If I’m at a restaurant and there’s a baked potato on the menu, you better believe I’m ordering it. There’s something about a steaming hot spud with light sour cream, chives, and a mound of shredded cheddar cheese. Since I don’t eat pork, hold the bacon crumbles.
Even though this delicious side dish sounds easy enough, I never tried making it at home, mostly because I was intimidated by how long it takes to bake a potato.
While it does take about an hour for potatoes to fully bake in the oven, I learned the process couldn’t be easier. My biggest tip is to start cooking when you’re not super hungry, so by the time the potatoes are ready, your stomach will be, too!
COTTAGE PIE POTATO BOWLS
You won’t waste a single shred of potato with this dish! It combines the comfort food of cottage pie (consider it a cousin of shepherd’s pie, but it’s made with ground beef instead of lamb) and baked potatoes. When we made it, the filling’s aroma was so rich and fragrant that my husband could smell it from down the hall. It might be hard to wait for the dish to be done, but I promise it’s worth it.
Ingredients
- 4 large russet potatoes
- 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
- ¼ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup sour cream
- Salt and freshly ground pepper (to taste)
- ¼ cup chives, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 medium white onion, chopped
- 1 small carrot, chopped
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 15.2-oz. can of corn, drained
- 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
- 1 cup broth of your choice (we chose vegetable broth)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Melt 1 Tbsp. of butter in a pan or in the microwave. Poke potatoes all over with a fork and brush them with melted butter. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and bake until cooked through and fork tender, about 1 hour. Let cool slightly and leave the oven on.
Melt 1 Tbsp. of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 to 6 minutes. Add beef, using a wooden spoon to break it up, and cook until browned. Stir in corn, Worcestershire, tomato paste, thyme, and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook until beef and carrots are coated in sauce, about 1 minute.
Cut a ¼-inch-thick slice off the top of each potato lengthwise. Carefully scoop out the insides into a medium bowl, leaving some potato intact so the shell won’t tear. Using a fork or masher, mash potatoes with the milk, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Fold in chives. Put empty potato bowls on baking sheet.
Spoon the beef mixture into the potato bowls. Spoon the mashed potatoes on top and bake until heated through, about 15 minutes.
BREAKFAST POTATOES
Our mornings during the work week are busy, so we usually don’t have time for a sit-down breakfast. But we love cooking together on weekend mornings, and these potatoes will make the menu rotation! We paired them with fried eggs for a filling breakfast to kick off our day.
Ingredients
- 5 lbs. red and gold potatoes, diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ½ stick butter, melted
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. cayenne pepper
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, toss all the ingredients together. Transfer the potato mixture to a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, shaking the sheet twice. Raise the heat to 450 degrees F and bake until crisp and brown, 10 to 15 minutes.
TWICE-BAKED POTATOES
I’ll be honest. I was full from a late lunch when I made these for dinner. But I still managed to eat half a potato because it was just so good. We opted for a slightly healthier version of the traditional twice-baked potatoes by using olive oil instead of canola oil and light sour cream. To make it vegetarian, vegan bacon bits can be substituted. This recipe yields 12 to 16 servings, so feel free to cut it in half if you’re serving a smaller crowd (or make them all and save the rest for another day)!
Ingredients
- 8 large russet potatoes
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil
- 2 sticks salted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup bacon bits
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup cheddar and Jack cheese mixture
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 tsp. salt
- 3 stalks of green onion, sliced
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Poke potatoes all over with a fork and rub them with olive oil. Place potatoes on a baking sheet and bake until cooked through and fork tender, about 1 hour.
Place butter in a large mixing bowl and add bacon bits and sour cream. Remove the potatoes from the oven and lower the heat to 350 degrees F.
Cut each potato in half lengthwise. Carefully scrape out the flesh, leaving a little potato inside so the structure of the shell stays intact. Place hollowed-out potato shells on a baking sheet.
Smash the potatoes into the butter, bacon bits, and sour cream. Add the cheese, milk, salt, green onions, and black pepper to taste and mix well.
Spoon the filling into potato shells. Top each potato with more cheese and bake them in the oven until they’re warmed through, about 15 minutes.
GARLIC ROASTED POTATOES
Out of all four recipes, this one was the simplest with the fewest ingredients, but it was just as delicious. They’re crispy, garlicky, and full of flavor! We thought they would be a great side dish for Thanksgiving.
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. small red and gold potatoes
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1½ tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. freshly ground pepper
- 6 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, minced
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Cut the potatoes into quarters and place them in a bowl with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic. Toss until the potatoes are coated. Transfer potatoes to a baking sheet and roast in the oven for about an hour, or until browned and crisp. Flip twice during cooking to ensure even browning.
Take potatoes out of the oven and toss with parsley.
Potato potahto
There are plenty of other ways to enjoy all kinds of potatoes. You can’t go wrong with any of these islandscene.com recipes:
