Baked Potato Loaded with Grilled Vegetables

"Baked potato or Jacket potato, a perfect dinner recipe on your rushed weeknight or lunch when you’re craving something both appetizing and comforting. Baked potatoes can be served loaded or unloaded with varieties of stuffing. I like this hunger satisfying recipe loaded with goodness of veggie for delightful as well as healthy meal. This recipe is bit time consuming but it is stress-free & effortless recipe; easily can be prepared in big batch and served. Potato being the main ingredient of this recipe; really need to choose your potato very wisely. High starched Russet potatoes are the best for this recipe, fluffy from inside and a crispy from outside; taste yum when mashed & combined with butter, grilled veggies and condiments."

Cuisine: American/World | Recipe Category: Lunch & Dinner
Prep Time: 10 Minutes | Bake time: 1 Hour | serving: 4 Large Size Potatoes

Ingredients

Baked Potatoes

1.	Russet Potatoes (Baking Potatoes)	4  Large size
2.	Olive oil	1 Tsp.
3.	Salt	To taste
4.	Sesame seeds (Optional)	1 Tsp.

Grilled Vegetables

1.	Bell pepper cored, seeded and thinly sliced (I used red and green)	1 Medium
2.	Zucchini, thinly sliced strips (2” long)	1 Small
3.	Yellow squash, thinly sliced strips (2” long)	1 Small
4.	Onion, sliced	1 Medium
5.	Crimini mushroom, sliced	½ Cup
6.	Broccoli florets, cut into small bite size pieces	7-8 pc
7.	Oil	2 Tbsp.
8.	Salt	To taste
9.	Black pepper	To tatse

Serving & Garnishing

1.	Butter	4 Tbsp.
2.	Black pepper	To taste
3.	Salt	To taste
4.	Sour cream	1 cup or As required
5.	American corn, boiled or blanched	1/2 Cup
6.	Jalapeno, finely chopped	2-3 Pc
7.	Onion, finely chopped	½ Cup
8.	Coriander/Spring onion/Parsley, finely chopped	4 Tbsp.

Step By Step Instruction: [Hide Images]

Baking the Potatoes

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Rinse; scrub the potatoes clean with eyes and surface blemished removed and dry.
3. Prick the potatoes with fork/knife and rub them with olive oil and salt. Pricking allows the steam to escape during the baking process and prevent from splitting open.
4. Place the potatoes in baking tray or directly onto the middle rack of the oven, and bake them for 1 hour or until tender. Sprinkle sesame seeds if using.

Grilled Vegetables

1. While the potatoes are getting baked lets prepare the grilled vegetable. Slice the veggies mentioned for grilling in long stripes.Blanch corn kernel & broccoli florets.
2. Place a large grill pan/skillet over medium-high heat and allow becoming very hot. Once the pan is hot, add the 1 Tbsp. of oil and grill veggie until lightly brown, for about 2-3 minutes. 
3. I grilled everything separately as I had small pan and toss all together with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Keep aside until potatoes are baked.

Serving & Garnishing

1. Once potatoes are baked, remove and allow them to cool enough so they are easy to handle.
2. Slit the potatoes length-wise into the middle and using a fork; gently prick the inner pulp of the potato, as close as to the skin
3. Add a pinch of salt, pepper and spread 1 Tbsp. of butter. Load the potato with corn kernels, sour creamand grilled veggies.
4. Garnish with chopped jalapeno, onions and coriander or whatever green you are using.
5. Serve hot.

Quick Tips

1. Potato selection: For this recipe, selection of right kind of potatoes is very important.  Russet and King Edward potatoes are best for baking, owing there perfect size, consistency and highly starched. 
2. Baking methods: Potatoes can be baked in an electric oven, a convection oven, a microwave oven, on a barbecue grill, or on/in an open fire. When cooking in an open fire or in the coals of a barbecue, potato should be wrapped in foil to prevent burning of the skin. And cooking potatoes in a standard oven, wrapping helps in retaining the moisture, while leaving them unwrapped will result in a crisp skin.
3. Helathy diet: Despite of the popular misconception that potatoes are calorific, baked potatoes can be eaten as part of a healthy diet. Baked potatoes taste delicious both ways with or without skin. Potatoes baked in their skins tend to lose between 20 and 40% of their vitamin C content. Small potatoes bake more quickly than large ones and therefore retain more of their vitamin C.