Daringly Different Baked Potatoes with Vegetable and Walnuts
We enjoy baked potatoes but sometimes I get tired of the same old butter and sour cream toppings. I find that baked potatoes are also a natural vehicle for all sorts of vegetable toppings, and can take the place of rice or noodles under a stew. Younger kids may prefer to eat their potatoes and vegetables separately, while adults might like to really mash it all together. Scramble recipe tester Debbie Firestone said, 'The real surprise were the walnuts. They were crunchy, but not too much so. My finicky, fussy eaters were pleased with the additional crunch, and my very skeptical husband enjoyed it, too!'
Ingredients
- 4 russet potatoes
- 1 Tbsp. coconut or canola oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced, about 1 tsp.
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 1/2 green bell pepper diced
- 2 carrots halved and diced
- 1/2 cup walnuts coarsely chopped
- 2 tsp. chili powder
- 1 yellow squash diced
- 14 1/2 oz. diced tomatoes with their liquid
- 1/4 cup water or less, to taste
- 1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley chopped
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Pierce the potatoes with the tines of a fork and bake them until they are tender, about 1 hour. (If you are short on time, cook the potatoes in a slow cooker or in the microwave -- see directions below.)
- When the potatoes are about 20 minutes from being done, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Stir in the garlic for about 30 seconds until it becomes fragrant, then add the onions, peppers, carrots, walnuts and chili powder, and sauté everything for 6 - 8 minutes until the onions and peppers are tender.
- Stir in the squash, tomatoes, and water (swish the water in the tomato can to pick up extra tomato juice before adding it).
- Bring it to a boil, and cover and simmer it for 10 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
- Stir in the parsley and season it with salt and pepper to taste.
- Slice the potatoes in half and top them with a ladle-full of the stew. Serve it immediately topped with the cheese, if desired, or refrigerate everything separately for up to 3 days.
Slow Cooker Directions
- As an alternative to cooking the baked potatoes in the slow cooker (or in addition to, if you're lucky enough to have 2 slow cookers), the filling can be slow cooked: Omit the 1/4 cup water, and place all other filling ingredients in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or on high for 4-6 hours. Top cooked baked potatoes with a ladle of filling, top with cheese if desired, and serve. (Slow cooker cooking times may vary—Get to know your slow cooker and, if necessary, adjust cooking times accordingly.)
Notes
Do Ahead or Delegate: Peel the garlic, dice the onion, the bell pepper, the carrots and the squash, chop the walnuts, or fully prepare the potatoes and vegetable topping and refrigerate, separately.
Scramble Flavor Booster: Top the potatoes and stew with hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco. Drizzle a fruity olive oil over the potatoes and stew.
Tip: If you don't have the time to bake a potato in the oven, you can cook it in either a slow cooker or the microwave. To bake potatoes in a slow cooker, pierce them several times with a fork, wrap each potato tightly in foil, and cook them on high for 3 – 4 hours or low for 8 – 10 hours. To cook in the microwave, pierce the potato several times with a fork and cook on high for 5 minutes. Flip the potatoes and microwave for 5 more minutes. To check for doneness, gently squeeze the potato. It should 'give' a little when it's fully cooked.
Nutritional Information Per Serving (% based upon daily values): Calories 401, Total Fat: 7g, 9.5%; Saturated Fat: 4g, 16%; Cholesterol: 0mg, 0%; Sodium: 108mg, 4.5%; Total Carbohydrate: 78g, 25%; Dietary Fiber: 11g, 45%; Sugar: 10g; Protein: 11g
Like this recipe? Check out The Scramble's family-friendly meal plans to see just how simple getting dinner on the table can be!
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!