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Basil and roasted pepper stuffed tomatoes are a great variation on twice-baked potatoes. Perfect for the air fryer!
Basil And Roasted Pepper Stuffed Potatoes
Here’s a new twist on twice-baked potatoes!
Everyone loves cheddar cheese and bacon varieties as well as sour cream and chives. These basil and roasted pepper stuffed potatoes are truly “thinking outside the box.” Since basil isn’t something you generally associate with potatoes, it makes for a different taste; and one that’s quite delicious too!
What’s even better here is that they can totally be made in your air fryer. That makes them a summer treat too since the air fryer does not heat the kitchen the way a big conventional oven does.
Roasted Peppers
If you happen to catch a good sale on red bell peppers, you may want to roast them yourself. I prefer to do this on my gas grill but they can be done in the oven as well.
Roasting them on the grill is pretty straightforward. Just rub them with some oil and pop them on the grill over high heat. Turn them so they get charred on all sides then pop them in a plastic storage bag, seal the bag and let them cool a bit. The skin will just slide off.
Doing them in the oven is the same procedure–roast at 425F/225C, turn them to char on all sides. Do the same as above with the bag.
However, if you don’t want to bother, these can be bought ready made. You’ll find them where the pickles and relish are in your store. Just make sure to drain them thoroughly before using in this recipe.
Cheese
I used cream cheese in these with great results, but if you want a more gourmet flair, you can use goat cheese.
Goat cheese is a bit sharper than cream cheese but it’s also more expensive. I choose to stick to the least expensive where I’m not sacrificing taste. Hence the cream cheese.
The Recipe
Basil & Roasted Pepper Stuffed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 large baking potatoes like russet or Maris piper
- 2-3 tbs milk
- 1 tbs butter
- Olive oil
Filling:
- Potato flesh from baked potatoes
- 1/3 cup sliced roasted peppers drained
- 1/4 cup softened cream cheese or Goat cheese
- 2 tbs fresh basil chopped
- Salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Scrub potatoes. Dry and pierce with a fork in several places. Rub with olive oil. Bake either in the oven or air fryer at 400F/200C for approximately 1 hour.
- Let potatoes cool slightly so they can be handled. Cut each potato in half lengthwise and scoop out the flesh into a medium bowl.
- Add the butter, cream cheese/goat cheese and milk and mash them. Add the roasted peppers and basil. Stir to combine well. Add salt and pepper if necessary.
- Divide the filling into 6 equal portions and fill the empty potato skins.
- To complete in the air fryer--air fry filled potatoes at 400F/200C until browned on the top; about 5 minutes.
- For conventional oven--place potatoes on a baking sheet and broil on high until golden on the top; about 2 minutes.
