Easy Twice Baked Potatoes

I have to admit, even though I’ve made this recipe more times than I can recall, I spent days in the kitchen in search of the “perfect” twice-baked potato recipe to share with you.  The problem was that they all tasted so good, I didn’t know which one to use.  Then it occurred to me that each of the four attempts had been perfect in its own way.  Want more cheese?  Perfect.  Want less cheese and more bacon?  Perfect.  That highlights an amazing feature of twice-baked potatoes, you can customize them to do you and they will still be perfect.

The recipe below is the go-to recipe I have in mind whenever I make twice-baked potatoes.  As often as not, the recipe changes along the way.  So, with that in mind, I have a few tricks to share and some suggestions on how you can customize the recipe to your taste.

Ingredients for Twice Baked Potatoes

What makes this recipe special is its incredible flexibility; you can use whatever ingredients you have on hand.  The ingredients and quantities provided are merely suggestions.

• Russet Potatoes:  Russet potatoes are perfect for this recipe because of their beautiful oval shape and wide range of sizes.
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Garlic Powder
• Kosher Salt
• Butter: I use salted butter for this recipe.  Unsalted butter works well, however the finished filling may need an extra pinch of salt.
• Bacon: Regular sliced, crisp, crumbled
• Egg: Hard boiled, diced
• Cottage Cheese:  I used 2% small curd cottage cheese for this recipe.
• Sour Cream:  You can substitute low-fat cottage cheese.
• Garlic: Minced or pressed
• Cheddar Cheese

How To

1. prep the potatoes

2. bake the potatoes

• • Preheat oven to 400 °F.
    • Potato baking temperatures vary from 350˚ to 450˚F.  I find the sweet spot to be at 400˚F. This temperature ensures the potato is cooked through and crisps the skin without burning.
    • It’s not absolutely necessary to stick to a specific temperature every time you bake a potato. If you’re baking a casserole at 350˚F, simply throw the potatoes alongside. While they might take a bit longer to cook, the result will still be delicious.

3. check for doneness

• • Bake the potatoes for 45-60 minutes or until fork tender. Larger potatoes may take 75 or more minutes.
  • Make sure the potatoes are cooked all the way through before removing them from the oven.  Once a fork pierces the center of the thickest part of the potato effortlessly with no resistance, your potatoes are ready for the next step.
    • If in doubt, you can use an instant-read thermometer; when inserted into the potato’s center, it should register between 208-211˚F.
  • Leave the oven on!

4. scoop out the insides

• • Let the potatoes cool for 10-15 minutes.  When you can handle them, use a very sharp paring knife to cut an oval into the top of each potato.  Angle the tip of the knife towards the center of the potato as you make the oval cut.
• 

  
  • Gently lift the oval you just created off of the top of the potato and set aside.
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  • Using a large tablespoon, scoop out most of the inside of the potato, leaving 1/8 – 1/4″ around the inside so the skin doesn’t tear.   Place the scooped potato flesh into a large mixing bowl.  The skins will seem flimsy but will firm up when they are roasted and refilled.
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  • Remove the flesh from the back of the oval top caps you removed from each potato.  These skins make excellent potato skin appetizers – see the recipe notes below.

5. roast the skins

• • Carefully arrange the now empty skins on a baking sheet and bake at 400 °F for 8 minutes.  The majority of recipes skip this step.  It is important so the skins become crispy and firm.

6. refilling the skins

• • Using a large spoon, gently refill each of the potato skins with the potato mixture.  Build a slight mound at the top once you have filled the skins.  I intentionally overfill the skins however be careful not to apply too much pressure and rip the skins.

7. bake the second time

• • Spray a 13 x 9 baking dish with a non-stick spray and arrange the filled potato skins 1/2″ apart.
  • Bake in a 400°F oven for 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Tips

• Using extra large potatoes turns this recipe into a single-dish meal.
• Use any regular slice smoked bacon.  Cutting the bacon into 1″ pieces before frying makes it super easy and will provide the ideal size to mix into the filling.

• Hard boil and dice the eggs.  Using an egg cutter makes this an easy process.
• Small curd cottage cheese works best as it’s firmer than large curd.  You can use whole milk cottage cheese, or, to lower the fat and calories you can use 2% or 4% cottage cheese.
• Salted butter works best.  You can substitute unsalted butter however you may need to add a pinch of salt to the filling.  If all you have on hand is margarine, it can be used, although the result will not be quite as rich tasting.
• I encourage you to grate your cheddar cheese.  Store-bought grated cheese contains an ingredient to prevent clumping.  That added potato starch or cellulose not only prevents clumping in the bag, it also interferes with the way the cheese melts.  Taking the time to grate the cheese will be rewarded with bubbly melted cheesy goodness.
• Carefully overstuff the potatoes when you refill them.  The filling will settle during cooking so fill the potatoes above the rim of the skin.  The empty skin is fragile so use caution not to apply too much pressure as you add the filling.

Variations

• Bacon Ranch Twice Baked Potatoes:  Double the bacon and stir a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing mix into the filling.
• Blue Cheese Twice Baked Potatoes:  Add a half-cup of crumbled blue cheese to the filling.
• Broccoli Twice Baked Potatoes:  Stir 1 1/2 cups of small broccoli florets into the filling.
• Spinach Twice Baked Potatoes: Stir 14 oz. frozen thawed chopped spinach into the filling.
• Greek Twice Baked Potatoes: Omit the cheddar cheese, stir into the filling 1/2 cup of crumbled feta cheese and 14 ounces frozen chopped spinach, thawed and liquid squeezed out.

Storage

• You can safely refrigerate leftover potatoes in a sealed container for up to 4 days or freeze them in a sealed container for up to one month.

Twice Baked Potatoes

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If you’ve ever wondered how to make decadent twice-baked potatoes, this recipe is your answer.  Here’s how to prepare this delightful dish at home.

• Author: Foodie Noise
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
• Total Time: 2 hours
• Yield: 4 1x
• Category: American, Sides
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 4 extra large russet potatoes, washed
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 8 ounces bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
• 4 hard-boiled eggs, diced
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded, divided in half
• 1/2 cup feta cheese
• 1/2 cup butter, sliced into pats
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed
• salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. While the oven is heating, wash and dry each potato, then prick with a fork so steam can escape during cooking, coat each potato with extra virgin olive oil, then sprinkle with kosher salt and garlic powder.
3. Place potatoes in the oven on the center rack, and bake until fork tender.  Approximately 45-60 minutes.  Remove potatoes from oven and allow to cool until able to touch.
4. Using a sharp paring knife, cut an oval into the top of each potato.  Angle the knife towards the center of the potato as you cut.  Remove the top cap you just created and set aside.
5. Using a tablespoon, gently scoop out the flesh from inside of each potato, placing the flesh into a large mixing bowl.  Use caution not to tear the potato skin.  Repeat for each potato.  Remove the flesh from the back of each top cap you created earlier.
6. Using a fork, break the potato flesh in the mixing bowl into small pieces.
7. Add the cottage cheese, sour cream, bacon crumbs, diced eggs, feta cheese, half of the cheddar cheese, and the garlic to the mixing bowl.  Gently fold all ingredients together.
8. Using a large tablespoon, gently refill each of the potato skins with the potato mixture.  Place the refilled potatoes in an appropriately sized baking dish (13×9 inch or 15×9 inch).  Sprinkle the potatoes with the remaining cheddar cheese.  Place baking dish in the oven and bake until cheese is melted, approximately 20-30 minutes.

Notes

HINT:  The top caps you create can make wonderful potato skin appetizers.  Simply spray a cooking sheet with non-stick spray, place each potato skin onto the cookie sheet and add cheddar cheese and any other ingredient you enjoy.  Bake until cheese is melted and lightly browned.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 potato
• Calories: 440
• Sugar: 4 gr
• Sodium: 600 mg
• Fat: 13 gr
• Saturated Fat: 6 gr
• Trans Fat: 0 gr
• Carbohydrates: 64 gr
• Fiber: 7 gr
• Protein: 17 gr
• Cholesterol: 35 mg