slicing two sticks of butter into pats.
Until they’re all sliced.
Place them into a large mixing bowl. I hope yours is as scratched as mine.
Now DON’T FREAK OUT; you are more than welcome to fry a bunch of bacon and crumble it to make one cup of bacon pieces—and I’ve done that before—but honestly, these work just fine! Though I have to say, I have no idea what "Picnic Bacon" is. And I’m not sure I want to know.
Measure one cup, and dump them into the bowl with the butter. Look! Groovy! You can see my ceiling. Trippy, man.
Now for the sour cream. I suppose you COULD use the low-fat stuff…but why?
Measure one cup of the white, creamy stuff…
…And dump it into the mixing bowl with the other evildoers.
Now, the potatoes are all done. The reason you bake them "naked" is so the skin will be nice and firm—and strong enough to hold the filling later. Within a few minutes after you remove the baked potatoes from the oven, you need to begin scraping them out.
Did you know hot potatoes are HOT? Man alive, they’ll burn your fingers down to the bone. So make a little cradle with a dish towel, and use it to hold the little hotties.
With a sharp serrated knife…
…Cut each potato in half lengthwise.
Now, with a large spoon, begin scraping out the insides into the bowl.
Keep scraping, being careful not to tear the shell. (Though if you do tear one, please don’t wig out and flog yourself.)
You should leave just a little bit in there for support, but try to remove most of it.
Lay the hollowed out potato shells on a cookie sheet.
Now, do you have one of these? It’s a potato masher, and I use it all the time. We go shopping together and brush each other’s hair.
Begin smashing the potatoes with the other ingredients.
Now, some folks like to get the potato texture totally smooth, but I actually like to keep it a little bit lumpy. More interesting that way. Kinda like bottoms. Hypothetically speaking, of course.
Now fetch that trusty Lawry’s Seasoned Salt from your spice cabinet. Anyone have a count of how many of my recipes call for Lawry’s? It’s an epidemic.
Measure about 1/4 teaspoon and add it to the bowl. You can always adjust the seasonings later.
Now add about 1 cup of grated cheddar/jack cheese and mix it in well.
DON’T FREAK OUT, but you can use this basic ground black pepper if you’d like. I’ve used fresh ground before, but this works just fine.
Go ahead and spice it up, baby.
Now, at this point, you could go ahead and stuff the potato shells. Or, if you like a little more flavor…
Cut the end off of one green onion…
And slice about 2/3 of it.
Throw ’em into the bowl…
And mix them in. (IMPORTANT: If you plan to freeze the twice baked potatoes, do NOT add green onion. Did you know freezing chemically alters the taste of green onions? Oh, gosh, it does and it happened to me once. The potatoes were ruined. I’ve never forgotten.)
Now go back to your potato shells. They’re feeling very empty inside.
Scoop out some of the yummy potato filling and begin filling the shells.
Keep going until the filling’s all gone. You might have a shell or two left over, and that’s okay. I like to fill the shells so they look abundant and heaping.
Now top each potato with more grated cheddar/jack cheese and pop ’em in a 350-degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potato is warmed through.
Or, you could refrigerate them for up to three days until you wanted to serve, OR you could freeze them in Ziploc bags, just as long as you skipped the green onion step.
Mmmm. Here’s what they’ll look like. Simply delicious. Just serve these up with my Brisket or Tenderloin or even a nice, juicy steak, and the recipient, man or woman, will lick your ears and perform foot reflexology on you and proclaim their never-ending love and appreciation for YOU, the maker of these Twice Baked Potatoes. Have fun!
