Jalapeno Popper Twice Baked Potatoes

Welcome to the September 18, 2016 edition of Sunday Scratchups: Your weekly recipe from scratch around grocery sales & frugal foods. Up this week: Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes, AKA: nom nom nom nom nom.

I don’t know about you guys, but I’ve been getting a ton of peppers from my little garden this year and they’re still going strong. So I wanted to use something from this bowl of just picked-a-peck-of-peppers, and started looking around my kitchen: Bag of cheap baking potatoes from ALDI? Check. Sales on shredded cheese this week? Check.

I also had a brick of clearance cream cheese in the fridge that needed to be used, so all of these things just naturally fell together into Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes. (Which, by the way, only took two little peppers out of the whole bowl — but this was a convenient excuse to make them nonetheless!)

Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes

Ingredients

4 large baking potatoes
Kosher salt
Canola oil
2 small jalapeños
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup bacon bits, plus more for topping
Chives, green onions, or chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional

Directions

Scrub potatoes and pierce each several times with a fork. Place in large bowl and coat lightly with oil, then sprinkle with Kosher salt. Bake at 375 degrees for one hour fifteen minutes, or until they’re cooked through and pierce easily with a fork. (Note: I wrapped mine in foil, but next time will cook them directly on the rack for a crispier skin.)

When the potatoes are done, let them cool until you can handle them easily. Meanwhile, cut off stems and roast your jalapeños. (I just broiled mine on a little cookie sheet in the toaster oven for a few minutes.) Place roasted peppers in a plastic baggie and seal for five minutes to steam, then remove the skin under cold running water. De-seed if desired for a milder taste, or leave seeds in for spicier potatoes.

Chop peppers, then add them to a large bowl with cream cheese, 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese, seasoned salt, garlic powder, and bacon bits. Slice each potato in half lengthwise and place skin-side down on a rimmed cookie sheet. Scoop out the middles and add to your cheese mixture, doing your best to keep the skins intact for refilling.

Mash the potato into the cheese mixture until it’s at your desired consistency, then stir with a spoon until cheese is melted and ingredients are combined. Scoop your filling back into the hollowed-out potato skins, then top these with your reserved 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. Sprinkle with bacon bits.

Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes, then broil for another 5 minutes to brown up the topping. Garnish with chopped chives, parsley, or green onions if desired.

Twice baked popper-y goodness in a potato!

I won’t lie to you guys: These were more of a pain to make than some of the other recipes I’ve featured here, what with all the roasting and scooping and mashing and filling, but they’re totally worth it. So good! I left the seeds in my jalapeños, and the finished potatoes initially had something of a kick — but the leftovers got much spicier the next day. If you don’t like a lot of spice or are planning to reheat yours, you may wish to de-seed your peppers.

Instead of the big bakers, you could instead make these with little potatoes for a fun football appetizer, too. Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes are naturally gluten free, so try them for a delicious spicy twist on regular twice baked potatoes.

Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes, printable recipe

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Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes

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Jalapeño Popper Twice Baked Potatoes are naturally gluten free, so try them for a delicious spicy twist on regular twice baked potatoes.

Course Appetizer

Total Time 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Rachel Singer

Ingredients

• 4 large baking potatoes
• Kosher salt
• Canola oil
• 2 small jalapeños
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
• 1/2 tsp
• seasoned salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 cup bacon bits, plus more for topping
• Chives, green onions, or chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional

Instructions

• Scrub potatoes and pierce each several times with a fork.
• Place in large bowl and coat lightly with oil, then sprinkle with Kosher salt.
• Bake at 375 degrees for one hour fifteen minutes, or until they're cooked through and pierce easily with a fork. (Note: I wrapped mine in foil, but next time will cook them directly on the rack for a crispier skin.)
• When the potatoes are done, let them cool until you can handle them easily.
• Meanwhile, cut off stems and roast your jalapeños. (I just broiled mine on a little cookie sheet in the toaster oven for a few minutes.)
• Place roasted peppers in a plastic baggie and seal for five minutes to steam, then remove the skin under cold running water.
• De-seed if desired for a milder taste, or leave seeds in for spicier potatoes.
• Chop peppers, then add them to a large bowl with cream cheese, 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese, seasoned salt, garlic powder, and bacon bits.
• Slice each potato in half lengthwise and place skin-side down on a rimmed cookie sheet.
• Scoop out the middles and add to your cheese mixture, doing your best to keep the skins intact for refilling.
• Mash the potato into the cheese mixture until it's at your desired consistency, then stir with a spoon until cheese is melted and ingredients are combined.
• Scoop your filling back into the hollowed-out potato skins, then top these with your reserved 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.
• Sprinkle with bacon bits.
• Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes, then broil for another 5 minutes to brown up the topping.
• Garnish with chopped chives, parsley, or green onions if desired.

Notes

The leftovers got much spicier the next day. If you don’t like a lot of spice or are planning to reheat yours, you may wish to de-seed your peppers.

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