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Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Yummy Side: Twice Baked Potatoes

So.
J has been asking for a few weeks if we could have Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches and Twice Baked Potatoes.  I've been putting him off.  It's not that either of these things are difficult or things I don't like, I've just been putting him off.  That finally changed when I realized how much we've been spending eating out while work was crazy.  I finally got around to making these for dinner.
A few years ago, I was part of a cookbook exchange where I received a couple of books that I use quite a bit:  Tom LaCalamita's Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook and Rachel Ray's 30-Minute Meals 2.  This recipe is a riff on Rachel's recipe.
I have a love/hate relationship with Rachel Ray.  Her stupid little cutesy words bug me, and her smoker's voice gets to me.  I do, however, use some of her recipes regularly.  We love her Italian Wedding Soup, and her suggestions around mise en place are fantastic.  We love these potatoes too.  I need to get that cookbook out.  There are some fun menus.
This is a take out at home menu of twice baked potatoes (Super Stuffed Potatoes), buffalo chicken sandwiches and orange sherbet freezes.  I've never made the drinks, and I have followed the recipe for the sandwiches (which are great), but I make them faster and easier:  Cook a small chicken breast for each person in a frying pan, cutting in half to make more like cutlets.  When mostly cooked, pour Frank's Red Hot Sauce over the chicken, coating well.  Continue to cook, allowing the sauce to thicken.  Turn several times.  Slice fresh crusty rolls and place 1 breast per bun.  Drizzle with ranch or bleu cheese salad dressing.
But the side.  Yum.  I present to you now my adaptation Rachel Ray's Super Stuffed Potatoes:


Ingredients:
2 sliced bacon, chopped
1 large baking potato
1/3 c sour cream
2 green onions, finely chopped
1/2 c shredded old cheddar cheese

1.  Pierce potato with a fork a few times, and microwave until done.  Let cool a few minutes before cutting in half and scooping out the flesh into a small bowl, keeping the skin intact.
2.  Cook bacon in a small skillet.  When mostly cooked, add green onions and continue to cook until bacon is crisp and onions are softened.
3.  Combine cheese, sour cream, potato, bacon and onions in a small bowl.  Mix well and divide between 2 potato shells.  Place under broiler to brown tops and serve.
Adapted from Rachel Ray's 30 Minute Meals 2

 Every time I make this recipe, it's a little different.  This time, I tossed the onions in with the bacon.  I'd do that again.  Frankly, I didn't even drain the bacon and onions, I just put them into the potatoes and stirred.  Yeah.  They were good.
So here's the mixture, ready to go.  I was looking at an EDF for the Magazine Challenge the other day, and this was essentially the recipe for potato salad that I saw.  Maybe minus the cheese.  I'd eat that.
And here's the finished product!  With sandwich!  Both were great.  Why did I wait so long?  I don't know.  But they're an easy side that cooks up in about the same time as the chicken for the sandwich.  Dinner in 30 minutes.  It's all good.

1 comment:

  1. *drools* So you're coming to cook for me when?

    ReplyDelete