Twice Baked Potatoes

Ingredients:
6 large baking potatoes
1/2 cup butter or stick margarine, softened
1 cup milk or whipping cream
1/2 pound bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 1/2 cups (6 ozs) shredded cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp minced chives
1/2 tsp salt
dash of pepper & paprika

Directions:

1. Bake the potatoes at 375 degrees for 1 hour until tender. Cool. 
2. Cut a thin slice off the top of each potato and discard.
3. scoop out the pulp, leaving a thin shell.
4. In a bowl, mash the pulp with butter.
5. Stir in milk, bacon, 1 cup cheese, chives, salt and pepper. Spoon into potato shells.
6. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes. 
7. Sprinkle with remaining cheese, and bake 2 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. 
8. Garnish with paprika.

Cheesy Sweet Potato Crisps

 Ingredients:

1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled

2 egg whites

1/2 cup romano cheese

1 teaspoon rosemary

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425. Set a wire rack on top of a baking sheet. Spray rack with non-stick spray.

2. Grate sweet potatoes (I used a food processor) and squeeze all the moisture from them. I did this for a good 5 minutes – I find it makes them crisp up better in the oven.

3. Add sweet potatoes, egg whites, cheese, pepper, and rosemary in a large bowl and mix until combined. 

4. Scoop out 1 tablespoon of potato mixture (I used an ice-cream scooper) and set on wire rack. Press as thin as possible. Repeat until potatoes are gone.

5. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until potatoes and dark around the edges and crispy.

6. Serve with smokey yogurt dip.

Smokey Yogurt Dip

1 cup plain greek yogurt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon cumin

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Serve as dipping sauce.

Zuppa Toscana

This is one of my favorite soups. If you like Olive Garden's Zuppa Toscana, you are going to love this.

3 cans (14oz) Chicken Broth
2 cups whipping cream
red pepper flakes (to taste)
salt and pepper (to taste)
1 small onion, diced, sauteed
1/2 pkg. bacon (cooked and crumbled)
4-5 cups chopped kale
3 to 4 potatoes scrubbed and cut into slices or small chunks (skins left on)
1 lb Johnsonville mild Italian sausage (shaped into small rounds, browned, and put on paper towels to de-grease... or if you are in a rush, just brown the sausage like you would ground beef).


Put everything except for potatoes together in a large crockpot and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours. Add potatoes the last 40-60 minutes (if you add them too soon they will get soggy).

Serve with bread sticks.

Parslied Potatoes

I've had this recipe for probably 10 years. How come I couldn't find it a couple of weeks ago when I needed it?

1 1/2 pounds small new red potatoes, scrubbed
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 med onion, chopped
1 small garlic clove, crushed
1 C. chicken broth
1 C. fresh parsley
1/2 tsp pepper

1. Peel a strip of skin from around the middle of each potato; place in cold water, set aside.
2. Heat a large skillet over med-hi heat; add oil. Saute onion and garlic for 5 minutes or until tender. Add broth and 3/4 C. parsley, mix well. Bring to a boil.
3. Place potatoes in a single layer in skillet. Return to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer, covered for 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
4. Remove potatoes with slotted spoon to serving bowl. Add pepper to skillet, stir. Pour sauce over potatoes. Sprinkle with remaining parsley.

Parmesean Baked Potato Halves

6 small potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half
1/4 cup butter
grated parmesan cheese
garlic powder
other seasonings (to personal preference)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt butter and pour into a 9x13 inch pan and spread evenly across the bottom. Generously sprinkle parmesan cheese and lightly sprinkle other seasonings all over the butter. Place potato halves face down on the butter and seasonings. Place in preheated oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan. Serve on a plate with a side of sour cream for dipping.

Ham and Potato Soup - No corn*

3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1/2 cup diced celery
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup diced cooked ham
3 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground white or black pepper, or to taste
5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk

Directions:


1. Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham and chicken broth in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the salt and pepper.

In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.

Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through. Serve immediately.

*I like the other ham chowder recipe on here but sometimes I can't stomach the creamed corn. I think it stems from the time when Drew and I were too lazy to make something for lunch and ended up eating cans of creamed corn with pepper to taste. It was pretty tasty at the time but it takes a lot of creamed corn to be full and by the end, I didn't want to ever see creamed corn again. 

Ham & Potato Hash

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1/2 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled
• 1 cup finely diced cooked ham
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon dried crumbled thyme 

Directions

1 Cut the potatoes in half, cook in a saucepan of simmering water until not quite done and still firm, about 10 minutes. Rinse in cold water to stop cooking. Drain. Dice to 1/2-inch thick pieces. Set aside.

2 Melt butter in a large cast-iron* skillet over medium low to medium heat. Add onion, cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the chopped bell pepper, cook another 2 minutes.

3 Add remaining ingredients; mix well. Cook hash until well browned, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Serves 6.

*Best not to use a stick-free pan or the hash won't brown very well.

Potato Skins

From simply recipes

Ingredients

• 6 small to medium sized russet baking potatoes (total 3 pounds)
• Olive oil
• Canola oil or grapeseed oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 6 strips of bacon
• 4 ounces grated cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced, including the greens of the onions

Method

1 Scrub the potatoes clean then bake the potatoes using your favorite method, either oven or microwave. If using an oven, rub with olive oil and bake in a 400°F oven for about an hour until the potatoes are cooked through and give a little when pressed. If using a microwave, rub all over with olive oil and cook on the high setting for about 5 minutes per potato. I have found that baking the potatoes in a conventional oven yields potatoes that are easier to work with (cut and scoop out), the potato seems to adhere to the skins a little better, but there is hardly a discernible difference in the final product.

2 While the potatoes are cooking, cook the bacon strips in a frying pan on medium low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Let cool. Crumble.


3 Remove the potatoes from the oven and let cool enough to handle. Cut in half horizontally. Use a spoon to carefully scoop out the insides, reserving the scooped potatoes for another use, leaving about 1/4 of an inch of potato on the skin.
Increase the heat of the oven to 450°F. Brush or rub grapeseed oil or canola oil (or another high smoke point oil) all over the potato skins, outside and in. Sprinkle with salt. Place on a baking rack in a roasting pan (don't use a cookie sheet, it will warp, use a roasting pan or broiler pan that can take the heat). Cook for 10 minutes on one side, then flip the skins over and cook for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool enough to handle.


4 Arrange the potato skins skin-side down on the roasting pan or rack. Sprinkle the insides with freshly ground black pepper, cheddar cheese, and crumbled bacon. Return to the oven. Broil for an additional 2 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Remove from oven. Use tongs to place skins on a serving plate. Add a dollop of sour cream to each skin, sprinkle with green onions.
Serve immediately. Serves 4 to 6.

LESLIE'S ROASTED POTATOES

1 Lb potatoes(cubed)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/3 cup bread Italian seasoned bread crumbs
2 Tbsp Parmaigiano- Reggiano
1/2 tsp rosemary(fresh or dried)
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper

In a small bowl mix bread crumbs, Parmigiano -Reggiano, rosemary, onion and garlic powder, salt and pepper.

In a medium bowl, coat potatoes in enough olive oil to generously cover.
Pour the bread crumb mixture on potatoes and mix until the potatoes are covered evenly.
Place on parchment paper or silicone lined baking sheet.
Bake in a preheated 450 degree oven for 30 minutes, stirring about every 10 minutes until golden brown. Sprinkle with Kosher Salt.
Makes 4 small servings

Onion Roasted Potatoes

Onion Roasted Potatoes
2 Lbs. Potatoes
1 (1 oz.) Package Dry Onion Soup Mix
2 Tablespoon Olive Oil(shredded cheese for the non-weight watcher version)
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash and dry the potatoes, then cut into chunks. Place the potatoes into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Pour the olive oil on top of the potatoes and stir to coat evenly. Sprinkle the onion soup mix on top and stir to coat the potatoes. Bake for 40 minutes or until tender and golden brown, stirring occasionally. If they start to get too brown before they're tender, you can lay a piece of foil across the top of the dish. (Sprinkle with shredded cheddar cheese for the non-weight watcher version)

Fried Pot Roast

First step - have a pot roast dinner - meat, potatoes, carrots, whatever you like in your dinner. Make enough for leftovers.
Second step - Save the leftovers in the fridge.
Third step - Heat up a frying pan, add some butter
Forth step - slice up your leftovers, fry them up in your pan. Add a little salt and a little pepper.

Reviews were pretty favorable...

One-Pan Chicken & Potato Bake

4 bone-in chicken pieces
4 large potatoes
1/4 cup Zesty Italian dressing
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken and potatoes in 13x9-inch baking dish.
Pour dressing over chicken and potatoes; sprinkle with cheese.
Bake 1 hour or until chicken is cooked through. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley, if desired.
Makes 4 servings.

Potatoes O'Brien

6 or 8 potatoes - cubed - peeled or not - Red, Gold, White, or whatever kind of potato will do. (Or a combination, the more the merrier.) Frying Pan with oil & butter Chopped bell peppers - Green, Red, Yellow, Orange, or any combination crushed garlic Some onion Salt & Pepper seasonings - savory, italian seasoning, rosemary, or whatever Put potatoes, onion, & peppers in pan with oil and butter, season until it looks about right. Brown until you are happy with the texture.

Zesty Home Fries

2 lbs red new potatoes (about 6 potatoes) cut into large chunks
1/2 cup Zesty Italian dressing
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 large red onion, cut into chunks
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 slices bacon, crisply cooked & crumbled
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Toss potatoes with dressing and pepper in greased 15x10x1 inch baking pan. Spread into a single layer. Bake 20 mins. Stir in onions, continue baking 20 min or until vegetables are tender. Sprinkle with parsley and bacon; stir. Top with cheese. Bake an additional 2 min or until cheese is melted.

Blender Potato Soup

1/2 cup veg oil
3 cups chopped celery
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 tsp fresh minced garlic
1 qt. chicken broth
3 cups peeled and diced russet potatoes
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Shredded sharp cheddar cheese

In a large saucepan, heat oil. Add celery, onions, and garlic; saute until tender. Stir in remaining ingredients except 1/3 c. parsely and cheese; bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer, covered for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Pour half of mixture into blender; puree until smooth. Set aside. Pour remaining soup into blender; blend until coarsely chopped. Combine both mixtures. Ladle soup into bowls; garnish with remaining parsely and cheese.