Friday, July 6, 2012

Twice Baked Potatoes...Sort Of

Twice Baked Potatoes in a Dish
Potato Skins with Sour Cream
Potato Skins

When I asked my husband what side dish he wanted with simple grilled chicken breast for dinner tonight, he wasn't sure, until I said, "How about twice baked potatoes?" 
"Yeah! That sounds great. Unless..."
"Yeah? What are you thinking?"
"Potato skins."
"Hmmm... I think I'll make both."

My mom makes these amazingly decadent twice-baked potatoes in a pan, but she normally uses red potatoes. I will have to make and post that exact recipe another time. 
For now, I'm really going over the top preparing these two potato sides. In the time it's taken me to type this recipe up, I've doubled the recipe and invited my sister-in-law and her family over for dinner. 

I'm making up the potato skins recipe based on what I remember eating at the Black Angus waaaaay back when I was a kid. I just remember them being crisp, greasy, cheesy, and bacony. Mmmm... I might be out of control.

The recipe(s) below can be halved if you're not serving 9 people like I am tonight.


Twice-Baked Potatoes in a Dish and Potato Skins
  • 9 medium russet potatoes
  • 4 ounces cream cheese
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon salt 
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper 
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup milk (if potatoes are too thick)
  • 1 jar bacon bits, or a half pound of bacon, fried and cut into bits, or cut into bits and fried
  • 2 1/2 to 3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • canola oil to fry in
  • sour cream, if desired
  • 3 green onions, sliced

Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Scrub and pierce potatoes several times with a sharp knife. Bake potatoes at 350° for about an hour, or until potatoes give when squeezed gently with an oven-mitted hand.
When potatoes are done, cut in half and carefully scoop out insides, leaving about a 1/4-inch layer of potato inside. Set skins aside.

For the Twice Baked Potatoes in a Dish: 
Place potato insides in a large bowl or the bowl of a standing mixer. Mix briefly to break potatoes down a little. Add cream cheese, sour cream, butter, chopped garlic, and about 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon or so of pepper. Beat until thoroughly mixed, but don't mix to the point of gumminess. If the mixture seems really thick, add up to 1/2 cup milk to smooth it out to the consistency of mashed potatoes.
Spray a large casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray. Spread potato mixture into  the prepared pan. 
Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes at 325°. 
Immediately after removing from oven, cover the top with 1 cup of cheese.  Then sprinkle with about 2/3 of the bacon and sliced green onions, if desired.  Allow to sit for about 10-15 minutes before serving. The heat from the potatoes will melt the cheese perfectly.
Makes about 9-10 servings.

For the Potato Skins:
After scooping out potato insides, you should have 18 half skins. Cut each of those in half, so you have quarter skins.
Heat about 2 inches of canola oil in a pan (about 325°). Fry potato skins in batches, careful not to crowd the pan. Once skins are a deep golden brown, remove to a paper towel-lined cooking rack to drain. 
Place fried skins, open side up, on a baking sheet. Sprinkle each with cheese and a little bacon. Place in 325° oven for about 5- 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Top with sour cream and green onions, if desired.
Makes about 9 servings.

61 comments:

  1. Yum! I could eat these for breakfast!:-)

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  2. Ok, for the twice baked, you bake the potatos first. Do you leave the skin on when you mash them? Thanks

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    1. You scoop out the inside of the potato and leave the skin. If you're not going to go over the top like I did by frying the skins, and you like potato skins, you could always quarter the skins and lay them on the bottom of the pan before putting the mashed potato mixture in the pan. Otherwise, you would discard the skins.

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    2. Incredible!!!!!! All the way around!!An extra tip is to cut potato long way b4 baking, bake2 ways, flat or together round! Use season and olive oil while baking for better flavor

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  3. Can you use red potatoes to make the twice baked potatoes? I'm not going to make the potato skins.

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    1. You can definitely use red potatoes to make the twice baked potatoes, and that would be fabulous. This recipe is actually based on my mom's recipe that originally called for red potatoes. I would mix in the red potato skins, because I like them, but you could easily peel them and use the insides only.

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  4. This looks so delectable that I am on my way to the grocery store to pick up a big bag of potatoes. Question: can the twice baked potato casserole be frozen for a "think ahead" quick meal?

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    1. I'm sorry that I don't know if you can freeze this ahead. I know my mom will refrigerate it for one day and then bake it, but that's as far as my knowledge on making it ahead of time goes. Please let me know if you try it, though. Sorry.

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    2. I see no reason this couldn't be made ahead & frozen. You just might want to thaw before baking.

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    3. Hi, I make twice stuffed potatoes and freeze them. They turn out great. Just; pull out of the freezer, thaw, add cheese to the top and bake. I might suggest freezing the mixture in a zip lock freezer bag. I'm not sure if the non-stick spray would work as well after freezing and thawing. Good luck!

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    4. Thanks, Saundra (and Anonymous)! I'm glad that people have some answers out there to these questions! ;)

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  5. Oh.... Yum. My favourite food group!!!!

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  6. You're welcome fp. Thanks for the recipe!

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  7. I made this tonight and it was so amazing!

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    1. I'm glad you enjoyed it, Kelly! I almost deleted the email containing this comment because I thought it was just something from myself (since my name is also Kelly). Good thing I read through it. :)

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  8. Thanks for this great idea! It's absolutely delicious!

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  9. If I'm not going to make the skins, and I use red potatoes, can I boil them instead of baking them? I think it would be faster.

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    1. You can definitely just boil the potatoes until tender and proceed. I think that's how my mom usually makes these potatoes. Well, she's gotten to the point of even using instant mashed potatoes, but I refuse to do that. They'll taste great just about any way you cook the potato. :)

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  10. when do i add the green onions if i'm making it in a dish, also only one cup of cheese i use to top it when its done?

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    1. Just sprinkle the green onions on top when you sprinkle the bacon bits. I mean, they would taste good mixed into the potato too. At any rate, I added that step to the recipe--sprinkling the onions on top that is. You can put more than a cup of cheese on top if you'd like. The reason the amount in the ingredients section is more than a cup is because I used the rest on the potato skins. Does that make sense?

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  11. This looks so yummy! Thanks for sharing!

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  12. Potatoes are my weakness and I'm always looking for new ways to cook them! You've got me hooked lady : )
    Xoxo,
    Your newest follower
    Terra @ sunshineandstovetops.blogspot.com

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  13. sounds interesting and looks very YUMMY!!!!... I love potatoes no matter how they are fixed...

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  14. I am pregnant and dying to find new ways to eat baked potatoes which happen to be my strongest craving right now Imade this and now I'm addicted!!! Thank you so much for this recipe and my little boys go crazy for it too!!!

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    1. Ha! I'm so glad I can help satisfy a pregnant woman's craving! :) Thanks for letting me know you like it so much.

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  15. I used greek yogurt instead of sour cream, it's lower fat, more protein and active cultures. No one in my family ever notices the difference. GREAT recipe

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  16. I use greek yogurt instead of sour cream. Way better for you and no noticed any difference

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    1. I really need to give that Greek yogurt instead of sour cream thing. Thanks for letting me know it works for you! :)

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    2. So glad you stated this since I'm very sensitive to sour cream, I can use some yogurt (sensitive to it too but not as badly). I have another recipe that calls for sour cream that I might have to try it with yogurt instead. Thanks for the tips. Got to try this recipe - love potatoes anyway I can get them.

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  17. I had thought about mixing hamburger in with the potatoes to make a complete meal out of it. Has anyone tried this?

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    1. Sounds like shepherd's pie to me. You could do a shepherd's pie type meat for the bottom and then top it like this. I bet it would taste awesome.

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  18. sometimes instead of sour cream , i use CHIP DIP !!

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    1. Oooh...good call! I'll have to try that! :)

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    2. I also use french onion dip in my mash potatoes its wonderful!!!

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  19. when frying the skins do you fry on both sides or just the skin side? thx :)

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    1. I make sure both sides get fried and crispy. :)

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  20. I make this using instant mashed potatoes and throw in diced ham. Makes it a full meal with some salad and it's soooo yummy! I also add dry ranch seasoning to my sour cream to make it a little more zesty!

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  21. would appreciate knowing the calories and fiber and vitamins and carbs etc.

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    1. Personally, I prefer to live in denial of these disturbing facts for this recipe, but if you go to the following website, you can put in the ingredients and crunch the numbers for yourself. Really, once you do that, though, I don't think you'll want to try this recipe. :) Or perhaps you could lighten it up with some alternative ingredients.
      Good luck!
      http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/calculator

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  22. Yum, Yum, Yum. I love all of this. It sounds delicious. Thanks for the recipe!

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  23. this looks amazing! I've shared it on my FB page :) https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151837666538070&set=a.174654903069.124188.163690253069&type=1

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  24. could this also be made in crockpot maybe?

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    1. I suppose it could be made in a crock pot as long as you're not planning to cook it all day. If you put it on high for an hour and a half or two, I think it might turn out. Sorry I have no experience with trying that. Let me know if you give it a go.

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  25. I found this on Pinterest and made them tonight and they were soooooo good! I used some of the twice baked in some of the skins and left the other skins with cheese, bacon bits, sour cream and scallions. Yum--much better than any restaurant! Oh--I used queso in place of the sour cream (had just enough left in the fridge that needed to be used) and I was pleasantly surprised at the flavor. Thank you, this is dfefinitely a keeper!!

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  26. These sound great. Use full fat, organic versions for a wonderfully healthy dish. However, I would suggest nixing the canola oil, which is not only a GMO food, but is highly refined (using solvents, deoderizers, heat, and is generally rancid before it makes it to the shelf) and use coconut oil instead. Coconut oil handles the heat well, and since you are heating it you can use expeller pressed instead of the cold pressed and save a little bit of money. Thinking this might be our lunch today!!

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    1. Thanks for the input, Colleen. Would you fry the potato skins in coconut oil? I've just started using coconut oil and I'm not completely sure of all of its applications. So far I've used it for popcorn and my son's eczema. :)

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  27. I am so going to true these soon!! Coconut oil is awesome. I have some that tastes like coconut an flavored. I fried some pork chops in it . definitely good and the kids loved the diff flavor. But I am still an olive oil fan for deep frying....less expensive. And if you are looking for healthy you could try mashed cauliflower I am sure. As I am typing that I am grimacing lol. I have seen lots of people use it in place of potatoes. Again thank you for.posting!!!

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    1. Pork chops in coconut oil sound great. The idea of replacing the beloved potato with cauliflower still is not appealing to me. Clearly, I am not very concerned with fat and calories in my cooking. Perhaps I should be, but for now, it's REAL potatoes that I want.

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  28. I made this casserole for Thanksgiving with baked sweet potatoes. It was a HIT!! Thank-you!!

    Val in MN

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    1. I love it! Thanks for posting that you tried it with sweet potatoes! Very interesting.
      And you' are very welcome. ;)

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    2. Coconut oil has a low smoking point.

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  29. These potatoes were great. Made a dinner for a friend who was craving something on the cheesey side. Made this and it was great!! Thanks for a great recipe!

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  30. If I were going to cut this recipe in half, would you recommend that I just cut all the portions in half? Have you ever made a smaller batch? I'm cooking for 2!

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    1. Yes, I would just cut everything in half, and you should be fine. It's a pretty forgiving recipe, so just make small adjustments if it seems like it needs them. I've never made a smaller batch, but if you're only cooking for 2, then you definitely should reduce it at least by half. Good luck!

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  31. I am always looking for recipes That I can take to our church pot lucks. I think even the kids would like this.

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  32. I took this to our Seniors potluck, I used ham instead of bacon for a more complete meal, the dish was empty when I took it home. I skipped having to fry the bacon.

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  33. This dish was amazing! I've never had better potatoes!

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  34. I'm going to try this! Except make the skins one night and make the twice baked the next. Just make it ahead of time and refrigerate until the next night.

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