Twice-Baked Potatoes With Bacon and Cheddar

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Adjust the oven rack to the middle position.

Bake the potatoes directly on the oven rack until they're tender, 45 minutes to an hour, depending on the size. Gently squeeze them Editor's Note: Careful! They're hot! to judge doneness. They should feel tender but not terribly squishy when done.

Meanwhile, toss the bacon and a big splash of water in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook until the bacon is fully browned and evenly crisp, 10 to 15 minutes or so, depending on the thickness of the bacon slices. Remove from the heat. TESTER TIP: Adding a little water to bacon while it's cooking keeps the grease splatter down a little and the bacon won't curl up as much as usual.

When the baked potatoes are cool enough to handle, slice them all the way through, end to end, to create 2 equal-size halves. Scoop out most of the flesh into a large bowl, leaving behind a wall of peel and potato about 1/4 inch (5 millimeters) thick.

Add 2/3 of the Cheddar, the sour cream, scallions, salt, pepper, and bacon. Mash the works together until evenly mixed. Spoon the mixture back into the potato skins. (You can cover the potatoes and refrigerate them for up to 3 days or you can freeze them for up to 1 month. Either thaw the frozen potatoes in the fridge for a day or two prior to baking or bake them straight from the freezer, adding a few minutes time in the oven. The skins of frozen potatoes will be a little more pleasingly tough and chewy, sorta like the skins on baked potato skins.)

Just before baking the stuffed potatoes, sprinkle with the remaining Cheddar. Bake the potatoes until the cheese melts and the potatoes are heated through, about 20 minutes. (If baking the potatoes from the refrigerator, allow about 30 minutes in the oven. If baking the potatoes straight from the freezer, allow about 40 minutes in the oven.)

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