Stuffed Baked Potato

 When I travel to my company's L.A. office and am accompanied by local co-workers, we have a tradition of stopping for dinner at a restaurant on the way to the airport that is known for its giant baked potatoes. I always get one when we go. It is, in fact, giant and I enjoy it immensely, despite being uncomfortably full for at least the first few hours of the flight home. A baked potato can be delicious prepared very simply with salt, pepper and a pat of butter. I eat it in its entirety, including the skin. I hesitate to admit that as a kid, I would cut the potato in half, scoop out the "meat" onto my plate, then put a big slab of butter inside the skin, let it melt and eat that by itself. Aaaah, the 70s - before we knew consuming unchecked amounts of butter was not so great for our heart health.

Baked potatoes can also be made into a hearty, comforting meal by stuffing them with various combinations. I'm not sure if "stuffed" is the most accurate description. It's more like they're "topped with" or "smothered". However, for recipe naming purposes, stuffed sounds better. This post is less a recipe and more an idea to build upon. I will share a combination that I like, and will add more in the future as I play with more possibilities. I say "play" because I do think of stuffed baked potatoes as a fun food, yet I think it can also be daring or sophisticated depending on your desired toppings. So, I challenge you, my non-existent readers, to come up with a variation that you deem tasty and satisfying and then share it back with me.

I am currently doing a cleanse to give my digestive system a break as we head into the colder months, so no butter or cheese in the version I made tonight as I might typically do, but the base is similar to one of my go-to combinations. 

Update: I tried a Mexican version which I've been meaning to do. You might just prefer to have this sort of thing over rice. It is nice, in my opinion, over a potato and offers some variety of taste and texture for a Mexican inspired dish.

Mexican inspired - black beans & baby kale

Cleanse toppings - spinach & mushroom

Same ingredients but in a saute

Basic baked potato recipe

Russet potatoes

Olive oil 

Sea salt

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Scrub each potato with water to remove dirt. Using a fork or a small sharp knife, poke many holes around each side of the potato to prevent from exploding in your oven.

3. Put a little olive oil in your hands and rub it all around the surface of each potato. Then rub some sea salt on.

4. Put the potatoes on a baking sheet and put them in the oven. They will need to cook anywhere from 40-60 minutes depending on their size. Test for doneness with a fork. When the fork slides right through to the middle, they are done. 

5. Put on a plate. Cut a slit down the middle. Hold from either end, and push ends towards each other to open up the potato for a bit. Add toppings.

Cleanse toppings (pictured above)

white miso paste put into slits in the potato so it will soften

sauteed onions, garlic, mushrooms, dried thyme, spinach and fresh parsley finished with a little lemon juice

sprinkled dulse, pepper and a little Bragg's liquid aminos

Mexican toppings (also pictured above)

1 small diced onion sauteed with chili flakes, salt, one can of black beans, cumin, chili powder, baby kale (another green would be just fine), and some water with a little vegetarian Better than Bouillon (not necessary), squeezed lime juice at the end.

Topped with feta and fresh cilantro. Chopped tomatoes or salsa would be nice for tasted and presentation as well. 

Above you'll see another variation with the leftover baked potato diced and sauteed in the pan with everything else.  

Debbie Don't Cocktail

This year, as the leaves change and the temperature begins its descent towards winter, the challenge here in New England is to figure out how to keep warm enough in the evenings to socialize outdoors. New fire pits and various kinds of heaters are popping up in friends' backyards. I am putting together a backyard socializing essentials kit to keep in my car: a hat, gloves, scarf, winter coat, camp chair and blanket, so I'm always ready and can withstand a couple of hours of the Fall night air. It's one thing being out in the daylight riding on trails; it's easy to keep warm. Sitting still under the dusky or night sky is very different. It gets cold fast when the sun starts to set. I'm sure we'll get better at this and find additional solutions as we get more practice. Here's an example of an inexpensive heating solution:

Last weekend, I included in my list of items for outside socializing all the ingredients to make a Debbie Don't. I found this recipe on cnh.photo's Instagram page. At first glance, I thought this drink sounded like an unlikely and perhaps unpleasant combination, but I was intrigued because it seemed like it had the potential to be a nice Fall themed cocktail. It works and so far has appealed to several of my friends who have tried it. Next up, I'm going to experiment with making a Hot Toddy. That seems like just the thing to drink while sitting by a fire, trying to keep warm.

 

Debbie Don't Cocktail

1 oz Resposado tequila

1 oz Averna Amaro

.75 oz fresh squeezed lime juice

.5 oz REAL maple syrup*

Do this to taste. I prefer it a little less. 

1. Put all ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and pour into your glass of choice. 

Roasted Vegetable & Grain Bowl with Miso Sauce

For the most part, my blog should just say "read Smitten Kitchen". Here's another recipe of hers I made last night which will become part of the rotation for a weeknight meal. It's pretty flexible and the thing that brings it all together is the miso sauce. Chop some veggies and put them in the oven to roast, put a grain on the stove to cook and while those things are happening, make the sauce. When everything is cooked, assemble in a bowl. I'm not going to put the whole recipe here, just the sauce. I want to be able to access it quickly until I no longer need to refer to the recipe to make it. She also sprinkles some toasted sesame seeds on top which would be a nice touch, but I didn't have any on hand. Here's the link to the original from Smitten Kitchen:

Miso Sweet Potato and Broccoli Bowl

I made it again and put the same combination over a bed of arugula and added some chopped peanuts on top. I liked the addition of the greens. You could forgo the grain all together if you'd prefer a pure veggie bowl.

Miso Sauce

2 tablespoons white miso

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons sesame oil

2 tablespoons tahini or a nut butter (I have used almond butter when I didn't have tahini)

1 small clove garlic, minced (note to me - don't be heavy-handed on the garlic)

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger 

1 tablespoon honey

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar 

1. Put in a large bowl and blend with an immersion blender, or put in a blender and blend until smooth. (I added a tiny bit of hot water from the grains I was cooking too to help break down the miso and nut butter.) 

Boulevardier Cocktail

I've been reading Ross Gay's Book of Delights, and am very much enjoying finding out what delights another fellow human, even though it's a human I've never met. It's not necessarily what I expected and his delights are far from the obvious list of things that might come to mind. In the beginning he mentions that once he began this project and made it a point to look for delights, they started to present themselves to him more frequently as if saying "pick me! pick me!" I think this is an excellent time to be deliberately looking for delights when there is so much happening that is quite undelightful. It could be a sort of therapy to balance out the negative incoming.

Inspired by Ross I thought I'd share a delight of my own. I am delighted when I discover a confluence of things or people that I have enjoyed separately. As a recent example, the food blogger that I've referred to many times, Deb, of Smitten Kitchen discussed a book called The Margot Affair and raved about the author's knack to describe food. Deb mentions she and the author, Senae Lemoine ended up speaking so Senae could share one of the recipes mentioned in the book. I was intrigued by her description and in need of a novel to immerse myself in so ordered and quickly read the book. I liked it quite a lot, so recommended it to a friend. Shortly thereafter, that friend told me the author of the book was interviewed on a podcast she listens to called "The New Paris". I listened to that episode and thought the podcaster, Lindsey Tramuta, was an excellent interviewer so listened to several more and it turns out that she also recently had David Leibovitz as a guest. I've mentioned David recently as the inspiration for much of my cocktail experimentation over the past many months. Then, around that same time, David Leibovitz mentioned Smitten Kitchen in one of his Instagram posts and having talked with Deb. <Insert brain explosion sound here.> So, now I imagine all four of these folks who I am a huge fan of separately all being connected, or maybe even good friends and perhaps all sitting down to a long French style meal together! I understand this probably doesn't sound particularly exciting to you and it makes sense that these folks would be connected, so not all that surprising. I guess I just enjoy when it turns out people I like also like one another. I wonder how they would feel knowing that I'm referring to them familiarly by their first names as if Deb, Senae, Lindsey, David and I are all pals. If Ross ends up mentioning any of these folks in his book, that'd really make this confluence very special. I think you'd have to agree with that. I'll let you know if that happens.

David revealed in his interview with Lindsey that his favorite cocktail is the Boulevardier which is also one of my faves, and so the theme continues. This is sometimes referred to as a "French Negroni". Here's the recipe. Hopefully you will enjoy it too.

Boulevardier

1 1/2 oz Bourbon

1 oz Campari

1 oz sweet vermouth

orange peel for garnish

1.  Put bourbon, campari and vermouth in a shaker with ice and shake vigorously. Pour into a coupe glass. Twist orange peel over the drink and then place inside.