Baked Potato Perfection

Great weekend! I babysat for some of my favorite kids on Friday night - I have a standing babysitting gig to watch the two younger boys while Mom brings the oldest son to soccer practice. Saturday was a nice little morning run and a coffee date with someone I met on Match.com. I'm really enjoying meeting new people and getting out more, socially. So I'm glad I gave Match a shot!

On Saturday night I went to a bachelor/bachelorette party for the owner of my CrossFit gym and his fiance (who I know from the gym, as well). It was a surprise, so that made it even more exciting and we all hung out and enjoyed some food and drinks. Then the boys decided it would be a good idea to lay inside a giant tractor tire and "bowl" into a stack of giant empty water jugs. It was pure class. :)

Then on Sunday, I picked up my "nephew" Gus from doggy daycare to watch him until this morning, when I dropped him off at my brother's on my way to work. He's such a nice dog, but he is obsessed with Mabel, so when he's over, she basically lives in the cupboard over my fridge to stay just out of his reach. It's pathetic.


I've got a busy week ahead, with tonight being my only free night, so I decided to stay in, get some laundry done, make some chick pea salad sandwiches for the week and cheer the Vikings on to a win over the NY Jets. I made a really tasty baked potato for dinner - which kept me from ordering take-out. I found a way to bake them that makes them taste so good - the key is to not wrap it in tinfoil (Mom led me astray all these years). By coating the outside in olive oil and sea salt and leaving it uncovered, you end up with a crispy, salty outer shell. Delicious flavor!

The Perfect Baked Potato

• 1 or 2 whole potatoes (I used Yukon Gold, but any kind will work)
• extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt
• margarine
• Tofutti sour cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 400-degrees, making sure that one of the racks is in the middle position of the oven. Scrub the potatoes, removing any knots/blemishes. Pat dry with a clean towel.

This part gets messy, but it works best to use your hands - drizzle some olive oil on the potato and rotate in your hands, rubbing it into the skin to coat thoroughly. Next, sprinkle the entire outside with sea salt - don't over do it, sea salt has a stronger flavor than table salt.

Place the potatoes directly on the oven rack - don't use a pan or cookie sheet. Set timer to 45-minutes, rotating once during baking to brown evenly. Check for doneness by inserting a fork - it should easily slide in and out.

I like to serve mine with margarine and Tofutti (vegan) sour cream. I put a small slit in the top of the potato then, using an oven mitt, squeeze the ends of the potato to open it up more. Then plop a dab of margarine and sour cream on top. No need for more salt - with the skin coated pre-baking, you'll taste plenty of salt as you eat. Tell me that's not the best baked potato ever! :)