Baked potato skins

Subject: Baked potato skins
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking

From: Ken Knecht (kenk6600 at gmail.com)
Date: 18 Sep 2007 17:19:03 GMT
--------
If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?

I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

TIA

From: Nancy Young (rjynly at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 13:31:49 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

I wouldn't think so, but we always ate them when I was a kid. We buttered them, and I still eat them that way on occasion.
Not the healthiest thing.

In restaurants they come baked and topped with bacon and melted cheddar or provolone, etc. You can put any of a gazillion things on them, think what you'd put on a baked potato. Sour cream and chives. Broccoli and cheddar.

From: Omelet (omp_omelet at gmail.com)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 12:43:28 -0500
--------
Nancy Young wrote:
> In restaurants they come baked and topped with bacon and
> melted cheddar or provolone, etc. You can put any of a
> gazillion things on them, think what you'd put on a baked
> potato. Sour cream and chives. Broccoli and cheddar.

Ranch dressing!!!

From: Nancy2 (nancy-dooley at uiowa.edu)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 11:15:22 -0700
--------
I love baked potato skins (genuine baked), which aren't to be confused with microwaved potato skins.

I scrub the potato really well; rub it all over with olive oil, and just put it on the oven rack (no pan). I just cut it up and eat it along with the white part of the potato.

From: Nancy Young (rjynly at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 16:49:05 -0400
--------
Nancy2 wrote
> I love baked potato skins (genuine baked), which aren't to be confused
> with microwaved potato skins.
>
> I scrub the potato really well; rub it all over with olive oil, and
> just put it on the oven rack (no pan). I just cut it up and eat it
> along with the white part of the potato.

There's a thought, I happen to like mashed potatoes with the skins ... maybe make some rustic mashed potatoes.

From: Julie Bove (juliebove at verizon.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:58:25 GMT
--------
Nancy Young wrote:
> There's a thought, I happen to like mashed potatoes with the
> skins ... maybe make some rustic mashed potatoes.

That's what I generally do. Unless the potatoes have a lot of green and require peeling. I just mash them with the skins on. Works for all kinds except russet. I find the skins of those mashed in gives the potatoes a dirty/gritty taste.

From: Robert L Bass (RobertLBass at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 01:30:54 GMT
--------
Julie Bove wrote:
> That's what I generally do. Unless the potatoes have a lot of
> green and require peeling. I just mash them with the skins on.
> Works for all kinds except russet. I find the skins of those
> mashed in gives the potatoes a dirty/gritty taste.

Most recipes that call for peeled and sliced, cubed or whatever, I just use little reds. The skins are so fine they don't affect anything but the appearance which IMO they enhance. Idaho and Russet potatoes I bake with the skin on and eat them that way, too. When I was a child my mother told me the skins are the most nutritious part. I have no idea if that is true but I like them anyway so down they go. :^)

From: Julie Bove (juliebove at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 05:15:53 GMT
--------
Robert L Bass wrote:
> Most recipes that call for peeled and sliced, cubed or whatever, I just
> use little reds. The skins are so fine they don't affect anything but the
> appearance which IMO they enhance. Idaho and Russet potatoes I bake with
> the skin on and eat them that way, too. When I was a child my mother told
> me the skins are the most nutritious part. I have no idea if that is true
> but I like them anyway so down they go. :^)

The other day I spent a pretty penny for these tiny Yukon Golds (the size of walnuts or smaller) that said they cooked in 15 minutes. I thought they'd be good for quick mashed potatoes.

Nope! After 20 minutes of boiling they were still not as tender as I would have liked them for mashed. Would have been perfect for serving as is with some butter or olive oil and perhaps some parsley or chives. But I'd made some turkey and gravy to serve over them so I really needed mashed.

I had a heck of a time mashing them. They were so small and round and amazingly hard despite my being able to stick a fork easily into them. They kept shooting out from underneath the masher. And the skins seemed not to help. Somehow those skins seemed to be keeping them intact.

What did they taste like? Cheap canned potatoes. Now maybe I'm weird. I actually don't mind canned potatoes. Now they wouldn't be my first choice, but I'll eat them and not complain. Nobody else in the family will touch them though, in any form.

I won't be buying those again! Paid $10 for two little bags of potatoes and wound up throwing about half of them in the trash. Not good at all.

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 01:26:25 -0400
--------
Julie Bove wrote:
> The other day I spent a pretty penny for these tiny Yukon Golds (the size of
> walnuts or smaller) that said they cooked in 15 minutes. I thought they'd
> be good for quick mashed potatoes.

Maybe too much skin in proportion to the insides? I love using the regular larger Yukon Gold potatoes for mashed. I don't know that I've ever seen tiny ones?

From: Julie Bove (juliebove at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 05:40:23 GMT
--------
Goomba38 wrote:
> Maybe too much skin in proportion to the insides? I love using the regular
> larger Yukon Gold potatoes for mashed. I don't know that I've ever seen
> tiny ones?

Maybe. I normally use medium to large Yukons for mashed.

These were called Creamer Potatoes. I just looked them up and it appears they can be done any way but mashed. Here's a link. Have to scroll down to see them.

http://www.hormel.com/templates/knowledge/knowledge.asp?id=826

From: Becca (becca at hal-pc.org)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 08:48:40 -0500
--------
Julie Bove wrote:
> The other day I spent a pretty penny for these tiny Yukon Golds (the size of
> walnuts or smaller) that said they cooked in 15 minutes. I thought they'd
> be good for quick mashed potatoes.
>
> I had a heck of a time mashing them. They were so small and round and
> amazingly hard despite my being able to stick a fork easily into them. They
> kept shooting out from underneath the masher. And the skins seemed not to
> help. Somehow those skins seemed to be keeping them intact.
>
> What did they taste like? Cheap canned potatoes. Now maybe I'm weird. I
> actually don't mind canned potatoes. Now they wouldn't be my first choice,
> but I'll eat them and not complain. Nobody else in the family will touch
> them though, in any form.
>
> I won't be buying those again! Paid $10 for two little bags of potatoes and
> wound up throwing about half of them in the trash. Not good at all.

Sorry your experience turned out so bad, that can be such a disappointment, especially since you planned such a nice dinner.

The Yukon Gold potatoes I buy are about the size of a tennis ball, or larger. I have not had any problems cooking them. I have no idea what went wrong with your potatoes, it is a mystery to me.

From: kilikini (kilikini1 at NOSPAMhotmail.com)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 07:27:11 -0400
--------
Nancy Young wrote:
> There's a thought, I happen to like mashed potatoes with the
> skins ... maybe make some rustic mashed potatoes.

We always make "dirty" mashed potatoes, too. I've always liked the skins and eat them with the potato.

From: James Silverton (not.jim.silverton at verizon.not)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 18:27:58 GMT
--------
Nancy wrote:
> I wouldn't think so, but we always ate them when I was a
> kid. We buttered them, and I still eat them that way on
> occasion. Not the healthiest thing.
>
> In restaurants they come baked and topped with bacon and
> melted cheddar or provolone, etc. You can put any of a
> gazillion things on them, think what you'd put on a baked
> potato. Sour cream and chives. Broccoli and cheddar.

I like them too and, as I think I have mentioned, after microwaving and removing the contents for other purposes, I often bake the skins in a regular oven.

Incidentally, it just struck me that I did not really know a good name for the cooked contents of a potato skin. You could say "potato" but that's obviously not very specific.

From: Nancy2 (nancy-dooley at uiowa.edu)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 14:19:59 -0700
--------
James Silverton wrote:
> I like them too and, as I think I have mentioned, after
> microwaving and removing the contents for other purposes, I
> often bake the skins in a regular oven.
>
> Incidentally, it just struck me that I did not really know a
> good name for the cooked contents of a potato skin. You could
> say "potato" but that's obviously not very specific.

I think I've seen the white part referred to as "meal," although that might be just a description of texture ("mealy"). Just say the white part (or gold part or purple part). ;-)

From: Andy (q)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 16:26:11 -0500
--------
Nancy2 said...
> I think I've seen the white part referred to as "meal," although that
> might be just a description of texture ("mealy"). Just say the white
> part (or gold part or purple part). ;-)

I just got a sack o' potatoes. "Jersey Fresh" new potatoes.

Potato salad... mashed potatoes... potato salad... mashed potatoes...

Heads or tails... tails or...

;)

From: George (george at nospam.invalid)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 15:57:49 -0400
--------
Nancy Young wrote:
> I wouldn't think so, but we always ate them when I was a kid.
> We buttered them, and I still eat them that way on occasion.
> Not the healthiest thing.
>
> In restaurants they come baked and topped with bacon and
> melted cheddar or provolone, etc. You can put any of a
> gazillion things on them, think what you'd put on a baked
> potato. Sour cream and chives. Broccoli and cheddar.

I have only been in one restaurant that had baked potatoes. Most seem to offer the steamed in foil versions for their convenience.

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:21:58 -0400
--------
George wrote:
> I have only been in one restaurant that had baked potatoes. Most seem to
> offer the steamed in foil versions for their convenience.

Horrid things, aren't they?

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:19:37 -0400
--------
Nancy Young wrote:
> In restaurants they come baked and topped with bacon and
> melted cheddar or provolone, etc. You can put any of a
> gazillion things on them, think what you'd put on a baked
> potato. Sour cream and chives. Broccoli and cheddar.

Anytime I've ever had them made commercially (restaurant) they left too much potato in for my tastes, and the skin itself wasn't very dry nor flavorful. It was just a medium used to get the bacon, cheese, etc into your mouth. Always a disappointment.

From: Sky (skyhooks at NOsbcglobal.SnPeAtM)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 00:24:33 GMT
--------
Goomba38 wrote:
> Anytime I've ever had them made commercially (restaurant) they left too
> much potato in for my tastes, and the skin itself wasn't very dry nor
> flavorful. It was just a medium used to get the bacon, cheese, etc into
> your mouth. Always a disappointment.

I completely agree! I've given up ordering potato skins at restaurants because there's always too much potato left in the skin! Same thing goes for the skins available in the freezer section at the grocery store. I much prefer to make my own, but they're a bit labor intensive, so it's something I rarely do. Most of the time, I opt for dressed-up twice-baked potatoes so waste is minimized (not that the waist is <g>).

From: Julie Bove (juliebove at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 05:18:58 GMT
--------
Sky wrote:
> I completely agree! I've given up ordering potato skins at restaurants
> because there's always too much potato left in the skin! Same thing
> goes for the skins available in the freezer section at the grocery
> store. I much prefer to make my own, but they're a bit labor intensive,
> so it's something I rarely do. Most of the time, I opt for dressed-up
> twice-baked potatoes so waste is minimized (not that the waist is <g>).

I've only had them in restaurants a few times. They always had this sort of freakish look to them like they were removed from the skins by some sort of machine. Made me wonder what they did with the insides as well because those same restaurants either didn't served mashed potatoes at all or served the instant kind.

From: Sky (skyhooks at NOsbcglobal.SnPeAtM)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 08:32:03 -0500
--------
Julie Bove wrote:
> I've only had them in restaurants a few times. They always had this sort of
> freakish look to them like they were removed from the skins by some sort of
> machine. Made me wonder what they did with the insides as well because
> those same restaurants either didn't served mashed potatoes at all or served
> the instant kind.

Most restaurants don't make (baked) potato skins from scratch. Instead, they usually buy them already prepared and frozen from a mass distributor (in most cases). All they have to do is defrost and heat them at the restaurants. So, the restaurants don't have to deal with leftover potato meat, which I imagine the manufacturers don't waste and use for other processed foods.

I remember when I first had potato skins decades ago and they were ssssooooooo good! But, that restaurant made their own from scratch and would quickly deep fry the potato skins first to get them nice and crunchy before adding the bacon and cheese to bake until melted. They were served with sour cream mixed with chives on the side. The additional step of deep frying the skins made all the difference (to me). I don't think I've ever seen any other restaurant use the deep-fry step first before adding and baking the filling.

From: Kate Connally (connally at pitt.edu)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:45:51 -0400
--------
Sky wrote:
> I completely agree! I've given up ordering potato skins at restaurants
> because there's always too much potato left in the skin!

I like about 1/4" of potato left in. I think the skin itself is too insubstantial to hold up on its own. When I talked about scraping out the inside and eating the skin separate, well, I thought it went without saying that there would be a certain about of potato left next to the skin otherwise the skin would just tear apart.

From: Sky (skyhooks at NOsbcglobal.SnPeAtM)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 09:52:13 -0500
--------
Kate Connally wrote:
> I like about 1/4" of potato left in. I think the
> skin itself is too insubstantial to hold up on its
> own. When I talked about scraping out the inside and
> eating the skin separate, well, I thought it went without
> saying that there would be a certain about of potato
> left next to the skin otherwise the skin would just tear
> apart.

Yeppers ;) But, there's a big difference between 1/4" and a whole lot more (think 1/2"-plus). For potato skins, I want as little meat as possible except that which is needed to maintain the integrity of the skin's original shape. As you said, 1/4" (or less) is just about right <g> for potato skins.

From: Omelet (omp_omelet at gmail.com)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 12:33:49 -0500
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

Mmmm... Baked spud skin is the best part! Wrap them up with a little butter and salt. ;-d

There _are_ other fiber sources tho' that are just as delicious! Oat bran cereals and other bran cereals, whole grain and bran muffins, fresh green veggies, fresh fruits, etc.

Salads work pretty well too with lots of fresh lettuce.

Corn on the Cob and brown, red and black rices are some of my favorite fiber sources.

From: Robert L Bass (RobertLBass at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 00:35:51 GMT
--------
Omelet wrote:
> Mmmm... Baked spud skin is the best part!
> Wrap them up with a little butter and salt. ;-d

I prick them all over with a fork, coat them lightly with olive oil, sprinkle coarse salt and bake them. They taste delicious just like that. I'm assuming the gentleman is referring to skins with the potato still inside them.

From: Steve Y (steveremove at wanadoo.fr)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:06:05 +0200
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?

How about a dollop of chili con carne, which if made the way I do it, would have additional fibre from the beans ?

From: Sky (skyhooks at NOsbcglobal.SnPeAtM)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 18:48:40 GMT
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?

If/when I make baked potato skins, I'll deep fry the skins first to get them really crispy and crunchy. Then, I'll add some shredded cheese and bacon bits into the potato skin boats and bake until melted. Serve with sour cream mixed with chopped chives. But, they're rather labor intensive, so I rarely cook them. I tend to stick with twice-baked potatoes instead.

From: George (george at nospam.invalid)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 15:55:29 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?

If they are the skins from a real baked potato (no foil) I don't add anything because they have a nice flavor.

From: Andy (q)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 15:06:54 -0500
--------
George said...
> If they are the skins from a real baked potato (no foil) I don't add
> anything because they have a nice flavor.

Well but, what do you do with the "meat" of the potato? That's fiber! I squeeze the meat out of the skin and throw the skin away.

From: Christine Dabney (artisan2 at ix.netcom.com)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 14:18:43 -0600
--------
Andy wrote:
>Well but, what do you do with the "meat" of the potato? That's fiber! I
>squeeze the meat out of the skin and throw the skin away.

Actually, you have it backwards. The potato skins are where the fiber is.

From: Andy (q)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 15:36:11 -0500
--------
Christine Dabney said...
> Actually, you have it backwards. The potato skins are where the fiber
> is.

There's fiber in the meat too. There must be!!!

From: pavane (pavane at somewhere.rr.com)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 17:02:44 -0400
--------
Andy wrote:
> There's fiber in the meat too. There must be!!!

According to the USDA charts, per 100 grams:
of potato skin, 7.9 g of fiber
of potato meat, 1.5 g of fiber.

From: Andy (q)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 16:06:46 -0500
--------
pavane said...
> According to the USDA charts, per 100 grams:
> of potato skin, 7.9 g of fiber
> of potato meat, 1.5 g of fiber.

Yeah, well, hrrrumph!!!

That's the Taurus in me speaking. ;)

From: Blinky the Shark (no.spam at box.invalid)
Date: 19 Sep 2007 03:00:53 GMT
--------
Andy wrote:
> That's the Taurus in me speaking. ;)

Taurus...taurus...hey, that has something to do with bull, right?
;)

From: Andy (q)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 05:08:01 -0500
--------
Blinky the Shark said...
> Taurus...taurus...hey, that has something to do with bull, right?

Sure does!!! :)

From: Blinky the Shark (no.spam at box.invalid)
Date: 19 Sep 2007 02:58:39 GMT
--------
Christine Dabney wrote:
> Actually, you have it backwards. The potato skins are where the
> fiber is.

I like skins. When I *mash* potatoes I leave the skin on the slices or cubes that I boil. It just ends up being sort of flakes in the product. Am I a barbarian? Something worse? :)

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 23:13:18 -0400
--------
Blinky the Shark wrote:
> I like skins. When I *mash* potatoes I leave the skin on the slices
> or cubes that I boil. It just ends up being sort of flakes in the
> product. Am I a barbarian? Something worse? :)

Naw...nothing quite so crude.
I don't mind skins in the mashed taters at casual family type meals (not that I do it, but I don't mind 'em when served it that way) but would never leave them on for a fancy holiday meal or for a company meal. I just like the results and appearance the extra effort it takes to peel gives me at those times.

From: Julie Bove (juliebove at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 05:06:38 GMT
--------
Christine Dabney wrote:
> Actually, you have it backwards. The potato skins are where the fiber
> is.

True. I have stomach issues and at times must be on a low fiber diet. The inside of the potato is fine for me to eat. But not the skin.

From: Omelet (omp_omelet at gmail.com)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 12:00:35 -0500
--------
Christine Dabney wrote:
> Actually, you have it backwards. The potato skins are where the fiber
> is.

Agreed.

As well as a LOT of flavor.

From: George (george at nospam.invalid)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 16:45:28 -0400
--------
Andy wrote:
> Well but, what do you do with the "meat" of the potato? That's fiber! I
> squeeze the meat out of the skin and throw the skin away.

Most of the fiber is in the skin. I just cut a real baked potato up and eat the skin and flesh. The skin has lots of taste if it is baked not steamed.

From: Andy (q)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 16:03:45 -0500
--------
George said...
> Most of the fiber is in the skin. I just cut a real baked potato up and
> eat the skin and flesh. The skin has lots of taste if it is baked not
> steamed.

We were "forced" to eat potato skins as kids. After leaving home, I refused to eat them, to this day. I can't imagine just eating the flesh is depriving me of substantially less fiber.

From: James Silverton (not.jim.silverton at verizon.not)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 21:07:51 GMT
--------
Andy wrote:
> We were "forced" to eat potato skins as kids. After leaving
> home, I refused
> to eat them, to this day. I can't imagine just eating the
> flesh is
> depriving me of substantially less fiber.

With all you people talking about the "meat" (or "flesh") of the potato, what happened to the "meat and potatoes" diet? :-)

From: Kate Connally (connally at pitt.edu)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:42:22 -0400
--------
Andy wrote:
> We were "forced" to eat potato skins as kids. After leaving home, I refused
> to eat them, to this day. I can't imagine just eating the flesh is
> depriving me of substantially less fiber.

No one had to force me or my sister to eat the skins. We loved them. They were the best part. We would save them for "dessert" and eat the other part first.

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:51:24 -0400
--------
Kate Connally wrote:
> No one had to force me or my sister to eat the skins.
> We loved them. They were the best part. We would save
> them for "dessert" and eat the other part first.

And we had 'em as our starter! A treat indeed!

From: pfoley (pfoley6 at hotmail.com)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 18:41:03 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

Not sure if you buy potato skins that way and bake them or you are referring to potato skins from baked potatoes.
But, I love real baked potato skins from baked potatoes.
I like them better than the potato itself. I butter and salt them and then eat them.

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:31:23 -0400
--------
pfoley wrote:
> Not sure if you buy potato skins that way and bake them or you are referring
> to potato skins from baked potatoes.
> But, I love real baked potato skins from baked potatoes.
> I like them better than the potato itself. I butter and salt them and then
> eat them.

You and me both!! A totally different treat than just a potato.

From: Julie Bove (juliebove at verizon.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:56:35 GMT
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

I love the skins. I don't make the skins all by themselves, but when served as such, they usually are covered with melted cheese, green onion, bacon and served with sour cream.

We have food allergies so I do stuffed potatoes. I bake them, scoop out the insides, leaving a shell of about 1/8". I then mash the insides with some olive oil, rice milk, plenty of nutritional yeast, sliced green onions, salt and pepper. I then restuff them, usually overstuffing them because I've accidentally fouled up some of the skins (always bake a few extra), drizzle with more olive oil, sprinkle with Sweet Hungarian Paprika, then put back in the oven until the tops brown nicely. Yum! Daughter loves the skins so much like this she eats the insides out and just picks them up and eats them.

But maybe you just don't like potato skins? Some people don't. There are plenty of other ways to get fiber if that's all you want.

From: LynneA (embstop at yahoo.com)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 16:59:38 -0600
--------
Julie Bove wrote:
> I love the skins. I don't make the skins all by themselves, but when
> served as such, they usually are covered with melted cheese, green onion,
> bacon and served with sour cream.
>
> We have food allergies so I do stuffed potatoes. I bake them, scoop out
> the insides, leaving a shell of about 1/8". I then mash the insides with
> some olive oil, rice milk, plenty of nutritional yeast, sliced green
> onions, salt and pepper. I then restuff them, usually overstuffing them
> because I've accidentally fouled up some of the skins (always bake a few
> extra), drizzle with more olive oil, sprinkle with Sweet Hungarian
> Paprika, then put back in the oven until the tops brown nicely. Yum!
> Daughter loves the skins so much like this she eats the insides out and
> just picks them up and eats them.
>
> But maybe you just don't like potato skins? Some people don't. There are
> plenty of other ways to get fiber if that's all you want.

Thanks for posting this, Julie. I really love potato skins but rarely had them even before I developed my milk allergy due to all the calories. This sounds like a really tasty alternative! (And I love nutritional yeast, so that's an added bonus)

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 20:17:35 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

A nice hot, crispy dry baked potato skin needs nothing more than good butter, Salt and Pepper.

From: Robert L Bass (RobertLBass at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 02:02:44 GMT
--------
Goomba38 wrote:
> A nice hot, crispy dry baked potato skin needs nothing more than
> good butter, Salt and Pepper.

I forgot to mention something. I only took up cooking a few years ago after my divorce (something about necessity being somebody's mother, I forget). I rented a house and moved in. The first day alone it suddenly occurred to me... I didn't know how to cook. Zip. Zero. Nada.

I made a decision right away. I would learn to cook if it killed me. For me that meant a commitment -- no TV dinners and no prepared foods from the market. If I was going to do this I wanted to do it right. I figured the first thing I was going to need was some pots and pans (it's easier to cook if you have some). Knowing less than nothing about cookware, I went to Bed, Bath & Beyond and bought a few things that looked like pots and pans. Yeesh! This stuff is pricey.

Be patient. I'll get to the potato part eventually.

I spotted something from Cuisinart with lots of shiny, round blades. It looked like a blender on steroids. Hmm. A "food processor?" Not knowing what it meant to process food, I just assumed that a budding cook would need to process stuff so I bought it. What the heck, even with the pots, pans, food processor and a set of knives that could have been used in an episode of Nip/Tuck, it was still cheaper than the divorce. Besides, my ex was a lousy cook.

When I opened the food processor box I found a small recipe book inside. The first recipe that looked interesting was for Twice Baked Potatoes. I visited the local market, bought the necessary ingredients and spent the rest of the afternoon perfecting my skills as a Twice Potato Baker. I tasted the results and lo' and behold (what does "lo" mean?) they were actually pretty good. Unfortunately, I had not learned anything about soups, salad or anything else that humans eat so dinner consisted entirely of Twice Baked Potatoes.

That was the start for me. The next weekend I invited my parents over (Mom is a gourmet cook) and made steaks and of course... Twice Baked Potatoes. My mother actually liked them so I figured this cooking stuff was going to be OK. A couple dozen cookbooks, a few more pots and pans and other implements of destruction later, I'm still learning and having terrific fun in the process.

I've lost the little recipe book but this one from Epicurious is almost the same IIRC:
https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/twice-baked-potato-cups-with-caramelized-shallots-107319

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:24:49 -0400
--------
Robert L Bass wrote:
> I forgot to mention something. I only took up cooking a few years ago
> after my divorce (something about necessity being somebody's mother, I
> forget). I rented a house and moved in. The first day alone it
> suddenly occurred to me... I didn't know how to cook. Zip. Zero. Nada.
>
> I made a decision right away. I would learn to cook if it killed me.

Knowing good food and flavors you like (even if you don't know how to prepare it) is the first step in being a good cook. You at least know how the end product should taste (give or take a few variables) and as it is rare that cooking experiments kill ya, you're really ahead of the curve here. Go forth and experiment!
Find something you like to eat and try research recipes to try to recreate it as you like it. Maybe try some of your mom's own recipes since you probably already like them a lot?

From: Robert L Bass (RobertLBass at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 06:53:34 GMT
--------
Goomba38 wrote:
> Knowing good food and flavors you like (even if you don't know how
> to prepare it) is the first step in being a good cook. You at least
> know how the end product should taste (give or take a few
> variables) and as it is rare that cooking experiments kill ya,
> you're really ahead of the curve here. Go forth and experiment!
> Find something you like to eat and try research recipes to try to
> recreate it as you like it. Maybe try some of your mom's own
> recipes since you probably already like them a lot?

Thanks for the encouragement. It's been six years since I started. I've learned a few things since -- certainly not like most of the posters here. I love to try new recipes. Usually I'll make something once or twice by the book and then start experimenting with different spices and herbs. My spice drawer has grown to 2 drawers and 4 shelves in the cabinets. I just can't resist trying out new stuff. :^)

From: blake murphy (blakepm at verizon.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 17:42:46 GMT
--------
Robert L Bass wrote:
>Thanks for the encouragement. It's been six years since I started.
>I've learned a few things since -- certainly not like most of the
>posters here. I love to try new recipes. Usually I'll make
>something once or twice by the book and then start experimenting with
>different spices and herbs. My spice drawer has grown to 2 drawers
>and 4 shelves in the cabinets. I just can't resist trying out new
>stuff. :^)

sounds like you got rid of a lousy cook and acquired a good one. congratulations.

From: Stan Horwitz (stan.horwitz at gmail.com)
Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2007 06:41:39 -0400
--------
Goomba38 wrote:
> A nice hot, crispy dry baked potato skin needs nothing more than good
> butter, Salt and Pepper.

And a bit of Heinz Ketchup!

From: kilikini (kilikini1 at NOSPAMhotmail.com)
Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2007 07:09:51 -0400
--------
Goomba38 wrote:
> A nice hot, crispy dry baked potato skin needs nothing more than good
> butter, Salt and Pepper.

I still gotta have my cheese on them. :~)

From: Julia Altshuler (jaltshuler at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:07:27 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?

If you truly dislike them, wouldn't it make more sense to get your fiber from a source that you do like, maybe extra broccoli, oatmeal cookies, or dried apricots?

But that's not the question you asked. I'd say oil. Bake the potatoes without foil. Scoop out the potato part that you do like and eat it however you like. Then brush the skin with oil and bake at 400 degrees until crispy. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and dried Italian herb seasoning. Maybe you'd like the flavor more if the texture were crisp.

--Lia

From: Sky (skyhooks at NOsbcglobal.SnPeAtM)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 21:33:11 -0500
--------
Julia Altshuler wrote:
> If you truly dislike them, wouldn't it make more sense to get your fiber
> from a source that you do like, maybe extra broccoli, oatmeal cookies,
> or dried apricots?
>
> But that's not the question you asked. I'd say oil. Bake the potatoes
> without foil. Scoop out the potato part that you do like and eat it
> however you like. Then brush the skin with oil and bake at 400 degrees
> until crispy. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and dried Italian herb
> seasoning. Maybe you'd like the flavor more if the texture were crisp.

When I (again) bake just the skins (from scooped out baked potatoes), I use toothpicks to prop the sides open. This way, the potato skins won't curl up and and pucker closed or go all kattywompass (sp?) when they're baked the second time. Of course, I remove the toothpics before consumption ;)

From: Julia Altshuler (jaltshuler at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:33:56 -0400
--------
Sky wrote:
> Of course, I remove the toothpics before
> consumption ;)

Think of all the fiber you're missing!

From: Sky (skyhooks at NOsbcglobal.SnPeAtM)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 21:36:19 -0500
--------
Julia Altshuler wrote:
> Think of all the fiber you're missing!

LOL! At least they're not cooked green veggies ')

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Sep 2007 22:41:37 -0400
--------
Sky wrote:
> When I (again) bake just the skins (from scooped out baked potatoes), I
> use toothpicks to prop the sides open. This way, the potato skins won't
> curl up and and pucker closed or go all kattywompass (sp?) when they're
> baked the second time. Of course, I remove the toothpics before
> consumption ;)

When I am eating potato skins, I'm not baking them again after scooping out the insides. I'm eating it at the table just as the crispy dry baked potato comes out of the oven for serving. I scoop it out, leaving the potato on my plate to eat in moments with the rest of the meal itself, but eat the buttered and seasoned skin alone while it is at its most tasty prime. Nothing more than butter, salt and pepper for me.

From: Kate Connally (connally at pitt.edu)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:48:00 -0400
--------
Sky wrote:
> When I (again) bake just the skins (from scooped out baked potatoes), I
> use toothpicks to prop the sides open. This way, the potato skins won't
> curl up and and pucker closed or go all kattywompass (sp?)

I think it's "cattywompus". ;-)

From: Kate Connally (connally at pitt.edu)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:33:44 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

Our family has always eaten our baked potatoes thusly: cut it in half, scrape out the potato onto your plate and mash it into a pile with your fork, add lots of butter, salt, and pepper, then take the two skins and add lots of butter, salt, and pepper and kind of mush them together to spread it around, eat skins out of hand, eat potato with fork, we usually eat the potato first with the rest of the meal and save the skins for dessert.

Nowadays I sometimes just cut the potato in half and then cut it into chunks on the plate and top with butter, salt, pepper, dill weed, and sour cream. Naturally the skin is still attached to each chunk.

Also, though it may not need to be said, I scrub the potatoes well, dry them, and then skewer them on "potato nails" (to make sure they cook through properly - I really hate hard, crunchy, undercooked potato - and rub them generously with butter and then bake. The skins get nice and crispy and taste wonderful. Also, never, ever wrap a potato in foil to bake it. Gack! That's a sin! And besides the skin will not get crisp.

Of course, when you get a baked potato in a restaurant it is almost invariable wrapped in foil. But in that case it doesn't matter because I wouldn't eat the skin anyway, who knows where it been? But then I almost never order baked potato in a restaurant for that very reason!

From: Goomba38 (Goomba38 at comcast.net)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:50:34 -0400
--------
Kate Connally wrote:
> Our family has always eaten our baked potatoes thusly:
> cut it in half,

My mother taught us that one should use a fork to split potatoes as cutting them with knife compresses the potato inside and you lose that fluffy texture you want with a baked potato.
We just use the tines to puncture the potato in a cross shaped line then squeeze it to open. It does look more attractive than cutting with a knife....but I've been known to be lazy at times and use the knife now and then too. Sorry Mom!

From: Kate Connally (connally at pitt.edu)
Date: Wed, 19 Sep 2007 10:39:22 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

Okay, I assumed you meant the skins that come with the baked potato that you are having for dinner. But if you meant just the skins, prepared as a separate dish, like an appetizer or snack, well that's a whole nother thing.

I would, of course, add butter, salt, and pepper, but then I would top them with any of a huge number of possible toppings, singly or in combination:

cheddar cheese
ranch dressing
chili
bbq sauce
sour cream
crumbled bacon
diced ham
pulled pork
sausage gravy
chopped onions (reg. or green)
various herbs or spices
corn
dice green or red bell peppers
chiles
etc.

From: Stan Horwitz (stan.horwitz at gmail.com)
Date: Thu, 20 Sep 2007 02:11:28 -0400
--------
Ken Knecht wrote:
> If you eat them, what do you add to baked potato skins to make them
> tastier? I'm trying to eat them to add to my fiber intake. Oil?
>
> I find them rather unpleasant. Is it an acquired taste?

I just eat them with the potato.