This creamy on the inside, crunchy on the outside twice-baked potatoes recipe is so easy to prepare, and packed full of potassium, fiber and vitamin C.
Roasted, baked, mashed, fried – there are so many delicious ways to prepare potatoes. The one that’s often forgotten is my personal favorite, the twice-baked potato.
Though potatoes have a bad reputation, don’t let their white flesh fool you. Potatoes are a leading source of potassium in the American diet, and a great source of vitamin C and fiber. Most importantly, they are a vegetable well-accepted by kids. As a mom, I can tell you, mealtime is much more enjoyable when the kids like what you serve.
As with any vegetable, it’s the preparation method that can make it or break it. Most twice-baked potato recipes exceed the recommendations of dietary fat per serving. Higher-fat means higher calorie – but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy this dish as part of a healthy lifestyle.
Healthy Swaps To Make Twice-Baked Potatoes Healthier
With just a few alterations, I transitioned the recipe of traditional twice-baked potatoes into a lower-calorie, lower-fat version that can fit into any calorie level.
I usually don’t recommend fat free products, but this recipe is an exception. I used fat-free sour cream in the potato mixture. It works well when prepared in a mixture like this because it created the creamy texture without adding a lot of dietary fat. I was also careful with the portion size of each of the ingredients that I used. Each potato is topped with ~2 tablespoons of cheddar cheese, which is absolutely enough to get the flavor. And, of course, chives!
Calories And Nutrition Information
The nutrition information provided if for one serving, or one ~6 ounce twice baked potato. That’s 1/2 of a large potato, cut in half. When prepared as described, one twice baked potato has 240 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, 3 grams of saturated fat, 15 milligrams of cholesterol, 42 grams of carbohydrates, 4 grams of fiber and 8 grams of protein. It also has 180 milligrams of sodium, 30% ofthe daily value for vitamin C, 10% of the daily value for iron, 15% of the daily value for calcium and 20% of the daily value for potassium. That makes this side dish a highly nutritious option!
These twice baked potatoes are absolutely amazing and are a great way to mix-up your dinner side dish options. Give them a try and let me know what you think.
If you love twice-baked potatoes, you might also like my recipe for twice baked sweet potatoes with rosemary and ricotta.
Low-Fat Simple Twice Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 Large Potatoes
- 2 Slices of Bacon (microwaved)
- 3/4 cup Fat Free Sour Cream
- 1/2 cup Non-Fat Milk
- 1/4 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 1 tbsp Butter (salted)
- 4 tbsp Fresh Chives (chopped)
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Wrap 2 large (10-12 ounce potatoes) in aluminum foil. Bake in the oven at 375 degrees until done, ~1 ½ hours. Let cool completely. (I recommend baking the potatoes the day before and letting them cool in the refrigerator overnight.)
- Using a sharp knife, cut the potatoes in half lengthwise. Scrape out the inside of the potato, being careful not to tear the skin. Place the inside potato in a bowl. Lay the hollowed potato shell in a glass baking dish or sheet pan.
- Melt the 1 tbsp. butter in the microwave then add it to the potato that was scooped out of the shell. Use a fork to mash the potatoes well. Add the fat-free sour cream and the milk. Add one piece of the crumbled bacon, 2 tbsp. chopped chives and 1/8 of the shredded cheese to the potato mixture. Continue mixing well.
- Spoon the potato mixture into the potato shells, evenly distributing between the 4 shells. Once filled (they should be heaping with potato filling,) sprinkle the remaining cheddar cheese, chives and bacon on top of the filling.
- Place in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and the tops are crispy. Top with a tbsp. of fat-free sour cream before serving.
Notes
- Makes 4 (~6 ounce) twice-baked potatoes
- Nutrition Facts: 1 (~6 ounce) twice baked potato= 240 calories; 4.5 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 42 g carbohydrates, 4 g fiber, 8 g protein, 180 mg sodium, 30% DV Vitamin C, 10% DV iron, 15% DV calcium, 20% DV potassium
- Nutrition Tip- for those on a lower-calorie meal plan, cut one twice-baked potato in half for a ~3 ounce serving
- Meal Planning Serving Sizes: 3 CHO; 1 FAT; 1.5 PRO
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Tag @heathermangieri on Instagram and hashtag it #HeatherMangieriNutrition to show me your creation. Or, Pin it on Pinterest for later!
Hi, I’m Heather – a registered dietitian, busy mom, consultant, adventure junkie and travel addict who has mastered living healthy on the go. My blog is where I share simple recipes and healthy living tips to help and inspire others to live their best life.
Love it! ? I always use unsalted butter, is there a big difference?
You should use unsalted in cooking, but it adds flavor to prepared food. Totally fine!
I’m having a total
Crash almost a depressing mood like someone died
I cut out all carbs for approximately
A month
I began , drinking more juces alot of chicken broth bone broth
So l cheeated yesterday l ate 3! Twice baked potatoes
2 cokes
Anyway
I have more energy when I have no carbs!
Vs. having carbs more sluggish
Although I know I have to work on other
Other bad habits
No sugar and hopefully to quit smoking which I’m not ready to quit smoking or stop sugar in coffee.. .
Elizabeth ♥️
2-2-2020 6:55p.m Pacific time
You must quit smoking to enjoy your life to the fullest degree!
Like them but prefer with 2 Tablespoons of butter and a little fat free milk. Brown in the oven for 20 minutes at 400 degrees until brown on top.
I love a twice-baked potato with parmesan.
I also use unsalted butter. To balance the flavor of the potato filling, I add a shake of Bell’s seasoning which is mostly celery salt and sage, in case you can’t get Bell’s.
Cheese,butter and bacon = Healthy. You are fooling your self.
Yes- those things can absolutely work in a healthy diet. It’s all about the portion size. This recipe has a very controlled amount of these items, so as a collective recipe, it is a great option for a healthy diet.
I totally agree. Everything in balance and proportion. And baked potatoes are very nutritious; so at 240 calories for a meal WOW!
hope your tetanus is up to date eating with that rusty fork!
delicious potatoes! love how you tweaked such a heavy meal into being lighter and more feasible in even a strict diet, great stuff!
why does everyone shy away from the sodium count in nutrition facts? that is super important information
Hi, I TOTALLY agree with you. Sodium is very important. I include the sodium in all of my recipes, and did not realize I missed it on this one. I am updating this now and appreciate you bringing it to my attention. This recipe for healthier twice-baked potatoes has 180 mg per serving. Sorry I missed it!
Is it 240 calories for a whole potato or half a potato?
Hi Tracy, it is 240 calories for 1 twice-baked potato, which is 1/2 of a whole potato. The recipe calls for 2 very large potatoes (12 ounces each), which makes 4 servings, or 4 (~6 ounce) twice-baked potatoes. Hope that helps.
should be called twice cooked