BAKED POTATO WITH BACON, GRUYÈRE AND CHIVES

It will never fails to amaze me how versatile the old "spud" can be. Potatoes, when creamed with fresh chives are wonderful at any time. The best of this dish is that they can be prepared in advance and finished when needed.

BAKED POTATO WITH BACON, GRUYÈRE AND CHIVES

INGREDIENTS - SERVES 4
4 medium-sized baking potatoes
50g sea salt (not for eating but cooking)
25g butter
1 onion, finely chopped
4 rashers streaky bacon, chopped
4tbsp whole cream
100g freshly grated Gruyère
3 tbsp freshly snipped chives
Salt and pepper to season

METHOD
Preheat the oven to 180º.
Put the potatoes in a small baking tin, the base of the tin sprindled with the sea salt. Put in the oven and cook for an hour, until tender.

Heat the butter in a frying pan. Chop the bacon and when the butter is hot, add it to the pan until golden and crisp. Chop the onion and add it to the pan too until soft. Remove and cool.

Remove the potatoes from the oven but leave the oven on, we will need it later. Using a sharp knife, remove a third off the top of each potato, carefully scoop out the flesh, leaving a thin shell and put in a bowl.

The potatoes were very hot when I try to remove the flesh, so I used a piece of cloth to hold it.

Reserve the empty potatoes.

Mash the potato,

Add the chives,

The whole cream,

half the Gruyère,

and the onion with the bacon.

Generously, fill the potatoes with the mix. 

Sprinkle the remaining Gruyère over and return to the oven to bake until golden. Serve direct from the oven.

Delicious!!

DONE!