Cracking the Twice Baked Potato Code

Twice Baked Potatoes. You are probably like what? I know right...I don't believe anyone even really eats them as much as I remember. I thought they were something created by housewives back in the seventies or something. So being the foodpreneur that I am I had to know the HISTORY OF THE TWICE BAKED POTATO... so I poured over encyclopedias, scientific journals, and the great history books and found....nothing. So I googled.

WHALAH!!

Twice Baked Potatoes date back to before the 1900s...how cool is that? If you are a food nerd like me I know you felt that...yes I felt it too. Now for those of you who feel like "oh really they date back that far...they should stay there", well hopefully it's not that serious lol...no hopefully some ideas will spark after this!

Twice baked potatoes make a great side dish or main dish depending on how creative you get. The basic concept is a baked potato, hollowed, contents mashed and combined with cheese, and re-baked until the cheese is melted...Get it? "Twice" baked...because it is baked two times? OK...nobody said I was a real comedian or anything...that was only in that other life AND every third Wednesday of every month that begins with M at 4 minutes and 52 seconds of my best daydream (I love those Wednesdays).

Now the concept of the twice baked potato is...well...kinda boring. I do love cheese (as you can see from the above photo), I just prefer a more elevated nuance of flavors. I also like to make combo foods or dishes that serve as a complete meal, so these potatoes are the perfect way to get my twofer action going!

For me seafood is a way to add a different flavor to a dish that is typically laden with something more heavy like chili, BBQ, stews...I could keep going depending on the country this dish has been eaten so many different ways and called something different everywhere. I love seafood and potatoes. Shrimp is meaty enough to be a great substitute for a traditional comfort protein.

I like to also decrease the oil factor of a complete cheese binder by adding chicken broth, butter, a dollop of Daisy (no endorsements I just really do use Daisy sour cream), sometimes a little cream cheese, if its lingering around the frig. I like a creamy clump to my mash because they are after all potatoes and potatoes don't come out of the ground creamed so I mash my potatoes with a fork or the back of a large serving spoon. When I am making a twofer I also add a vegetable component, tonight I incorporated kale because its a hearty heart healthy green that is also resilient to heat so it keeps its body longer if you saute it, which works for me unlike spinach that gets a little slippery. Kale is also great raw! In this dish if I were adding raw kale I would chiffonade the leaves first and place them under a very hot topping so they can wilt a little. I also added bacon I mean I love greens and bacon, shrimp and bacon, and potatoes and bacon! But believe it or not I am not the best bacon cooker so I cheat and buy bacon pieces from the grocery store and saute them a little in a hot pan before using to crisp up some of the fat (it gets a little soggy from being manufactured and packaged but if you don't care about rubbery fat then skip).

Don't be afraid to mix it up. Do eat shrimp try yummy crab. Change your veggies...spinach, peppers, onions, broccoli....whatever the possibilities are endless, the flavor profiles you could create! But for your tasting pleasure here is my recipe for my shrimp twice baked potatoes with a kale and bacon topping with sauteed shrimp and sharp shredded cheddar:

Shrimp Twice Baked Potatoes

Serves 4 Prep Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 1 hr 20 mins

24 jumbo shrimp, raw shelled and deveined

4 large baking potatoes

4 T salted butter, extra to saute shrimp

2 c kale stemmed and thinly sliced

1/2 c cheddar cheese, shredded, plus extra for top

1/2 c chicken broth

1/2 tsp fresh minced garlic with a dash of garlic powder

1/4 c bacon pieces

1/4 c sour cream

1/4 c half and half

alt and pepper to liking

oil of choice to rub on outer skin of potato

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet. Rub them with the oil and bake for 1 hour. Season shrimp to liking. Cut 12 of the shrimp into quarters and set aside (preferably in frig) for flavors to infuse.

Remove the potatoes from the oven. Lower the heat to 350 degrees F.

With a sharp knife, cut each potato top 1/4 off lengthwise. Scrape out the insides into a large mixing bowl, being careful not to tear the shell. Leave a small rim of potato intact for support. Lay the hollowed out potato shells on a baking sheet.

Smash potatoes with fork or back of spoon. Add butter, chicken broth, garlic, sour cream, half and half. Season to liking with salt and pepper (tasting is OK nothing is raw yet).

Add cheese and shrimp and mix together well. Fill the potato shells with the filling. I like to fill them so that the top is rounded. Place them in oven until cooked through 20 minutes. While food cooking melt butter and cook shrimp for 4 minutes. Halfway through shrimp being done add kale and bacon pieces. Continue cooking the additional 2 minutes. Once potatoes complete turn off oven, top with kale and three shrimp per boat and cheese to liking and allow to remain in warm oven until melted to desired consistency. ENJOY!!

#shrimp #potato #portatoes #butter #kale #cheddar #chickenbroth #garlic #bacon #sourcream #halfandhalfbakehousewifefoodprenuer #bake #bousewife #foodpreneur #sidedish #maindish #baked #hollowed #mashed #cheese #combofood #completemeal #twofer #seafood #substitute #tradtitional #comfortfood #comfort #protein #healthieroption #creamchesse #mash #hearthealthy #chiffonade #cheat #mixitup #possibilities #endless #flavorprofile #recipe