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Verbena’s Favorite Twice Baked Potato Skins

Posted by l. Alexandrea on August 3, 2022February 1, 2023

So nice, we do it twice. You may have heard of loaded baked potatoes, but the secret to these potatoes is baking them twice, which makes them twice as nice.

Yes, they are loaded, but you’ll quickly find the taste and texture of these potato skins are worth that one extra step. Dried, smoked salmon, oven-roasted shallots, rosemary, chili-pepper-infused sour cream, and ooey-gooey melted cheddar cheese give your mouth and taste buds a bit of paradise on earth. Baked potatoes are usually meant to be an appetizer or side dish but you will love them so much that you will want them as your main course over and over again.

Load up on Verbena’s Favorite Twice Baked Potato Skins. They are potato perfection!

Verbena’s Favorite Twice Baked Potato Skins

INGREDIENTS:

12 organic small red potatoes
1 organic medium shallot, minced
6 oz. organic cheddar cheese, grated
3 T. smoked salmon jerky, chopped (oh my, do I love this stuﬀ)

TOOLS:

Medium-sized pastry bag (must-have kitchen item)

GARNISH:

1 stalk of organic chives, finely chopped
3 T. Steve’s Akaka Falls Passion Habanero Jam
1 stick organic rosemary, chopped
1 tsp. organic dry crushed chili pepper
1/4 cup organic sour cream

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Mix the sour cream, finely chopped rosemary, and crushed chili pepper in a small bowl with a lid. Cover and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to garnish the potato skins. This will infuse the pepper and rosemary into the sour cream.
Carefully clean each red potato. They have delicate, thin skin. Allow to dry on a towel.
After the potatoes have dried, dip each of them in soy sauce (covering all sides) and place on a baking pan. I use my favorite stainless steel 9-inch cake pans.
Bake in the oven for 40 minutes at 400°F.
Allow to cool for 15 minutes and then cut in half lengthwise. Scoop out a very small amount of the insides of the potato. Little red potato skin is too thin to scoop out all the potato; just scoop out 1/4 of an inch from the center. I love using little potatoes for parties because they make for the perfect appetizers. If you prefer large potatoes, feel free to use your favorite potato.
Baste all sides in melted butter and bake at 400°F for 25 minutes on a stainless steel baking pan or sheet pan. Please avoid cooking with aluminum. It is classified as a heavy metal and is not good for you! In fact, stay away from aluminum in all forms, including aluminum foil.
Rehydrate one 2-inch piece of dried salmon jerky in a small bowl of filtered water for 15 minutes. Remove from the water and finely chop.
Remove the potatoes from the oven and add the grated cheese, finely chopped shallots, and small flakes of salmon on top of each potato half.
Return to the oven and broil for 5 minutes to melt the cheese.
Remove from the oven and, with small tongs, place each potato half on a serving tray. Drizzle habanero jam on each potato with a small squeeze bottle or pastry bag.
Place a small dollop of the sour cream mixture on each potato with a pastry bag and garnish with chives. Delicious!