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One of the most important aspects of being a frugal cook, is being a flexible cook. You have to be able to work with whatever is in your stockpile. A Flexible Recipe is my attempt to help you consider the possibilities for a food.
Flexible Twice Baked Potatoes
1. Begin by baking your potatoes. I always bake mine in the crock pot. A child as young as 6 or 7 could be taught how to do this and make a significant contribution to dinner. (The crock pot also uses 1/3 the energy of the stove and doesn't heat up the kitchen in summer.)
2. When the potatoes are finished cooking, take them out and let them cool. Then split them in half and scoop the insides into a large mixing bowl. Leave a 1/4" of potato inside the shell to help it keep it's shape.
3. Add some creamy options to bind, season, and improve the texture of the potaoes. You could use:
- cottage cheese
- sour cream
- cream cheese
- butter
- milk
- creamed spinach
- evaporated milk, cream, or half & half
4. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper. At this point you want to have potatoes that are the consistency of very creamy mashed potatoes. Then you can add whatever you want to beef the potatoes up. If you using them as a side dish, you may just want to add cheese. But for a main dish, be creative:
- cubed ham
- bacon bits
- chicken pieces
- shredded beef or pork
- leftover taco meat
- leftover chili
Some veggies would be good. How about:
- finely chopped broccoli
- corn
- spinach or other cooked greens
- green onion (minced)
- caramelized diced onion
5. Scoop the mixture back into the shell. Top with a little more grated cheese and bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.
You can also wrap these in foil and freeze them before cooking. The day you want to cook them, just pull them out to thaw and cook as normal.
You really can't make a mistake, it's all about what you have on hand and what tastes your family enjoys. Have fun and be creative.
