These crispy, cheese filled potato skins are a first-rate appetizer; top with bacon bits, sour cream, and chives. Enjoy them on your First Night Eve or any other time an appetizer is on the menu.
We love celebrating New Years Eve here! But sometimes I barely make it to midnight and only a few minutes past. We usually ring in the New Year with lots of noise, a midnight kiss and some Martinellis. We also celebrate the evening with lots of delicious snacks and appetizers instead of a big meal. We devour mozzarella sticks, cheese, meat and cracker platter, shrimp cocktail, chips, chicken wings, spinach dip, and more. And we can’t forget these incredible cheese filled potato skins. Especially when we top them with bacon bits, sour cream, chives or green onions. Oh my!!!! And we will always have a dessert of two of brownies, ice cream, and mini cheesecakes. We definitely eat waaay too much but oh our taste buds are savoring every bite.
I can’t decide what is my favorite appetizer but I am quite sure these potato skins are ranked in the top 5. Preparing them can take a little time especially if you are oven baking your potatoes. An oven bake potato is crispier but you can make it a little easier and quicker by precooking in the microwave.
A few tips in your potato skin preparation:
1)scooping the potato out of the skins while the potatoes are still warm, but not hot
2)leave a little potato on the skins
3)save all that potato for mixing in with butter and sour cream for a delicious mashed potato dish
4)don’t skip the olive oil and salt sprinkle step, this crisps the potato skins up to perfection
These crispy, cheese filled potato skins are so flavorsome, we are sure you will love them too!
Potato Skins
Ingredients
For Baking the Potatoes:
- 8 baking potatoes
- 2 TBS olive oil
- salt (to taste)
For Potato Skins:
- 3 TBS unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup bacon crumbles
- sour cream
- green onions or chives (chopped)
Instructions
For Baking the Potatoes:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Wash potatoes. Prick them 5 or 6 times with a fork. Rub olive oil over the potato skins, and sprinkle generously with salt. 8 baking potatoes, 2 TBS olive oil, salt
- Bake potatoes in oven on a baking pan for 50-60 minutes or until they are soft.
- Remove potatoes from the oven and let them cool until cool enough to handle.
- Allow to cool for a few minutes then carefully scoop out the centers of the potatoes, leaving just a little “meat” of the potato, about 1/4 inch, left. (Set aside potato insides for another time)
For Potato Skins:
- Increase oven temperature to 450 degrees.
- In a small bowl combine butter, salt, parsley, garlic powder, and onion powder. 3 TBS unsalted butter, 1/2 tsp dried parsley, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp onion powder
- Brush the butter mixture over the outside of the potato skins.
- Place potatoes on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
- Flip each potato over and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Put potatoes skin side down on baking sheet and load each potato skin with cheese and bacon bits. 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1/2 cup bacon crumbles
- Bake for about 3-5 minutes, or until cheese is golden and bubbly.
- Serve topped with sour cream and green onions or chives. sour cream, green onions or chives
marissa | rae gun ramblings says
oh those look so yummy!