Prep time: 10 minutesCook time: 1 hourYield: Serves 4-6
INGREDIENTS
6-8 strips bacon
6 medium-large russet potatoes, scrubbed well
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound fresh broccoli, cut into florets (or use frozen)
8 ounces grated sharp cheddar cheese
To serve:

Sour cream
Fresh chives
Dad Add: Quick Home Fries (serves 2):

1 baked potato, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
Eggs, for serving

METHODHIDE PHOTOS
1 Prepare the bacon: Line a baking sheet with foil, then top with a wire baking rack (cookie cooling rack). Lay the bacon strips on the wire rack perpendicular to the wires, making sure the bacon pieces don’t overlap.

2 Bake the bacon and scrub the potatoes: Place the bacon in a cold oven and set the temperature to 375°F. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Check the bacon around the 18-minute mark. Some types of bacon cook faster than others. (See How to Make Bacon in the Oven for full details.)

While the bacon bakes, scrub potatoes well and then stab each potato about 10 times with a fork to prevent the possibility of a potato exploding in the oven. (It can happen!)

Baked Potatoes
These LOADED baked potatoes turn a standard side dish into a full-on entrée. Packed with steamed broccoli, bacon, cheddar, sour cream, and chives, they are a meal on their own! They are quick to toss together, have a variety of different flavors and ingredients, and are economical to make in bulk.
Cheesy loaded baked potatoes with broccoli and bacon are a great pantry meal. Potatoes store well and are generally available in bulk. Keep a few pounds in your pantry, and this becomes an easy and comforting dinner.

These loaded baked potatoes are pretty much exactly what I want for dinner on a chilly winter day or cool spring evening, but they run right up against one of my biggest struggles when feeding my kids: It’s intimidating to see big piles of food. Most kids I know struggle with it, and I know mine do. No worries! We can solve it!

THE BEST POTATOES FOR LOADED BAKED POTATOES
Simply Recipes has an excellent tutorial on baked potatoes, so I won’t reinvent the wheel here. I essentially follow the method in that article.

I shoot for medium-to-large potatoes (less than a pound per potato, for sure). I scrub mine well and stab them with a fork many times all over. Then, I rub them with some olive oil and a good sprinkle of coarse salt. Bake the potatoes at 400˚F until they have wrinkled skins and are very tender on the inside; about an hour is a good guideline.

Normally, baked potatoes are seen as a side dish, but these are so stuffed and have so much going on that they are essentially a meal in themselves. Sometimes, I’ll serve them with a little side salad or something just to lighten up the plate. But, honestly, you can serve them with absolutely nothing else and be in good shape. Life is busy. Go easy on yourself.