The Curvy Carrot

Ah, the classic potato side dish.  My (secret) favorite of all the characters traditionally found in a Thanksgiving spread.  That ultimate comfort food-whether they are mashed (butter, please), fried, or even served in a salad-potatoes are all good.  Last year I went with a Duchesse version (also very tasty).

This year I wanted something that could just stand alone, as I was planning on making a big batch for just myself.  So I played around with a twice-baked version with lots of different savory fillings so that this could serve as a stand-alone entree that I could easily pack for lunch during the work week or quickly reheat during a busy weeknight for a simple meal.  These fit the bill.

When the weather gets colder and I’m hibernating in my apartment on the weekends, I like to bake/roast a whole bunch of different things in one single shot to be a little bit more energy efficient.  I usually line two oven racks with squash, potatoes, and sweet potatoes (Scout loves getting squash with her food), bake everything thing, and then, during the week, I just use my microwave to reheat things quickly.  This is what I did here.  I baked the potatoes for this recipe, the sweet potatoes for this recipe, and roasted the beets for this recipe…all at the same time.  Efficiency is my modus operandi.

As for these potatoes, you can totally play around with what kind of filling you end up making.  I wanted something hearty and savory, so I used spinach and mushrooms here.  I tried to lighten them up a bit by using nonfat Greek yogurt, but you can substitute sour cream, of course.  Skip the cheese to make them even skinnier.  As for baking the potatoes, I lightly rub them with olive oil and coat them with Kosher salt-then wrap them in foil to bake.  I find that the coating of salt (although a lot of it falls off) makes the skins a little bit crispy and salty…which then makes me want to eat more of the skins (which, of course, is the most nutritious part of the whole potato.)

Enjoy.

Savory Twice-Baked Potatoes

Servings: 5  (I wanted 4 servings, so I bought 5 potatoes, just in case.  I ended up with 5 twice-baked potatoes.)

Ingredients

5 Russet poatoes, baked  (To bake:  Lightly prick each potato with the tines of a fork, brush with a bit of olive oil, sprinkle with Kosher salt, and wrap in aluminum foil.  Bake at 400 degrees until soft-mine took about 55-60 minutes.)

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 cup yellow onion, chopped

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

1/2 cup mushrooms (I used baby bella/crimini), chopped

2-3 cups fresh spinach leaves (I used Earthbound Farm.)

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt

Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

1.  Once the potatoes are baked and cool enough to handle, cut about 1/2-inch slice of skin/flesh longitudinally off each potato.

2. Very carefully/gently, scoop out the flesh from each potato and transfer to a large bowl.  Set aside.  (You can discard the tops of each potato-make sure to get any extra flesh off of each one, though.)  Transfer the potato shells to a rimmed baking sheet.

3. In a saute pan over medium heat, heat the olive oil until shimmering.  Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

4. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is translucent and softened, about 5 minutes.

5. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

6. Add the chopped mushrooms, cooking until the mushrooms release their moisture and soften a bit, about 4-5 minutes.

7. Add the spinach leaves to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, until the leaves turn bright green and wilt a bit, about 2-3 minutes.

8. Remove the pan from the heat and add the spinach mixture to the bowl of potatoes, stirring to combine.

9.   Add the cheese and Greek yogurt to the bowl, mixing until thoroughly combined.  Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.

10. Very carefully, using a large spoon, fill each potato shell with the mushroom/spinach/potato mixture.  I liked mounding mine a bit higher than the edges of the shell.  **You might have a bit of filling left over.

11. Bake the potatoes (again) until heated through and the tops start to turn golden brown, about 30-40 minutes.  **Watch your potatoes carefully, as oven temperatures can vary significantly.  You don’t want to burn them.

Source:  A Curvy Carrot original.