TWICE BAKED POTATOES | Potatoes with a Cheesy, Bacon and Chive Filling!

These twice-baked potatoes are without a doubt everyone's favorite side dish for holiday parties, though they're easy enough to whip up that you can make them for a weeknight dinner and score extra brownie points with your family, hint hint. So here's what I love about them. They're essentially crispy potato skins stuffed with a creamy and cheesy mashed potato filling that's dotted with crispy bacon bits and chopped chives, and then they are put back in the oven to bake a second time with a little sprinkle of cheese on top. Yes, they are indulgent, but tis the season for indulgence, and I just know that you're gonna love them as much as I do. So let's dive right in. To get started, you'll need to wash four large russet potatoes. Russet potatoes are the best option for this recipe because the outside skin will get nice and crispy when they're baked, and the inside will get all fluffy when you mix the filling up. Give them a good wash and scrub as you will be eating the outside skin, and no one wants to bite into any dirt. I have this vegetable brush that I've had for ages, and it's perfect for washing potatoes and other veggies as it has both soft bristles and medium bristles, which you can use depending on what you're washing. So I'll link that below for you. Once the potatoes are washed, dry them off with a kitchen towel or some paper towels, then poke them a few times with a fork before placing them on a parchment-lined baking tray. And the premise behind poking is to reduce the steam buildup inside the potatoes to prevent them from exploding in the oven, though I'll be honest that sometimes I forget to poke them and I've never had any issues yet. So I don't know, but what do you guys think? Is the poking more of an old wife's tale kind of thing? I'm leaning towards yes, but if you do have any cautionary tales, please do share. Anyway, bake them in a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 50 to 60 minutes or until they're easily pierced with a knife. And while the potatoes are baking, you can multitask and get the filling ready. You'll need to cook up four pieces of bacon, and today I'm just cooking it in a pan on the stove, but you could also bake the bacon in the oven or even cook the bacon a day in advance. And while I know some of you may want to opt for store-bought bacon bits, take it from this bacon connoisseur that those bacon bits have a fraction of the flavor of freshly cooked bacon. So that's my pro tip for today. Do not use store-bought bacon bits. Next, you'll need about two tablespoons of chives. So go ahead and slice those up. And as you can see, I'm slicing up more than two tablespoons worth, but that's because I want to add some to my scrambled eggs for tomorrow's breakfast. So I'll often chop up extra herbs while I've got them in front of me. And the last item you'll need to prep is about three quarters cup of shredded cheese. I'm using white cheddar because I'm just personally not a fan of orange cheese, but you could use any good melting cheese like Gruyere, Gouda, Havarti, and others. Just don't use pre-shredded cheese if possible as it usually has anti-caking agents, which can impair that really good oozy melting. After the potatoes are fully baked, remove them from the oven and then set them aside until they're cool enough to handle. They'll still be hot on the inside, but you need them at least cool enough to handle while you scoop out the flesh. So slice them in half lengthwise, then grab a large spoon and scoop out the insides, leaving about a quarter inch around the rim. Essentially, you just want to leave enough so that the potato skins hold their shape. And you'll dump all the potato flesh from the potatoes into a mixing bowl. Now this potato flesh definitely needs a flavor boost, so add a half a cup of sour cream, one third cup of whole milk, and four tablespoons of butter. You're simply making mashed potatoes at this stage, so use a potato masher or hand mixer to whip the ingredients together. I personally love a hand mixer so that the filling is super fluffy. Then once that's done, add half a cup of the cheddar cheese, stir in the bacon, and I just crumble those slices right over the bowl, and add two tablespoons of chives. Then stir that all together. Fill the potato skins with the filling until it's all evenly divided. And from experience, I will say that the larger the russet potato, the more filling you'll have with a nice rounded top. But if you have smaller potatoes and not quite as much filling, you can always toss one potato skin if the total number isn't important to you, and then fill the remaining potato skins just a little bit fuller. Place the potatoes back on the same parchment lined baking tray and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. And of course, if you want to add a little more cheese than what I put in the directions, by all means you can do that. If this was my brother making these, he'd probably put a half a cup of shredded cheese on each potato. But don't forget that it is kind of nice to see the little bacon bits pop through, or at least I think so. So the first time we bake these potatoes to cook them, and the second time we're baking the potatoes to make the creamy, cheesy, fluffy filling all gooey and golden on top. Hence the twice baked potatoes name. And they really only need an additional 15 minutes or so back in the oven. On the blog post, I give a few extra tips, like how you can save time in the kitchen during the holidays if you're making these for Thanksgiving or Christmas by doing the first baking either the day before or the morning of. Then store the skins in one container and the filling in another container in the fridge and do the second baking right before serving. Because you know me, I am all about making life easy during bustling holidays when you've got lots of people in the kitchen. Before serving, I love to add a little more chopped chives for a fresh pop of green and a sprinkle of freshly ground black pepper. I can assure you that without a doubt, this will be your most popular side dish during the holidays or any weeknight meal for that matter. I mean, who can resist this creamy, cheesy, bacon-y, herby goodness? I sure can't, and that's why I'm going to dig in for my bite now. I am more than ready to take a bite of these because I know how good they are. Let's get a big bite. I think we need two bites, you know, just for good measure right now. It is so cheesy and creamy and luscious and smooth and like fluffy on the inside. And then you get the little bits of bacon, which, who doesn't love bacon? And the chopped chives on top. It is just, it's so good. So good. And while I'm of course scooping out the inside, because let's be honest, that is the best part. Normally I would take a knife to it and make sure to get some of the crispy outside in each bite as well. So don't forget the crispy outside. Now in terms of flavor, it's hard to beat this cheddar bacon combo. I mean, it is a classic, but if you do want to get creative, you could do a broccoli cheddar, or you could do a spinach artichoke, or you could do so many other flavors. So definitely have fun with the recipe. And one last tip for you guys, because I know many of you will want to make this recipe for the holidays and save some time, especially when you've got multiple people using the kitchen at the same time. And that is if you want to make the entire recipe up until the filling portion. So you would bake them once, you would make the creamy filling, you could store the filling in a bowl in the fridge, and the skins in a separate container. And then when you want to serve and enjoy, it's just a matter of filling the skins, topping with a little bit of extra cheese, baking them, which only takes about 15 or 20 minutes, and then you're done. I hope you guys enjoyed this twice baked potatoes recipe. And if you did, make sure to give it a thumbs up. And if looking for more tasty, healthy, and indulgent side dishes, I have so many more on my website, so make sure to check those out. And with that, I will see you guys in the next video.