Twice-baked potatoes/Photo byGin Lee

Twice-baked potatoes

What's better than a baked potato? Cheesy twice-baked potatoes! These potatoes make a perfect side dish for almost any meal. Plus, you can add your favorite baked potato ingredients, such as stirring in bacon bits, sour cream, ranch dressing, etc..

Twice-baked potatoes/ Savory pork chops/Photo byGin Lee

Ingredients:

• 5 medium-sized russet potatoes
• 5 tablespoons of butter
• 1 cup of shredded Mexican cheese
• 1 teaspoon of ground white pepper
• ½ teaspoon of seasoning salt
• Milk (Optional for creaming the potato filling if you prefer.)

Optional add-ins

• Sour cream
• Bacon bits
• Chives
• French onion dip
• Ranch dressing

Instructions:

First, wash the potatoes well. Then prick each one several times with a fork, or with a knife.

Transfer your potatoes to a microwave-safe plate. Microwave the potatoes on high for about twelve minutes (various microwaves cook differently so that time may be less, or could be more). If you don't have a microwave, bake your potatoes in a 425 degrees F oven for about fifty minutes.

Now, allow the baked potatoes time to cool (I never do, but I have asbestos hands. Lol). Once the potatoes have cooled enough to where you can safely hold them, begin scooping out the insides of each. Place the white part of the potatoes in a bowl as you scoop them out. Transfer the potato skins to an oven-safe pan.

Mash the potatoes, or cream them with a bit of milk.

Preparing the potato filling/Photo byGin Lee

Next, add the butter, white pepper and seasoning salt to the mashed potatoes. Then add the shredded Mexican cheese. Stir well. At this point, you can add in extras such as bacon bits, chili peppers, sour cream, sour cream and green onion dip, salad dressing, paprika, etc..

Now, using a spoon, fill each potato skin with the cheesy potato mixture.

Transfer the pan to a 350 degrees F oven and bake for about fifteen to twenty minutes.