Baked Potato

Baked potato with crispy skin and a soft fluffy interior can be addictive. The carbs do wonderful magic.  Who can say no to it! Definitely, we can't. We used to go to farmers' market on Saturdays and would buy baked potatoes and roasted corn. Whether we bought our fresh veggies and fruits or not, we stood in line to but the potatoes and corn. Yes, the magic in these addictive potatoes made us do that....hahaha. So since we all loved it, I started trying at home following so many videos and websites. But they weren't like the ones we had from the farmers' market. Finally, with so many experiments, settled on this recipe that I still follow to date. I use medium-sized potatoes for portion control. If you use a big one, just bake 5 minutes extra to ensure that it is cooked in the middle. If you squish gently, the potato should yield to that gentle pressure marking it is done in the interior completely. Just open up, fluff, add the toppings you love and enjoy a carb-rich meal. Forget all the calorie counts. It's ok to enjoy now and then. You can even top with chili and make a scrumptious protein balanced meal too.

I am posting this for Srivalli's Bake-A-Thon 2020. We share recipes for baked food 3 days a week - Monday, Wednesday, Friday - all through the month.

Ingredients

Russet potatoes - 4, medium

Salt -1 and 1/3 tsp

Pepper - 1/2 tsp

Sour cream -4 -6 tsp 

Shredded cheese - 4-6 tsp

Pickled jalapenos - 2 tsp

Chives - 2 tsp, finely chopped

Oil - 2 tsp

Method

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Wash and dry the potatoes. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle 1/8 salt on each potato. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes.

Remove from the oven and turn the potatoes upside down. Brush it with olive oil and sprinkle 1/8 tsp salt on top. Bake for another 20 min. 

Remove from the oven. Slice on the middle of each potato. Gently crush the center or fluff with a fork. sprinkle 1/8 tsp salt on each potato, add the pepper. 

Then add sour cream, shredded cheese, jalapenos, and chives. 

Serve.