Twice Baked Crack Potatoes - the BEST potatoes EVER!! Loaded with cheddar, bacon, and ranch. Can make in advance and freeze for later. Baked potatoes, ranch dressing mix, cheddar cheese, bacon, butter, half-and-half, and sour cream. Easy enough for a weeknight and fancy enough for a dinner party! Make these ASAP! #potatoes #bakedpotatoes #cheese #bacon #ranchdressing
Preheat oven to 400ºF. Bake potatoes for 1 hour, or until tender. Reduce oven temperature to 375ºF.
When cool enough to handle, cut potatoes in half lengthwise. Scoop out the pulp, leaving a thin shell. Set skins aside.
In a large bowl, mash potato pulp. Stir in half-and-half, sour cream, ranch dressing mix, cheddar cheese, and bacon. Stuff mixture into potato skins.
Place potatoes on a baking sheet. Drizzle melted butter over potatoes. Sprinkle with dried parsley, if desired.
Bake at 375ºF for 20 minutes, until heated through.
Notes:
Can use turkey bacon, low-fat sour cream or plain greek yogurt, and milk if you want to reduce the calories.Do not make the Ranch dressing - use the dry mix only.Feel free to increase/reduce the amount of Ranch dressing mix to your preference.Can make in advance and refrigerate or freeze for later.If baking from frozen, thaw completely and bake as directed above.If baking after refrigerating, you may need to add 5 or 10 minutes to the cooking time.