Twice Baked Potatoes

I can't even tell you the last time I had twice baked potatoes.

It has to do with the time constraint... it takes a lot of time to bake potatoes once -- but then for a second time?! I don't typically have that much time to make dinner at night, especially now that I'm teaching full time.

But -- with Frog Prince working from home, it was easy to ask him to scrub some potatoes and bake them so they were ready for their second baking when I got home!!

These potatoes were delicious.

A great combination of veggies and cheese... oh my.

We ate them as a meal in and of themselves, but they would be great served up with grilled chicken, or even a large salad.

My dear friend Lucy gets all the credit for these gems -- and she made them in advance and frozen them!  Check out her directions for preparing them for your freezer.

Bacon and Spinach Twice Baked Potatoes - Adapted from Lucy
{Print Recipe}

~6 large baking potatoes
salt
pepper
3 T butter
1/8 C milk
~2 C fresh spinach, washed and trimmed
1/4 C cooked bacon crumbles
1 1/2 C colby jack cheese

Wash potatoes and poke holes in the skin.  Lightly salt the skins while they are still moist {so the salt sticks}.

Place the potatoes on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 for about 1 hour, or until potatoes are tender when pricked with a fork.

Allow the potatoes to cool for 20-30 minutes until they have cooled enough to handle.

Meanwhile, cook the spinach -- boil it in about 1 inch of water until wilted.

Slice them in half lengthwise and allow them to cool for another 20 minutes.

Then, carefully scoop out the insides and place them in a large bowl.

Mash the potatoes in the bowl with butter and milk; season with salt and pepper.

Next, toss in the spinach and bacon.

Stir until well mixed.

Then, mix in the cheese.

Carefully fill the potato shells on the cookie sheet.  {Here's where you'd stop if you were freezing the potatoes}

Return potatoes to the oven and bake for 20 minutes at 400.

Serve warm!

These even warmed up excellently the next day for lunch!!

Yum!

Thanks, Lucy!!


This post is linked to: Ingredient Spotlight, URS