Homegrown Lunch

BLTT (Bacon Lettuce Tomato & Turkey) with homegrown tomato and lettuce. YUMMMMMMM!
(Can’t see it on the backside, but there’s a homemade spicy dill pickle on the plate, too!)

©2014 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This recipe originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This recipe may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.

2nd Day 2x Baked Potatoes

As promised, some of the things we like to do with leftover 2x Baked Potatoes

Before you dive any deeper into this post, I suggest you first check out the 2x Baked Potatoes recipe I posted a few days ago. Otherwise, it is kind of like tuning in to the middle of a television series and trying to understand what is going on … frustrating and futile! (That is something I often do to the Cavewoman, driving her crazy with my questions about who is doing what to who. But, that is a whole other Oprah ;)). In fact, I’m going to go so far as to say that you really should try the recipe first before reading further here. Because, without tasting these in their pristine, just-made state you can’t begin to comprehend just how incredibly delectable these leftover potatoes can possibly be.
Okay … so … you’ve made this sinful yet necessary side dish, tasted their incredible flavor, and eaten as many as you could conceivably fit into your not-large-enough-for-something-this-good stomach. And now, you are wondering what to do with the inevitable leftovers. You can’t eat any more of them right now … though you wish you could. You don’t want to use them as furniture coasters … they’re too good to meet such a mundane fate. You won’t want to use them as hockey pucks … no matter how long you let them petrify for they just don’t fly right. So, what do you do???
First, you put them into an airtight container and throw them into the fridge. Then, you spend the rest of the evening coming up with future ideas for these tantalizing taters. Of course, you can just warm them up and enjoy them along side any main dish … they reheat very well and taste almost as good as fresh out of the oven. But, even a pea-sized Caveman’s brain begins to wonder about the possibilities, and dream of the new mouthwatering potential inherent.
One flavorsome method of redeployment is to just treat them like you would a potato skin. Reheat them and then top them with any combination of sour cream, crumbled bacon, chopped green onions, chives, ranch dressing, etc. They end up being the most incredible skin you have ever had in your life. (Sorry, the pictures of this version did not turn out :()
Another wonderful and tempting way to utilize a leftover twice baked tater is pictured above. Just reheat the rebaked spud and slather it up with some warmed 2+2 Tequila Chili. Sure you are taking one totally decadent dish and topping it with another … but, I don’t hear too many people complaining about putting a couple of slices of bacon on their burger, a dollop of bearnaise sauce on their steak, or whip cream on their milk shake. So, please, don’t judge! 😉 Besides, you really should taste it first before you say, “Naw! I couldn’t!!” Yeah, it’s that good.
However, the true piace de resistance is the breakfast rendition of this thrice utilized tuber: the 2x Baked Poachtato, seen here. While you are getting them back to optimum temperature in a 375° oven, follow the directions in this recipe for poaching an egg, and throw one or two on top of each re-warmed tater. Dab a little of your favorite hot sauce on top (I prefer Tapatio or Tabasco, depending on my tastebuds’ mood) and you have a warm hearty breakfast that will kick your motor into gear. Even the Cavewoman couldn’t get enough of the flavor combination this pairing provides.
These are, obviously, not the only uses for a left behind 2-baker. Let your imagination fly when you have some of these rattling around in the fridge … go for it! Just be sure to come back here and let us know what you came up with. We will want to try it, too!

©2010 Caution: Caveman Cooking/UHearMe, Inc. All rights reserved. This originally appeared on the Caution: Caveman Cooking blog at http://cavemancooking.net authored by Caveman. This may be shared and reprinted as long as this entire copyright message accompanies it.