One potato, two potato, three potato, four! Five potato, six potato, seven potato, more!

What is cooking in this fat kids kitchen? Tons of interesting things. I have been entertaining the last couple of weekends and twice baked/loaded mashed potatoes has been on the menu.

 

 

J.J.'s Twice Baked Potatoes

 

Ingredients

• 4 large russet potatoes, about a pound each
• Olive oil
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 Tbsp butter, softened
• 1 Tbsp cream
• 1 cup grated cheddar/Gouda cheese
• 4 strips bacon
• 1/4 cup chopped green onion or chives

1 Bake the potatoes. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Scrub the potatoes clean under running water. Poke each potato in several places with the tines of a fork so that when the potatoes are cooking they don't explode. Rub the potatoes all over with a little olive oil. Place directly on the middle or top rack of the oven. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through. They should give a little when pressed.

 

If short on time you can bake the potatoes in the microwave, 10 minutes on high heat for 2 potatoes, 15 minutes for 4 potatoes. The skins of microwave baked potatoes aren't nearly as crispy, so you may want to rub a little olive oil on them and finish them in a conventional oven at 400°F for 10 minutes.

 

2 While the potatoes are cooking, cook the bacon strips in a frying pan on medium low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Let cool. Crumble.

 

3 Allow the potatoes to cool to touch. Slice the top third lengthwise off the potato. Use a spoon to scoop out the insides, forming a potato "canoe", leaving about 1/4 inch of potato on the skin.

 

Alternatively you can slice the potatoes in half, lengthwise. In this case you may want to bake an extra potato so that you will have more potato filling to mound into the potato boats.

 

4 Place the scooped out potato insides, sour cream, milk, cream, and butter into a large bowl. Mash with a potato masher. If you want a creamy texture, beat with an electric beater until desired consistency. Note, do not over-beat potatoes, they can turn glue-y.

 

5 Mix in the extras with the potatoes. Reserve some of the extras to sprinkle on the tops of the potatoes. Spoon fillings into the potato shells. Sprinkle with extra toppings.

 

6 Heat oven to 350°F. Place potatoes on a pan and bake 15 to 20 minutes until heated through.

 

 

Amish Potato Salad

• • 2 lb Potatoes
  • 1-1/2 cup Mayonnaise 
  • 1 tbsp Vinegar
  • 1 tbsp Mustard
  • 2 med Celery stalks
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • ¼ tsp Pepper
  • 1 Onion
  • 4 Eggs, hard cooked

  
  

   

  
  

  Prepare and boil potatoes, cool slightly, cut into cubes. Mix  mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in four quart glass bowl. Add potatoes, celery and onion. Toss. Stir in eggs, cover and refrigerate for at least four hours. Makes about 10 servings

 

 

 

Hash Brown Casserole

 

Ingredients

• 1 (2 pound) package frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped onion  
• 1 can condensed cream of chicken/mushroom soup
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray one 9x13 inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.

 

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, butter, salt, pepper, onions, soup and cheese. Gently mix and pour into prepared pan or dish. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes.