Twice Baked Potatoes

By á-30

Ingredients

• Ingredients
• 4 large russet potatoes, about a pound each
• Olive oil
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1 Tbsp cream
• Cheddar and bacon version
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 4 strips bacon
• 1/4 cup chopped green onion
• Blue cheese and chives version
• 1 cup crumbled blue cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Step 1

1 Bake the potatoes. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Scrub the potatoes clean under running water. Poke each potato in several places with the tines of a fork so that when the potatoes are cooking they don't explode. Rub the potatoes all over with a little olive oil. Place directly on the middle or top rack of the oven. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through. They should give a little when pressed.

If short on time you can bake the potatoes in the microwave, 10 minutes on high heat for 2 potatoes, 15 minutes for 4 potatoes. The skins of microwave baked potatoes aren't nearly as crispy, so you may want to rub a little olive oil on them and finish them in a conventional oven at 400°F for 10 minutes.

2 If you are including bacon as one of your mix-ins, while the potatoes are cooking, cook the bacon strips in a frying pan on medium low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Let cool. Crumble.

3 Allow the potatoes to cool to touch. Slice the top third lengthwise off the potato. Use a spoon to scoop out the insides, forming a potato "canoe", leaving about 1/4 inch of potato on the skin.

4 Place the scooped out potato insides, sour cream, milk, cream, and butter into a large bowl. Mash with a potato masher. If you want a creamy texture, beat with an electric beater until desired consistency. Note, do not over-beat potatoes, they can turn glue-y.

5 Mix in the extras with the potatoes. Reserve some of the extras to sprinkle on the tops of the potatoes. Spoon fillings into the potato shells. Sprinkle with extra toppings.

6 Heat oven to 350°F. Place potatoes on a roasting pan and bake 15 to 20 minutes until heated through.