To me, eating loaded baked potatoes for dinner are like a comforting hug from my mom. Now you all know that she didn’t – doesn’t – and probably never will cook, but I have fond childhood memories of her taking us to the local diner for dinner and ordering up those yummy loaded potato skins.
I really miss ’em. So I created my own recipe, which, incidentally, has gotta be light years healthier than the stuff I ate as a kid. I call it Mexican Baked Potatoes.
You just load on sour cream (or lite sour cream), chunky salsa, some fresh cilantro, chopped (or mix a cube of the frozen cilantro into your sour cream) and top it off with a great Mexican blend of shredded cheddar (or other cheese). If you want nice melty cheese, throw it in a broiler for a minute or two until it oozes. If you want more of a potato skin style recipe (that’s not fried) try this one, Zippy Potato Skins.
Divine.
Mexican Baked Potato
Servings
Ingredients
- 6 russet potatoes washed
- 6 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ cup shredded Mexican blend of cheddar cheese
- 12 tablespoon sour cream
- 6 tablespoons Sabra Chunky Pico De Gallo Salsa
- 6 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Lightly spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
- In a bowl toss potatoes with oil, salt, and pepper until completely coated. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake until fork tender, about 60 minutes.
- Make a small slit lengthwise, about 1-inch deep in each potato, being careful not to cut all the way through . Pinch and press the sides to open the potatoes in the center. Divide the cheese, sour cream and salsa evenly among the potatoes. Garnish with chopped cilantro.
Not so long ago, I made baked potatoes as a quick dinner for my kids. I realized that because I tend to be carb-conscious I had neglected to introduce my kids to the wonders of the baked potato. Well they were fascinated and the baked potatoes were a huge hit. I serve them with the same Mexican blend cheese you do and one of my fussy eaters actually prefers a baked potato with cheese instead of a bowl of macaroni!
One variation: I place my potatoes inside a brown paper lunch bag and then cook in the microwave. it takes just a few minutes (my microwave actually has an automatic cook button, it weighs how many potatoes you’ve placed in the oven and then calculates the cook time so my kids can do this themselves).
I *heart* you! This is such a great recipe and potatos are my weakness whatever their form! This is very easy to turn into a vegan (main dish) recipe too, THANK YOU so much!
P.S. My husband is even checking out Joy of Kosher regularly now to find recipes for me to make! LOL!