twice baked potato

Twice Baked Potatoes

We LOVE twice baked potatoes at our house.  You  can make them fairly simply so don’t be scared of them unless of course you are feeding the ball team.  Then get help!  They love them.  Trust me.

What you’ll need:

Baking potatoes, butter, milk, sour cream, mayonnaise, onion, seasoned salt, cheese, paprika.

Here we go:

First, wash your potatoes thoroughly and place them in your hot oven unwrapped and bake for approximately 1 hour on 350 or until they are soft in the center when pierced with a fork.  I didn’t take a picture of this because I assumed everyone would know how to bake a potato.  Hope that’s okay.

Remove them from the oven and let cool for a few minutes.  This helps you not to burn your hands.  Okay.  Yes.  I’ve done it because I’ve been in a hurry and burnt my hands.  In that case, use your hot pad.

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Begin by slicing the top off the potato.  I do not chop mine in half.  I like more potato, so I only cut about 1/4 – 1/3 off the top.

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Just enough to create a nice “boat” like  above.

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Then with your spoon, create a little edge around your potato (about 1/4″) to create an outer shell.

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I go all the way around the potato.

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Then scoop them out into your bowl leaving your edge.

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Like so.  Then place the shell on your cookie sheet and repeat with other potatoes until they are all scooped out.  If you hate cleanup like me, you can line your cookie sheet with tinfoil.

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Scoop out that little bit in the tops that you cut off, too.  No wasting here!

If your mom that loves potato peels is around, give her those tops to eat.

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With all the potato filling in the bowl, we will now add the ingredients.  First, butter.  Mmmmm.

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Then milk, mayo, and sour cream.  Oh yeah!  It’s getting good!

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Now, grate your onion.  Sorry about those white knuckles.  I was working hard!

Then add your seasoned salt, and pepper if you’d like, and some grated cheese.

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Then stick your mixer in there and start blending.  Doesn’t have to be smooth.  Unless you want it to.  Chunky says “twice-baked” if you ask me.

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Now start filling your potatoes.

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Kind of press it in to make sure they are filled good.

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Make sure you heap them so they are full over the top.  Repeat with remaining potato shells.

If you have any left and have them filled as much as you want, you have my permission to eat the remainders.  We fight over that little bit at our house.

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This is the frilly part.  It delights your guests and just speaks “classy.”  Sprinkle a little bit of paprika on them.  It makes them look pretty.  It may add some flavor, but I mostly do it because it looks fancier.  Listen….I watch a lot of food network.  Okay?

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Now take your grated cheese and kind of press it into the tops.  Put as much as you like on there.  We love cheese around here, so I try to be somewhat generous.

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Once you have them all done, pop them into the oven.  If you’re in a hurry, put them at 350 for about 5 minutes.  You just want the cheese to melt.  If you are still preparing other meal items, then put the temperature lower to keep them warm and melt them.

At this point, you can also put them in the fridge.  If I am cooking for a large group or a special occasion.  I can make these in the morning,then put them in the fridge like this and pop them in the oven at dinner time.  It is a nice side dish that can be made ahead and keep things simpler in the kitchen at dinner time.

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Oh YUMMY!!! Look at that!! My mouth is watering!

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This particular night, we had creamed peas and The Pioneer Woman’s Grilled Ribeye Steak with Onion-Bleu Cheese sauce.  And those are the mushrooms I tried from Pioneer Woman.  I LOVE mushrooms– especially on steak!

MMMMMMMmmmmmmm Good!

Denise’s Twice Baked Potatoes

8 baking potatoes washed
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1-2 tablespoon onions grated
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Milk as needed for moisture
Grated cheddar cheese
Wash potatoes and bake in 350 oven until soft in center (1-1 1/2 hours).  Let cool slightly.  Cut top third off potatoes.  Into bowl, Scoop out center of potato leaving 1/8″ edge around potato for support (don’t scrape to the peeling).  Can scrap out of the top cut off, too.  Place potato shells on cookie sheet. Mash potatoes as you would for typical mashed potatoes, adding the remaining ingredients.  Adjust seasonings to taste.  Can also add more milk,  mayo and sour cream if needed for creaminess.  (Using mixer works fast).  Add small amount of cheese to potatoes and mix in.  Scoop potato mixture back into shells so they heap above the top.  Sprinkle with paprika and put more cheddar cheese on top.  Place potatoes back in oven and cook until cheese is melted and they are warmed through– 15 minutes or so.