Basil Stuffed Baked Potato

Best Baked Potato Ever!!

This is one of my all time favorites. I wait in anticipation each summer until the basil I planted really starts to take off and it’s loaded with buds. You have to pinch these buds off because if you don’t the plant will completely go to seed and stop growing and die.  Most people just pinch them off and throw them away….. DON’T, they’re the best part of the basil. These little buds are absolute flavor bombs.

So you ask, what do I do with them? Well, you can put them on a sheet pan and pop them into a 250 degree oven for 30 minutes or so and dry them out and save them for this winter or you can use them fresh. These little buds are hardier than the basil leaves so you can add them to sauces or soups during the cooking process. Unlike the leaves they will stand up to the heat and not just fade away to nothingness.

One of my favorite summer “Meatless Monday” meals is a baked potato and crisp green salad loaded with lots of fresh veggies. Of course it’s a Basil Stuffed Baked Potato. In the recipe below I tell you how I bake a potato. After years of trial and error I finally got it down so it comes out with a beautifully seasoned crispy skin that you will want to eat it’s so good and a wonderfully fluffy inside that is perfect stuffed with a bunch of fresh basil buds. These little beauties literally burst in your mouth and make for the best baked potato ever. The secret to the baked potato is Jane’s Crazy Mixed-up Salt. This is a wonderful blend of salt, pepper, garlic and other species that gives the potato a wonderful tasty crunchy skin. You can find it at most grocery stores or on Amazon.

Watch the video below to see how I take the buds off the stalks.