Hi guys. I'm Laura Vitale, on this episode of Laura in the kitchen I'm going to show
you how to make everyone's favorite - potato skins. But I am going to show you how to make
them at home, without the hassle of a deep fryer. They are going to be quick and easy
to make, so let's get started.
So first thing we are going to do is go over the ingredients, you are going to need some thick slices of bacon, you are going to need some cooked potatoes
which I will talk about in a second. I have some freshly grated extra sharp cheddar, I
have some green onions that I have finely chopped, salt and pepper and a little bit
of olive oil and then you can use sour cream the end if you prefer. Now, for the bacon
you want to preheat your oven to 450F, we are going to do everything at 450F so it doesn't
matter. Preheat the oven so that it is nice and hot. For your potatoes you have two options,
you can cook them in the microwave for about 20 minutes or until they are just about tender
all the way through. Or you can cook them in the oven at 400 for a couple of hours because
these are russet potatoes so they are really big, so they will take a while. I made mine
in the oven because I had the oven on, but it doesn't matter. Whichever way you do it
you just want them to be just about all the way cooked through. Now the potatoes and the
bacon I am going to kind of cook at the same time so I am going to prep my potatoes. Here
is what I am going to do. You are going to take your potato that is just about cooked
all the way through. What am I doing with that little bitty knife? I am going to cut
this in half - just like so. With a spoon I am going to scoop out all of the flesh leaving
about a quarter inch border around just so that the potato can keep its shape while we
cook them in the oven. Now all I did was hollow them all out and then I cut each half in half,
so each potato is going to be in four pieces and then I put some olive oil at the bottom
of my baking sheet so that the bottom of the potato kind of crisps up. Now I am just going
to drizzle the top with a bit more olive oil because I want everything to be crispy and
then just season it with salt and pepper. Potatoes need seasoning otherwise they will
taste like nothing. Now this along with the bacon is going to go into your preheated oven
at 450 for about twenty minutes or until the potatoes are super crispy and so is the bacon.
My potatoes baked for about twenty-five minutes and the bacon only cooked for about fifteen
and then I let it drain and then I rough chopped it. Now all I am going to do is top these.
It's that simple. I am going to do the cheddar. You don't have to be perfect or precise. I
just like to scatter it all over the place pretty much. Then I am just going to top that
with the bacon, again - just scatter it all over the top. It does not have to be perfect
because once it cooks together and the cheese melts, the cheese kind of becomes the glue
for the bacon, the scallions to stick to. Lastly, and this is totally optional, I am
going to scatter a few scallions over the top. I like the freshness and it has a little
bit of an interesting flavor - to me anyways. So it gets away from that cheese and bacon
and gives it a little something extra that, you know, kind of takes away from all the
richness. This is going to go back into your 450 degree oven for about five to ten minutes
or until the cheese is lovely and golden and bubbly and melted. These went back into the
oven for literally five minutes or until the cheese is melted, which takes absolutely no
time since everything else is already cooked. But that's it! They are quick and simple to
do. You don't have to think about the fryer and grease or all the hassle. You can just
make them in your oven, they will come out ten times better I guarantee it. Everybody
loves them. That's it! Hope you enjoyed spending time with me. To get this recipe and others
go to www.laurainthekitchen.com and I will see you next time. Bye-bye.