For my birthday a few days ago my hubby and a dear friend took me to dinner. I had Halibut with a lemon thyme sauce, broccoli and a twice baked potato. The broccoli was fine, but nothing to write home about – the halibut, however, was fabulous and the twice baked potato the perfect complement. I never would have thought to serve it but it was perfect. Needless to say I decided to recreate it! I haven’t tried the Halibut yet since the hubby isn’t a fish fan, but perhaps the next time he travels….I digress.

Since twice baked potatoes are notoriously unhealthy, I tried to increase the healthiness and dial downtime artery cloggers just a bit. I subbed out sour cream for greek yogurt, and used diced pancetta in place of bacon (I know, I know, its really the same thing). I also added some eggs to help bind the mixture and give it a little protein boost. The result? Pretty darn tasty.

Recipe

• 4 large russet potatoes
• 8 oz pancetta
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup cheddar cheese – shredded
• 1 cup greek yogurt
• 1/2 stick butter

Bake the potatoes for 1 hour at 350. Remove from oven and let cool.

Brown the pancetta in a skillet until it’s nice and crispy. Set aside.

Once you can safely handle the ‘taters, cut in half and gently scoop out the inside leaving a shell of potato skins. You can also cut a hole in the top of the potato and remove the flesh that way. Totally up to you. I did it this way, and my sous chef wanted hers cut in half so we used both methods!

In a medium size bowl, combine all the potato insides with the cheese, butter, yogurt and pancetta. Stir in the eggs to create a nice creamy mixture. I wanted this side to double as dinner which is why I added in the eggs – it needed some protein!

Scoop the mashed potato mixture back into the shells – feel free to overstuff! Top with a sprinkle of parmesan and cheddar cheese. Pop them back in the oven for 20 minutes or until the cheese is golden and potatoes are warmed through.

I served this with a green salad and we had a complete meal! And this is all that was left!

Bon Appetit!