Twice Baked Potatoes

This baked potato upgrade has become quite a traditional dish during the past two decades.  It makes a great appetizer or game day food, and it's really not hard.  Many people who make baked potatoes use these same ingredients.  They just sprinkle them on top of the potato.  Here you scoop out the insides, mix things up a bit, and stuff them back inside the potato.

·         4 large baking potatoes

·         Garlic salt

·         ½ cup sour cream

·         1/3 cup milk

·         1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

·         8 slices cooked bacon, crumbled

·         Black pepper

·         Olive oil

  

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Wash potatoes.  Using a sharp knife remove any blemishes.  Dry potatoes with a clean paper towel.  Sprinkle garlic salt on potatoes and wrap each one individually in aluminum foil.   Place them on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes.  Remove from oven.  Allow potatoes to cool in foil on baking sheet for one hour.  Unwrap potatoes and slice in half lengthwise.  Carefully scoop out insides of potatoes with a spoon being careful to leave a small edge all the way around each potato.

Place scooped out potatoes into a large bowl and thoroughly mash.  Place potato shells on baking sheet.

Add sour cream, milk, half of shredded cheese, and half of crumbled bacon to mashed potatoes.  Add black pepper to taste.  Mix well.

Apply olive oil to bottom of potato shells.  Spoon potato mixture into shells.  Divide cheese among each potato half.  Top with remaining crumbled bacon. 

Bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes at 350°F until cheese is bubbly.

Basic Honey Mustard Sauce

The sweetness of honey and the tartness of mustard combine together into a great taste while adding a kick to many dishes.  Honey mustard is great as a dipping sauce for chicken or soft pretzels or ham or salmon.  This basic recipe combines two simple flavors in just the combination for a quick added zest to your favorite dishes.  Good doesn't always have to be complicated. 

·         ¼ cup honey

·         1 Tablespoon prepared mustard

Mix thoroughly.   Keep refrigerated.  Sauce will thicken when cold so remove from refrigerator up to 30 minutes before serving.  Stir well.  This recipe can be doubled or tripled or whatever-ed when needed.

Hot Virginia Dip, Anyone?

On New Year's Eve for the past several years I've made an appetizer called Hot Virginia Dip.  Whether I was looking for something to whip up quickly at home for a bash or to take as we headed out to a party, it's always been extremely quick and easy to make and well liked.  This year was no different as we headed out to our annual New Year's Eve dinner and then on to a New Year's Eve party at the home of some friends.  Thank you all by the way for having us over.  We loved the compass prayers for those in the trenches sharing the gospel.  Hope you make a new tradition of it!!

Back to Hot Virginia Dip...It is hot for two reasons.  It's best when served hot right out of the oven, but it also heats up well in the microwave when you need to make it up early.  Secondly, the horseradish and the freshly pressed garlic give it just the right amount of kick.  We also enjoy sharing a little bit of our home state of Virginia for those not fortunate enough to have been born there.  :)

Hot Virginia Dip

·         4.5 ounce jar sliced dried beef

·         2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese (which is the less

          fat version of cream cheese), softened

·         4 tablespoons milk

·         1 cup sour cream

·         2 teaspoons freshly pressed garlic

·         1 Tablespoon horseradish

·         1 cup chopped pecans

·         2 Tablespoons butter

Cut beef into small pieces with a sharp knife or scissors.  

If you are having trouble finding the jar of sliced dried beef in the grocery, try the aisle with canned tuna or chicken.  It's usually close by.

With an electric mixer, blend together the softened cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese, milk, and sour cream.

Stir horseradish and pressed garlic into cream cheese mixture.  When thoroughly combined, mix in beef pieces. 

  

Spoon into greased casserole dish.  Saute 1 cup pecans in 2 Tablespoons butter until nicely browned.  Sprinkle sauted pecans on top of dried beef mixture.  Heat 30 minutes in 325°F oven.  Serve with wheat thins, corn chip dippers, etc.

If you are already planning ahead for a Super Bowl gathering, consider trying out this dip.