Game Day Potato Skins

Last week I made these bacon-cheddar potato skins for the Vikings game. Since I know almost all of Minnesota will be hosting or attending some sort of football party Sunday night I thought I would pass this recipe on for others to enjoy. Thanks to some bacon grease (sorry - but it works so well) the skins come out nice and crisp. I topped mine with bacon, cheddar cheese and green onions but you can do various toppings.  I should tell you that they are kind of a process to make with three different baking steps, but I did most of the work on Saturday so that on Sunday all I had to do was bake them a final time and cheer for Brett Favre - Skol Vikings!
Crispy Potato Skins
8 small - medium sized russet potatoes
8-10 strips bacon, diced
4 green onions, diced (green stem included)
3 Tbs. butter
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
salt/pepper
seasoned salt
1/2 c. sour cream (optional)

Wash potatoes and pierce 4 times with a fork. Bake at 375 for an hour or until soft. Meanwhile, cook bacon and then drain grease. Keep a small amount of grease for later. When potatoes are cooked and cooled slightly, cut in half, lengthwise and scoop out center of potato, leaving about a 1/4" of potato with the skin. Discard center or use for mashed potatoes. Brush the bottom, skin side of the potato with bacon grease and place on baking sheet. Now brush the center part of the potato with melted butter and season with salt, pepper and any other favorite seasonings. Bake at 425 F for 8-10 minutes. Fill potato boats with bacon, cheese and green onion. (If making in advance, you can now refrigerate filled potato skins and bake the next day). Place filled potato skins on baking sheet and bake at 425 for 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and skins are crisp. Top with sour cream if using.
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