Why Twice Baked Potatoes Are Better Than Mashed Potatoes
Mashed potatoes are real clouds of happiness. Potatoes, butter, cream, salt. It’s like everything is perfect in this world, in one fluffy form. A reasonable person would not behave with such perfection, but I am not reasonable, so today I am here to express my point of view. Instead, you should make twice-baked potatoes.
Listen to me. Twice baked potatoes are basically mashed potatoes. And crispy potato skins. And fried cheesy goodness. And this is only for the fans. If you’re making dinner, twice-baked potatoes give you an easy way to determine how many potatoes to cook—one large or two small ones per person. They can be made ahead of time and reheated beautifully.
They give you a hundred more options for customization and variety than a big bowl of plain white mashed potatoes. Imagine if someone comes to you who doesn’t eat dairy, you can easily separate them from the herd and cook them with an alternative fat instead. For your vegetarian friends, you can make some with bacon and some without. You can vary the cheese from potato to potato, or just go crazy and make a few with tangy cream cheese for fun. If you want to get fancy, you can add perfectly smooth whipped potatoes, or just mash them by hand and scoop them back into crisp, starchy shells. The point is that you can change the situation and offer a real mixture of hilling.
Plus, while making mashed potatoes isn’t difficult at all, it’s easier. Really. You dip them in melted butter or oil, bake them at 400 degrees for an hour, scoop them out, mash the potatoes, and then scoop them back. When ready to serve, toast these babies for a few minutes and then place them on top. with cheese. I hear angels singing.
Twice baked potatoes
(enough for four people)
Ingredients
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4 large or 8 small russet potatoes
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1.5 tablespoons butter
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½ cup heavy cream
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½ cup grated Gruyere cheese
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Salt and pepper for taste
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4 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil
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Preheat oven to 400F and place a rack in the top third of the oven and another rack in the middle. Place a rimmed baking sheet on the middle oven rack.
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Wash the potatoes, dry them, and then pierce the tops with a fork several times.
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Dip the potatoes into the oil until they are completely covered. Now carefully place the potatoes using tongs on the top rack just above the baking sheet so they don’t drip.
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Cook for one hour and then check that a knife can easily pierce the potatoes as it goes through the top. If so, remove the potatoes and place them on a baking sheet. If not, allow them to continue cooking until the knife goes in easily.
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Let the potatoes cool enough to handle, but the hotter they are, the easier the mash will be. Handle the potatoes carefully and cut off the top third of the potato along the long side using a very sharp knife.
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Using a soup spoon, carefully scoop the flesh of each potato into a bowl. The goal is not to completely remove all flesh; you can leave ¼ inch or more of the potato, but you want to get as much of the potato out as possible without tearing the skin.
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Add the butter to the bowl and then stir the potatoes until the butter has melted. Now add the cream and stir with a fork, potato masher or whisk until the potatoes reach the desired consistency. Salt and pepper for taste.
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Using the same soup spoon, carefully scoop the mashed potatoes back into the skins, pressing the potatoes into the skins with the back of the spoon. Spread the puree evenly between the potatoes and the back of a spoon, evening out the tops by swirling the spoon.
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At this point, you can set the potatoes aside until you are ready to reheat them. At this point, turn on the broiler. Place the potatoes under the broiler until the tops are lightly browned.
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Divide the shredded cheese between the potatoes and place back under the broiler until melted and bubbly.
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Garnish with herbs and sea salt and serve hot.