Twice Baked Potatoes Make Ahead Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Wash potatoes and pat dry.
• Place potatoes, not touching, on a large baking sheet.
• You may need two baking sheets.
• Spray potatoes generously with non-stick cooking spray.
• Sprinkle outside of potatoes with a little salt.
• Bake 1 to 1-1/2 hours or until potatoes "give" when gently squeezed, indicating they are done.
• In large mixing bowl, add butter, cream cheese, salt and pepper and mix well.
• With a serrated knife, cut baked potatoes in half lengthwise, being careful to leave skins unbroken.
• With large spoon, scoop out the inside of potatoes, leaving a thin layer of potato attached to the inside of the skin.
• Place potato skin shells, skin side down, on the baking sheet used to bake the potatoes.
• Put scooped out potato in mixing bowl as you remove it and mix to combine with butter mixture, adding skim milk as needed to make potatoes the consistency of slightly stiff mashed potatoes.
• You may need a little more or less milk to get the final desired consistency.
• Using the palm of your hand to support the potato shell while filling, spoon and press potato mixture into each half potato shell.
• Return filled shell to baking sheet.
• Sprinkle with shredded cheese and pat cheese to make it adhere to the potatoes.
• TO SERVE IMMEDIATELY: Return baking pan of potatoes to oven and bake about 15-25 minutes until potatoes are hot and cheese is melted.
• TO FREEZE FOR LATER USE: Cover potatoes with plastic wrap and place baking sheet in freezer, leaving several hours until potatoes are completely frozen.
• Remove potatoes from freezer and wrap each potato in a resealable plastic sandwich bag.
• Place wrapped potatoes into one or more gallon resealable freezer bags.
• Store in freezer for up to 3 months.
• TO COOK FROZEN POTATOES: Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Place potatoes on baking sheet and loosely cover with aluminum foil.
• Bake about 45 minutes.
• Uncover and bake an additional 15 minutes or more until potatoes are hot.
• Do not over bake.
• This method keeps the potato skins firm and crisp.
• If time is short, place potatoes in microwave and cook on high about 10 minutes.
• Remove and then place in 350°F oven to finish cooking.
• IN A BIG HURRY: These potatoes can be completely heated from frozen state in the microwave, heating them just until they are hot.
• Potato skins will be softer than if cooked in the oven.
• OR, they can be defrosted in the microwave and reheated, uncovered, in a 350°F oven for 15-20 minutes or until hot.

Steps:

• Position racks in the top and middle of the oven, and heat oven to 400 degrees. Take the butter out of the refrigerator to soften. Scrub the potatoes clean and pat them dry. Poke holes all over them with a fork. In a large bowl, toss them with the oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place the potatoes directly on the top rack, and place a baking sheet or a piece of foil on the middle rack to catch drips. Bake for about 1 hour, until the skin is crisp and potatoes offer no resistance when a knife is inserted in their centers. Remove from the oven and let sit until cool enough to handle.
• Slice the top third lengthwise off the potatoes. Use a spoon to scoop out the flesh, leaving 1/4-inch border of potato on the skin, and transfer the flesh to a medium bowl. Scrape the potato tops of all flesh, and add the flesh to the bowl. Place the bottoms on a parchment-lined baking sheet. (Snack on the tops - chef's treat - or discard.)
• Mash the potato flesh with a fork or potato masher. Add the butter, and stir until smooth (try not to overwork). Add the milk, sour cream and cheese and stir to combine. (If you want the filling softer, add more milk.) Season generously with salt and pepper. Stir in the chives, if using.
• Mound each potato skin with a quarter of the filling. Bake the potatoes until warmed through, about 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Use a fork to pierce the potato skins.
• Bake the potatoes unwrapped for about 1 hour, or until soft, in the preheated oven.
• Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
• Over medium-low heat melt the butter in a large saucepan. Combine onion, mushrooms, red pepper, garlic powder, pepper, chives and salt. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally until the onions are soft.
• Slice open the baked potatoes and, keeping the skins intact, scoop the insides into a medium bowl. Transfer the onion mixture to the bowl. Mix in the sour cream. Pour in 1/2 of the cheese and continue mixing until all ingredients are well blended.
• Using a large spoon, fill the potato skins with the mixture. Top with bread crumbs, the remaining cheese and bacon.
• Return the potatoes to the preheated oven and continue baking for about 15 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the filling is slightly brown.

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 400. Wash and scrub each potato completely but being careful as to not scrub off the peel.
• 2. Start by poking holes in each potato all the way around and placing them on the baking sheet. Let bake for two hours or until completely cooked through. Test by skewer or toothpick easily inserted into each potato completely thru the center. Any resistance and the potato is not cooked enough.
• 3. Once cooked, place potatoes on a wire rack to cool until you can hold in your hand. Slice each the long ways and then spoon carefully out all the meat inside the skin taking note not to dig too deep as to rip the skins.
• 4. Place the potato meat in the large mixing bowl. Place empty skins back on baking sheet and bake for 10 mins. Sprinkle a little salt inside the skin but be careful not too much.
• 5. Now while the skins are firming up, mash the potatoes in a large bowl adding all the ingredients except for the mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup milk, and potato flakes.
• 6. Use a potato masher and hand blender to mix the ingredients well. If too soupy, add some of the potato flakes. Too stiff add the milk.
• 7. Once well mixed, fill each skin with the mashed potatoes. Cover with a little pepper and mozzarella cheese. Place back on cookie sheet.
• 8. Once all skins are filled place sheet in freezer for three hours. Remove from cookie sheets into zipped sandwich bags making sure as much air as possible is removed. Place back in freezer (will last up to a month).
• 9. When ready to eat, just take however many you want out and either microwave them for 3 mins or until heated all the way through or in an oven for 10 mins on 350 until heated.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. Gently scrub potatoes, but do not peel. Pierce potatoes several times with a fork to allow steam to escape while potatoes bake.
• Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender when pierced in center with a fork.
• When potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut lengthwise in half; scoop out inside, leaving a thin shell. In medium bowl, mash potatoes with potato masher or electric mixer on low speed until no lumps remain. Add milk in small amounts, beating after each addition with potato masher or electric mixer on low speed (amount of milk needed to make potatoes smooth and fluffy depends on kind of potatoes used).
• Add butter, salt and pepper; beat vigorously until potatoes are light and fluffy. Stir in cheese and chives. Fill potato shells with mashed potato mixture. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
• Increase oven temperature to 400°F. Bake about 20 minutes or until hot.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake potatoes in preheated oven for 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
• When potatoes are done allow them to cool for 10 minutes. Slice potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop the flesh into a large bowl; save skins. To the potato flesh add sour cream, milk, butter, salt, pepper, 1/2 cup cheese and 1/2 the green onions. Mix with a hand mixer until well blended and creamy. Spoon the mixture into the potato skins. Top each with remaining cheese, green onions and bacon.
• Bake for another 15 minutes.