Garlic Baked Potatoes

Yesterday I dusted off an old cookbook Recipes for Diabetics* (10th printing from 1981) and looked up baked potatoes. They're simple right? "Marge's Stuffed Potatoes" on page 124 sounded good, but I found myself wondering who would want to "spoon out" the center of a hot baked potato? Am I the only one thinking "Painful?!" Scanning the ingredient list, I realized I didn't have the necessary "diet margarine" or "imitation sour cream" the recipe called for. (Whew!) I wanted to make "baked" potatoes anyway.

When I bake potatoes they're usually coated in butter. After finding inspiration from "Mama's Cooking 4_3" I kicked the potatoes "up-a-notch" using olive oil instead or butter. MC43 uses garlic salt which I don't like at all, but see that cute little garlic slice peeping out from the side of the potato? That made all the difference. The flavor was really good. Really good. And your house will smell amazing. You will be the wonder cook. If only every recipe I tried was this good.

Garlic Baked Potatoes
3 Russet Potatoes
1 T Olive Oil
1/2 t kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper
1-2 garlic cloves (very thinly sliced)
3 pinches of dried celery
Foil

Set oven to 375 then scrub the potatoes with soap and a vegetable brush, rinse well. Poke holes in the potatoes all over with a fork (2-3 times on each side and on the ends). Cut off blemishes. Mix olive oil, and salt together and give it a minute to rest. Slice up the garlic as thin as you can while still missing your fingers. Pull off enough foil for one potato and place the potato on it. Spoon on oil and rub onto potato evenly. Add pinch of celery, fresh grind or two of pepper, then nestle 3-4 slices of garlic around the base of the potato and wrap it up and place the potato on a cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining potatoes. Cook until the potato is soft (about 1 hour). You won't believe the aroma coming from the kitchen. Whoooo-whee!

Recipe Inspiration: All Recipes: Garlic Baked Potato