Sarasotas Creamy Spinach Stuffed Baked Potato Halves Recipes

CREAMED SPINACH TWICE-BAKED POTATOES

Steps:

• Position racks in the middle and upper third of the oven; preheat to 400 degrees F. Scrub the potatoes and dry well. Bake directly on the middle oven rack until easily pierced with a knife, 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from the oven; let cool 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the spinach (in batches, if needed) and cook, tossing with tongs, until wilted, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, nutmeg, cayenne and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Increase the heat to high and cook until the liquid evaporates, about 2 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a cutting board and finely chop; squeeze dry in a kitchen towel.
• One at a time, hold each potato with another kitchen towel and halve lengthwise. Scoop the flesh into a large bowl, leaving a 1/4-inch-thick shell. Mash the flesh with the remaining 3 tablespoons butter until smooth; season with salt. Stir in the egg yolks and parmesan, then the spinach mixture. Brush the potato skins with melted butter; season the insides with salt and pepper. Set on a baking sheet.
• Beat the heavy cream in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. Stir about one-quarter of the whipped cream into the potato mixture, then gently fold in the rest.
• Mound the filling into the potato skins. Return to the oven on the top rack and bake until the filling is warmed through and starts browning, about 15 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil until the filling is golden brown and the skins are crisp, 1 to 2 more minutes.

CHEDDAR & SPINACH TWICE-BAKED POTATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°. Scrub potatoes; pierce several times with a fork. Place in a foil-lined 15x10x1-in. baking pan; bake 60-70 minutes or until tender., When cool enough to handle, cut each potato lengthwise in half. Scoop out pulp, leaving 1/4-in.-thick shells. In a large bowl, mash pulp with milk and butter, adding spinach, Monterey Jack cheese, 1/4 cup cheddar cheese, onion, salt and pepper., Spoon into potato shells; return to baking pan. Sprinkle with remaining cheddar cheese. Bake 20-25 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted.

BAKED POTATOES WITH SALSA AND SOUR CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With a fork, prick potatoes in several places. Bake directly on oven rack until tender when pierced with a knife, 40 to 50 minutes. Remove potatoes from oven, cut open, and season with salt and pepper. Top potatoes with salsa and sour cream.

SPINACH & SWEET POTATO SAMOSAS

Steps:

• Put the sweet potatoes in a large bowl, cover with cling film and microwave on High for 8 mins or until soft.
• Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large pan, add the chopped onion and cook for a few mins to soften. Stir in the ginger, garlic, chilli (if using) and coriander stalks, stirring for a couple mins more until fragrant (the garlic will burn easily, so keep an eye on it). Add the curry paste and half the black onion seeds to the pan, stir for 30 secs or so until fragrant, then add the spinach and 2-3 tbsp water. Cook the spinach until wilted, then add the sweet potato and any liquid from the bowl. Season well and mash everything together with the back of a spoon, leaving some chunky bits of potato. Leave to cool completely.
• Unroll the pastry and pull out two sheets to work with - keep the rest covered with a tea towel to prevent it from drying out. Brush both sheets with a little oil and scatter some of the black onion seeds over one sheet. Put the other sheet on top. With the shortest side facing you, cut down the centre to make two long strips. Scoop a sixth of the sweet potato mixture onto the top right-hand corner of the filo in a rough triangle shape. Fold the pastry over on an angle, continuing down the length of the pastry until you reach the bottom and have a neat triangle encasing the filling. Trim off any excess pastry with a knife. Repeat to make six samosas. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Put the samosas on a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Brush with a little more oil and sprinkle over the remaining black onion seeds. Bake for 25-30 mins or until deep golden brown. Meanwhile, peel the cucumber into ribbons, then toss with the sliced onions and coriander leaves. To serve, dollop some yogurt onto each plate, top with two samosas, a mound of the cucumber salad and mango chutney.

SARASOTA'S CREAMY SPINACH STUFFED BAKED POTATO HALVES

Steps:

• Potatoes -- Use a nice large potato for this as you will be cutting them in half. Rub or brush well with olive oil, then salt and pepper. Bake in a 400 degree oven for approximately 35-45 minutes. It really will depend on the size of your potato. There is no magic time. After 20 minutes, I usually flip them so the other side get brown up. They are done when you can easily stick a knife in them. They will be tender and flaky. Remove and cover with foil.
• Spinach Filling -- Just before the potatoes are finished, start the spinach. In a large saute pan, I love non stick for this, add the bacon and begin to render it slowly for about 5 minutes over medium heat until crisp. Remove the bacon to a paper towel to cool and let drain. Save the bacon drippings.
• To that same pan with the bacon drippings, over medium heat, add the onion, garlic and saute 3-4 minutes until tender. Then add the spinach and chicken broth and cook 3-4 minutes until it is all wilted and the broth is basically gone. Add in 1/2 cup of the cream, pepper, and nutmeg and just let it simmer on medium low for 3-4 minutes. The cream will naturally thicken. If it looks like you want more cream -- add the remaining 1/4 cup. It depends on the spinach, some times I will use 1/2 cup, other times I will use 3/4 cup.
• Then add the parmesan to the spinach and mix well. Taste once again for any seasoning, we didn't add salt earlier because the parmesan is salty. If you want any salt, add it now. And again, if you want a bit more cream, you can add some. Add the bacon back in and mix well to combine.
• Potatoes -- The potatoes are still warm, but not scorching hot so you should be able to handle them. Cut each potato in half and you want to make a little well in the center of each potato half. Just use a spoon and scoop out a little from the center of each half. DON'T throw that potato out. See NOTE below.
• Stuff each potato with plenty of the spinach mix and then top with more parmesan.
• Broil -- I reheat the potatoes on the second shelf in my oven (so they don't burn) with the broiler on . About 5 minutes until the potato is reheated, the spinach is bubbly, and the parmesan on top is melted and golden brown.
• NOTE -- The leftover potatoes is great with scrambled eggs, omelettes, tossed in soups or stews. And sometimes, I will add a slice of ham diced, a green onion and a quick saute just with pamesan, no butter or oil and serve with a poached egg for breakfast. 5 minute breakfast, hearty and healthy.