Buffalo Chicken Twice Baked Potatoes

Happy 2015! How were your holidays? I got sick just in time for Santa to arrive. I wasn't feeling especially great when I was leaving my uncle's house on Christmas Eve, but I figured I ate too much. When I got home, it was a different story, and after I was, erm, finished, I looked at the clock and saw that it was just after midnight. My only thought was, "Gee, thanks, Santa!"

I'm still not sure what that was all about. It wasn't a stomach virus, nobody else got sick, so it couldn't have been food poisoning. Maybe since I didn't put up a stocking, that was Santa's creative alternative to coal?

It wasn't all bad, though. I did get a slow cooker and a rice cooker (I have this block against cooking rice. I can make a risotto, but I can't make rice. Does this make sense to anyone?), so basically I have a ton of appliances that help me avoid using my stove. Yay!

The parentals also bought me a new TV, since all I had was my little 17 inch one, which served me fine in the past, but since my living room is actually pretty big, it looked kind of sad and tiny (also, the sound was starting to go wonky, and it didn't have an HDMI port for my blu-ray player. It was time). It's a smart tv, so I've been fascinated by the fact that I can watch Netflix on something other than my Kindle. It's the little things in life.

Anywhozzle, I've totally had this potato craving lately, which made me realize: I don't think I've ever made a potato dish. Like, ever. I mean, I've made baked potatoes (mostly in the microwave, because I'm usually just making one for me), and I've put potatoes in soups and things and on my Italian Hot Dogs, but just potatoes? Nope.

Well, thinking about it now, I have made potato salad and roasted potatoes, and I made a potato nacho thinger where I sliced up a potato and pan fried it and smothered it with cheese and bacon and baked it. But I had to really think about it, so they totally don't count.

And that's totally crazysauce because I love potatoes. I love all things potato. Potato chips and french fries and mashed potatoes and potato croquettes and potato salad and my Aunt Sophie's potato pie. Potatoes are awesome.

So one night, I was making a baked potato in the microwave for dinner, like you do, and I suddenly decided I was going to put buffalo sauce on it instead of butter, and it was like a revelation. I was in love with the combination of potato and buffalo sauce, so the idea stuck me: what about buffalo chicken twice baked potatoes?

Now, I'd never actually had twice baked potatoes, but I liked the idea of them. You take baked potatoes, scoop out the insides, mash them up and mix them with yummy good stuff like sour cream and cheese, put it back in the potato skins and bake it back up until the cheese is all melty-gooey. What's not to like? I figure I'd just add some hot sauce, some diced red onions, peppers, and celery, a little cilantro and chives, top with some chicken, et voila, buffalo chicken twice baked potatoes.

And you guys, it's like baked potatoes meet mashed potatoes meet potato salad meet buffalo wings. It's epic. And while it sounds fussy and hard, it's really not. It takes a while, but that's mostly because the potatoes take a while for the first baking. I really like that I can do all the prep while the potatoes are in the oven. You'd have to wait anyway, so it gives you something to do while waiting. Since I hate waiting, that's a plus.

You could totally make these ahead, just follow the steps up until the second baking, cover and put in the fridge. When you're ready to serve, just pop them back in the oven for the second baking. The skins won't be as crisp, but it will still be yummy.

I love that these are super versatile too. Serve one potato half as an appetizer, or two potato halves as a meal. You can eat them with a knife and fork or pick them up with your fingers. You could even skip the chicken if you want, or use premade chicken strips from the grocery store. My original intention was to make shredded chicken and mix it in with the potatoes, but I make a lot of shredded chicken and wanted to try something different. That's always an option if you want a less saucy and messy finger food. You could totally just eat the filling and not put it back in the potato skins, which I had to stop myself from doing.

Twice baked potatoes. You need them in your life.

Buffalo Chicken Twice Baked Potatoes
Yield: 8 potato halves

Ingredients
4 large russet potatoes, scrubbed and dried*
olive oil
salt (optional)
1 chicken breast, cut into strips
1 tbsp ranch seasoning (I used this mix, minus the dill)
2 tbsp. prepared buffalo sauce**
1/3 cup sour cream
2-4 tbsp. hot sauce
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
1 tbsp. chopped fresh chives
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 small red onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
About 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese.

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Prick the potatoes a few times on all sides with a fork. Rub with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, if using. Bake for 45-60 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender.

While the potatoes are cooking, heat about 1 tbsp. of olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken and ranch seasoning. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is almost cooked through. Add the buffalo sauce, and continue to cook until the chicken is done. Set aside.

When the potatoes are done, use a sharp knife to cut them into halves, being careful not to tear the skin. (use a clean dish towel to hold the potatoes, since they will be very hot) Use a spoon to scoop out the inside into a bowl, leaving about a quarter inch in the skin to keep its shape. Use a handheld potato masher to mash the potatoes. Mix in the sour cream, butter, and your desired amount of hot sauce. Mix in the diced vegetables.

Divide the filling equally between the empty potato skins. Sprinkle liberally with shredded cheddar, and bake about 5 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Top with the cooked chicken in buffalo sauce, drizzle more buffalo sauce on top, if desired, and serve immediately.

Note: If you prefer softer veggies, you can saute them with the chicken

*My potatoes were kind of on the small side, so I used the 4 biggest I had plus one small one
**You can make your own buffalo sauce using 2 parts hot sauce to 1 part melted butter

Recipe by Kim

Nathan Fillion's 7 Layer Bean Dip of the Gods (Go Browncoats!)

On the DVD of Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog, there is not only a commentary, but a musical commentary. Commentary! The Musical. (It's a three-part webseries about a singing supervillain. Go with it.)

During Commentary! Nathan Fillion sings a song. A sea shanty, if you will. That his pirate mother used to sing to him. All about how he's better than Neil Patrick Harris.

 

In this sea shanty, there's a lyric that goes like this:
"He makes 7 figures,
And gets Emmy nods.
I make seven layer bean dip of the gods!"

Well, a little ways back, Nathan decided to share the recipe for this, the holiest of dips, on Twitter.

I would like to share with you all my very special Seven Layer Bean Dip recipe. Get out a pen and paper. Or fave the following-
— Nathan Fillion (@NathanFillion) January 5, 2011

And being as there's a certain kind of sporting event going on today during which people apparently eat a lot of dip, I decided that I would share this sacred knowledge with you, straight from the man himself. (My changes are in italics)

This will be the Bean Dip of the Gods of song in Dr.Horrible's COMMENTARY! Ready?
— Nathan Fillion (@NathanFillion) January 5, 2011

Ready, Cap'n Tight Pants!

1. Layer one: Large can of fat free vegetarian refried beans.
2. Layer two: mix taco seasoning into low fat sour cream and spread over beans.(I used full fat sour cream and Mrs. Dash Fiesta Lime Seasoning Blend, with a little added chilli powder, cayenne powder, garlic powder and paprika)
3. Layer three: four large diced tomatoes (use your jug dement for adequate coverage. (I ended up using only 2. You could also use a well-drained can of diced tomatoes)
4. Layer four: Guacamole. (I use avocados mixed with Herdez mild salsa). Tomatoes will anchor the sour cream layer. (I made more of a classic guacamole. Avocados, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, and fresh salsa. You could also use premade.)
5. Layer five: one cute little can of diced green chilies. Suggest wee flinging through fingers for even spreaddage.
6. Layer six: one cute little can of black olives. Same technique for spreaddage. (I didn't use olives. I don't like them. Don't judge me. I added some scallions instead. Because REASONS)
7. Layer seven: shredded Mexican cheese mix. Or to taste. I use a whole bag.  
8. Casserole dish for dip, and a strong chip like Mission Rounds. Dip is thick- will destroy lesser chips. Maybe stock up on Beano, too.

I also added some shredded lettuce to the top, some more fresh salsa, and I made it pretty. Because I'm a food blogger and that's how we roll.

 Look at those lovely layers. This is some epic dip, people. Epic.

I actually made this to bring to a friend's house today. But we're not going to be watching football (except, I'll probably make them turn it on during the second quarter to see the new Star Trek: Into Darkness trailer. And I'll do my very, very best to resist my fangirly instincts and not slap anyone when it comes on. I maybe sort of beat up the bestie a little bit when we saw the trailer before the Hobbit). We're going to be playing board games. I think the estimable Mr. Fillion would approve.

 And since I know you're all wondering what to get me for my birthday coming up in less than 2 week, I'm going to make it easy on you: You can donate to the Hurricane Sandy NJ Relief Fund.
 

Savory Cornbread Waffles

So all day on Monday, I had this craving for waffles. With raspberry sauce. Warm and crispy waffles, soft on the inside, drizzled with some of my favorite raspberry red wine sauce. And maybe with a scoop of ice cream. Vanilla ice cream. That gets all melty and soft on the hot waffle and drips into all the squares and you just have this sweet and buttery and sticky delicious mess. Drizzled with raspberry sauce.

But here's the thing: I don't eat lunch. I'm never hungry for it. I snack on pretzels or dried pomegranate seeds during the day, and I'll maybe eat a protein bar on my lunch break. I'm not starving myself or anything; my body just does not want to eat a meal. Predictably, though, my tummy is super-grumbly when I get home from work. So with my only other option for dinner that night being pot roast (I'm not a fan of red meat. Never have been), I figured I would indulge my craving.

I was way too hungry for that sweet, sticky mess I had envisioned, however. No, when I'm that hungry, only something savory will satisfy. Then I remembered we had scallions and shredded cheddar in the fridge. That could be good.

Not only did I find the scallions and the cheese, but fresh cilantro, tiny sweet peppers, and limes. And in the pantry, a box of Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix. Hot damn, these waffles were starting to sound epic. And my tummy was starting to growl in earnest. In ten minutes, I had the ingredients chopped, the batter mixed, and the waffle iron preheated.

Yes. I used a mix. It was a quarter to 6 and I was hungry. I feel no shame in this. Neither does my tummy, which was very, very pleased with the end result. Because these waffles? They were good.

Now, to be fair, the flavors most prominent in these waffles were the cornmeal, scallions, and the cilantro. I think the lime juice and sweetness of the mix canceled each other out, and the cheddar really ended up getting lost. I also added a sprinkle of chipotle seasoning blend, just to ramp up the savory aspect.

But, but, these waffles were crispy-crunchy, with only a hint of sweetness and such a great blend of flavors that I maybe ate 2 whole ones for dinner. And one for breakfast this morning (they heat up well in a toaster oven). You could serve them with chili for a fun dinner. Or cut them into quarters and serve with salsa or guacamole in place of chips (great for a certain football game coming up soon, if ya know what I mean). Or  offer them topped with some pico de gallo or sour cream as a unique and tasty brunch dish.

Best of all, you could totally customize them however you want. Want the lime flavor a little more prominent? Add some zest. Prefer spicy? Try jalapenos instead of the bell peppers (how good would that be?). Don't like cilantro? .... I'm not sure what you could use instead. I guess you could skip it? And what's wrong with you? Why don't you like cilantro? Poor cilantro. It's okay. I still love you.

So the moral of the story is: I'm kind of sad I ate the last waffle for breakfast this morning. And don't be mean to cilantro.

Savory Cornbread Waffles {Printable Version}

Yield: 4 waffles

Ingredients
1 box Jiffy® corn muffin mix
½ cup milk
¼ cup fresh lime juice
2 tbsp. melted butter
1 egg
1 small bell pepper, diced
¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese
Handful of chopped fresh cilantro
Handful of chopped scallions
¼ tsp. chipotle seasoning blend (optional)

Directions
In a large bowl, mix together the mix, milk, lime juice, butter, and egg until well incorporated (some
lumps are fine). Mix in the remaining ingredients. Cook in a waffle maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Recipe adapted from the one provided on the Jiffy® box