Don’t bother going to your neighborhood fast food restaurant to enjoy these crispy little snacks. They’re fast and easy to prepare yourself. This tasty Crispy Potato Skins recipe makes an excellent finger food and they’re great to serve during the Friday night football game. Or is it Monday night? Well don’t ask me! I don’t know a football from a beach ball. Or a crystal ball that those folks look into to tell your fortune. Or an eight ball. Or a ball-bearing. Or a ball of wax. And just exactly what does that mean anyway? You know, when they say that they’re going to give you the whole ball of wax? Who wants a ball of wax anyway? What the heck do you do with it… make round candles that roll off the table? Oops… I got off topic again! Let’s get back to these crispy and yummy potato skins that aren’t at all shaped like a ball, although…
Your Ingredients:
4 large Russet (Idaho) baking potatoes, scrubbed clean and dried with a paper towel
10 slices of bacon, cooked until crisp and crumbled, divided
6-tbsp melted butter
1-tbsp cayenne pepper
1-tbsp chili powder
2-tbsp Lawry’s parsley garlic powder
1-1/2 cups freshly grated sharp Cheddar cheese
1-1/2 cups freshly grated Monterey Jack Cheese
1/2-cup freshly grated Gruyere cheese
Sour cream
Sliced jalapenos
1-1/3 cups of scallions, sliced thinly on the bias (diagonally)
PREHEAT oven to 400-degrees F.
PLACE whole potatoes directly on the center oven rack and bake potatoes until tender, about an hour (when you can easily pierce them with a knife)
REMOVE from the oven and allow potatoes to cool completely.
INCREASE oven temperature to 450-degrees F and place your oven rack in the upper third of the oven.
CUT each potato lengthwise into quarters.
USING a teaspoon, scoop out most of the pulp (NOT all), leaving about 1/4-inch shell.
IN a small bowl, mix together melted butter, cayenne, chili powder, and Lawry’s garlic powder.
BRUSH both sides of the skins with the butter mixture.
ARRANGE the skins on a baking sheet, pulp side up.
BAKE potato skins until very brown and crisp, about 20-30 minutes.
IN a bowl, combine about half of the crumbled bacon, Cheddar, Jack, and Gruyere cheeses, and blend well.
AFTER potato skins have crisped, top each one with the bacon and cheese mixture and return to the oven until cheese begins to brown, about 5-6 minutes.
SERVE immediately and garnish with the remaining crumbled bacon, a dollop of sour cream, sliced jalapenos, and sliced scallions.
Always Enjoy!
