This is my third attempt at writing something other than complaining about the weather or lack of anything to really write about.  Lately, I’ve been reading lots of recipe/food blogs and have bookmarked some unbelievable recipes.  Here’s one I came across today.  It sounds like the perfect recipe for those that need to gain weight!  For me, that’s not the case, but it sure sounds good.  It’s made with so many of my favorite things, but even I know not to eat them all at the same time.  So here’s the recipe I’m talking about.

Loaded Baked Potato Potato Chip Nachos
by Kerry Saretsky

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Ingredients

1 seven-ounce bag of kettle-cooked potato chips (I love these)
1 medium russet potato, peeled, and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup whole milk (Why not heavy cream?)
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper
4 strips thick-cut bacon (Bacon?  I’m like the dog in the commercial. I love bacon)
1 cup grated extra sharp cheddar cheese (you know how much I like cheese)
2 to 3 scallions, sliced
1/4 cup sour cream (1/4 cup doesn’t sound like nearly enough)

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. Place the peeled and cubed potato in a small sauce pan, and just cover it with cold water and a pinch of salt. Place the lid on the pot, crank the heat up to high, and cook the potatoes until they are fork tender.

3. To make the mashed potato topping, drain the potatoes and put them back in their hot pot (but not on a lit burner), just so a bit of the excess moisture will evaporate. Then pass the potatoes through a ricer, and add the butter and milk to the potatoes and mix to combine. Season with salt and pepper. If you do not have a ricer, don't despair. Just add the butter and milk to the chunks of potatoes and mash with a potato masher.

4. For the bacon bits, slice each thick-cut strip of bacon in half lengthwise, and then cut the thin strips about every quarter inch to create little squares. Put the bacon pieces into a small sauté pan over medium to medium-high heat, and cook until crisp, but not crisp all the way through, because they will continue to crisp slightly when you melt the cheese in the oven, and you don't want them to burn. Drain on a paper towel.

5. Fill an oven-safe wide plate with the chips. You don't need to use all of each topping; really, when building nachos, it depends on which chips and which dish you end up choosing. So just dollop away to your preference. Begin first with the mashed potatoes, then the extra sharp cheddar cheese, then the bacon bits, and lastly the scallions. Place the plate on a baking sheet, and bake for 10 minutes in the 400°F oven.

6. Lastly, dollop some sour cream over the top of the nachos, and serve straight from the oven, hot and gooey and really, really good.

Ok, after that heart attack on a plate, back to reality.  I got my hair cut and colored today.  While I was waiting for Susan to mix up the coloring I took some pictures of all the stuff she has around her area.  As you can see, she has a lot of stuff to look at.  It’s always fun seeing what’s new in Susan’s world.  It’s another sign of how desperate I am to have something less boring to blog about.  Hey, I’m trying!