Make this Bloomin’ Baked Potato recipe as a unique side dish or party appetizer. The baked potato skins are crisp and salty, the insides are soft and cheesy. This baked potatoes recipe will make the whole family happy!
We had so much fun with the Bloomin’ Baked Apples I shared last month that my whole family decided that we needed to make some more bloomin‘ recipes. I’ve seen the fabulous bloomin‘ onion bread recipes online and one of these days I am going to try it but we wanted to go with something else.
We tossed around ideas for other things that could be cut in a similar way and we decided on potatoes! Baked potatoes are good anyway, but then when you cut them, cover them with oil and salt and top them with cheese and bacon, you know they have to be delicious!
How To Make Bloomin’ Baked Potatoes
Step One:
To make bloomin‘ baked potatoes, cut the top off of the potatoes.
Step Two:
Use a small, thin, flexible knife to cut rings around the inside of the potato.
Step Three:
Flip the potato over and make cuts all the way around the potato, leaving a small space at the top uncut.
These cuts go all the way through to the center of the potato.
Step Four:
Carefully flip the potato back over. If you need to make the cuts deeper, do that now.
Cutting the potatoes takes a little patience like making French macarons, dipping gummy bears in chocolate and wrapping bacon around chicken pieces, but the results are so worth it! If you still aren’t sure, try making these slow cooker baked potatoes instead.
Step Five:
Brush the whole potato with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
Step Six:
Place the potatoes on foil and bake at 425 degrees. After 30 minutes of baking, brush the tops with additional olive oil and sprinkle with more sea salt. Return to the oven for an additional 30 minutes.
(The picture above shows what the potatoes looked like after 30 minutes of baking.)
This is what my potatoes looked like after baking for 1 hour.
Step Seven:
Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese on the potatoes.
Step Eight:
Return them to the oven and bake for an additional 5 minutes to melt and toast the cheese.
Step Nine:
Remove them from the oven, carefully transfer them to serving plates and sprinkle each bloomin’ baked potato with crispy bacon bits.
Go ahead and add sour cream, onions and whatever else you want and then dig in! These bloomin‘ baked potatoes were as delicious as they look.
My girls were both gone when I made them and they were so disappointed that they missed out. Even Zack, who doesn’t eat baked potatoes, love these ones!
The baked potato skins were crisp and salty, the inner layers were soft and cheesy. This Bloomin’ Baked Potato recipe would work as an outstanding side dish or as a party appetizer.
Bloomin’ Baked Potato Recipe FAQ
1. What kind of potatoes should I use? The best choices for making baked potatoes are russet, Yukon Gold and sweet potatoes.
2. My baked potatoes didn’t bloom like yours. What did I do wrong? Most likely both the circular cuts around the center, as well as the cuts around the outside didn’t go deep enough allowing the baked potato to open.
3. Can these be made on the grill? Yes! I have a separate recipe for a grilled version here.
4. Can these be made ahead of time? Making them ahead of time and reheating before serving will change the texture. But if you want to, bake the potatoes and stop before adding cheese. Unwrap and cool the potatoes immediately. Add the shredded cheese when reheating.
Bloomin’ Baked Potato Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 potatoes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 4 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons bacon bits
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425˚F.
- Cut the top off of the potatoes.
- Use a small, thin, flexible knife to cut rings around the inside of the potato.
- Flip the potato over and make cuts all the way around the potato, leaving a small space at the top uncut.
- Carefully flip the potato back over. If you need to make of the of the cuts deeper, do that now.
- Brush the whole potato with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
- Place the potatoes on foil and bake at 425˚F. After 30 minutes of baking, brush the tops with additional olive oil and sprinkle with more sea salt. Return to the oven for an additional 30 minutes.
- Top potatoes with shredded cheddar cheese.
- Return them to the oven and bake for an additional 5 minutes to melt and toast the cheese.
- Remove them from the oven, carefully transfer them to serving plates and sprinkle with crispy bacon bits.
Nutrition
Love Bloomin’ Recipes? Here are a few more to try:
Bloomin’ Baked Apples | Bloomin’ Garlic Cheese Biscuits
Bloomin’ Sweet Potatoes | Bloomin’ Cinnamon Rolls | Bloomin’ Grilled Apples
Valerie Romero says
Love this and the detailed explanation on how to cut!
Steph Andy says
I used an apple corer slicer and it worked very well!
Jenn says
I made these tonight, hollowed them out a little to hold more cheese. Used real bacon, and used the bacon grease to brush on the potatoes – so yummy! Thanks for the recipe idea!
Lori says
Have made these numerous times. They are one of my favorite potato dishes! Thanks for the recipe.