Potato skins are quite possibly my all-time favorite appetizer. I remember going out with my college friends and just sitting around the table of a restaurant, enjoying potato skins whether we were hungry or not!
There is a basic way to make potato skins, but there are also many different things you can add to give them a different flavor. Here’s the basic recipe:
You will need four large potatoes, olive oil, scallions, shredded Cheddar cheese, bacon, sour cream, and salt.
Wash your potatoes and thinly slice your scallions. Cook four slices of bacon enough so it will easily crumble when done. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Stab the potatoes with a knife and let them cook for 45 minutes. After they are done, you will need to let them cool. Cut them in half and scoop most of the meat part of the potato out. It should leave about 1/4 inch of the potato next to the skin. Brush the inside of the potato with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place these halves back in the oven under broil for about 5 minutes to let them get brown. Fill the skins with scallions, bacon, and cheese. Return them to the oven under broil just long enough to let the cheese melt. Serve with sour cream.
That sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? But what if you added a twist to traditional potato skins. You can add a little spice to your potato skins by adding hot pepper sauce to the bottom layer. I also found one recipe that included diced green chilies – yum! To help cool that taste a bit, they also added chopped tomatoes. Why not try dipping your potato skins in Ranch salad dressing rather than sour cream to give it a bit of a kick? For those who really want to live on the wild side, puree ½ cup of cottage cheese, 2 tablespoons of sour cream, and 2 tablespoons of horseradish for a dip!
Be adventurous next time you cook potato skins – who knows what you will be able to come up with!