Twice-Baked Potatoes

For my very first Sweet as Pie recipe, I made PW’s Twice-Baked Potatoes, my choice for the month. Actually, Phillip picked out the recipe so he was especially looking forward to trying it out.  He even helped me by taking all of the cooking action shots.  Since the recipe makes 16 servings and there are only two of us, I divided it in half.  Whenever I divide recipes in halves or thirds, or double or triple a recipe, I make use of my handy-dandy recipe divider:

I got this for Christmas one year - so useful!

The potatoes were very easy to make – just bake, scrape, mix, and heat.  It took me about an hour and a half to pull it all together, most of which time was devoted to baking the potatoes.  Although, I had to finish a couple of the larger potatoes in the microwave so it could have taken a bit longer (we were on a strict timeline because Phillip had to leave for a night shift at the hospital).

A light coating of oil for a crisp skin. This also helped the potato keep its shape after being scraped out.

Pay no attention to the disheveled potholder I'm using to hold the hot potato.

The other ingredients, along with butter, milk, seasoned salt, and pepper.

I think next time I'll add just a splash more milk for an even creamier texture - nothing wrong with the recipe as written, that's just how I like my potatoes.

A final sprinkle of cheese before going back in the oven for a quick heat-through.

Phillip wanted to have steak with the potatoes so he picked some out for us at Publix this morning.  I usually do all of the menu planning around here, so I was happy to follow his dinner plan.  I did add some green beans though, simply because they are one of my favorites.  Here’s the final product:

In addition to improving my culinary skills through this club, I also hope to improve my photography and blogging skills - so much to learn, so please bear with me!

Phillip and I both really enjoyed these and we will definitely make them again.  The seasoned salt added just the right punch of flavor in this mix.  I think next time I may experiment with adding some different seasoning or herbs – I’m infatuated with rosemary and I think it would be wonderful in a variation on this recipe.  A great start for our cooking club!