Twice Baked Potatoes with Bacon and Cheese

There is so much right with this plate. Just hand me the fork and knife, please.

The quintessential American meal is some variation of meat and potatoes. It can be found on every menu and in every restaurant. While splitting them up might be sacrilege to some, either can stand on its own and shine. These baked potatoes are great as an entrée, but pairing them with a strip loin steak (see Variants below) is a delight.

SOFTWARE

·         2 Russet potatoes, scrubbed

·         1 T. olive oil

·         Kosher salt

·         4 strips of bacon, diced

·         1 c. shredded cheese, divided (use your favorite cheese but pick one that melts easily)

·         3 T. butter, unsalted

·         1 T. milk

METHOD

1.       Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

2.       Place the potatoes in a large bowl and drizzle the olive oil over them. Toss the potatoes around in the bowl to coat them with the oil and sprinkle the kosher salt over while tossing.

3.       On a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, place the potatoes. Put them in the oven and bake for 1 hour.

4.       While the potatoes are baking, place the diced bacon in a cold skillet. Place the skillet over medium heat and cook until the bacon is crisp. Drain and place the bacon bits into a medium sized bowl.

5.       Add 1/2 cup of the shredded cheese and the butter, cut up into pieces, to the bacon.

6.       Once the potatoes finished baking (they should be fork tender), allow them to cool a bit before slicing them through on the long side.

7.       Reduce the heat in the oven to 350 degrees.

8.       Scoop out the potato into the bowl, leaving behind a thin layer of potato in the skin.

9.       Mash the ingredients in the bowl together, adding the milk as you go.

10.   Spoon the mashed potatoes back into the skins, and top with the remaining cheese.

11.   Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.

12.   Remove and serve.

13.   Enjoy.

VARIANTS

If you didn’t want the bacon and/or cheese, leave them out. You may need a bit more butter and salt for your mashed potatoes. Sour cream and chopped scallions are both great additions as well.

As promised, if you want to partner the potatoes with a steak, strip loin is a great choice and fairly easy to prepare. Allow the steak to come to room temperature. Place a cast iron skillet over high heat for 1-2 minutes to let it get hot.

While the skillet is coming to temperature, rub the steaks with olive oil and season generously with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place them in the skillet and don’t move them around. They will form a great crust if you leave them alone.

If you like medium rare steaks, flip at 3 minutes; medium steaks at 4 minutes; medium well at 5 minutes. Once both sides are done, place them on a rack to rest for about 5 minutes, then serve with the potatoes. If you like, sauté some mushrooms in melted butter and top your steak with them.

CAUTION: You will generate a good amount of smoke with this method. Make sure your kitchen is well ventilated.