Now this was a very yummy disaster

Sometimes I have good ideas that just don't work. Which isn't to say this idea was a complete failure - dinner was mighty tasty, but not what it was supposed to be.

I had two things to try here. First I wanted double baked potatoes, but I wanted them stuffed with not just cheese, but also a veggie. For some reason I wanted spinach. This part of dinner actually worked out very well. The stuffed potatoes were great, creamy and wonderful. I could have had one for breakfast the next morning, had there been any left.

The chicken, on the other hand, had some problems. It was supposed to be almond crusted chicken. Instead it ended up being chicken with pieces of almost overdone almonds piled on top of it. Tasty almonds though.

I can't include a recipe for the chicken, since I messed it up and did not keep my notes. Let's just say there was a lot of time spent hand chopping all those almonds for the crusting. Oh yes, alot of chopping!

Despite the fact that the almonds fell right off the chicken upon turning, and they browned up a bit more than I would have liked, this was very good. Even my 4 year old liked it (my 8 year old, however, was invited to a friends house for peanut butter sandwiches and didn't bother to find out what was for dinner before he accepted.) Next time I'll skip trying to crust the chicken and just pan fry up some chopped almonds on their own, used as a topping. The crunch and saltiness of the almonds worked really well, and added a bit more protein to our day.

Spinach Stuffed Double Baked Potatoes

4 medium sized baking potatoes, well scrubbed, and poked a few times with a fork
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper
1/2 cup light sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 bunch fresh spinach, well washed and drained
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400F.
Place potatoes in a large glass or metal bowl. Pour olive oil over the potatoes, then add the salt and pepper. Toss well to coat the potatoes in the oil and seasonings. Bake the potatoes in the oven until they are nearly done, crisp on the outside yet soft on the inside.
Take out of the oven and let cool for 10 minutes, lengthwise, before cutting off 1/4 of the potato.
Reduce oven temperature to 300F.
Using a spoon, carefully scoop out the insides of the bottom of the potato, putting the scooped out potato in a medium sized bowl. Save the potato skin shells, placing them on a baking sheet. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on the potato in the bowl, then squish it together with a fork. Add the sour cream, 1/2 of the cheese, spinach and onions. Mix well.
Using a spoon, return potato stuffing to the potato skin shells, being careful not to over pack or over fill. You might have some left over stuffing, which is great just fine on it's own.
Sprinkle remaining cheese on the top of the potatoes, then return them to the oven to bake for an additional 10-15 minutes. You want the potatoes heated through, and the cheese melted.
Enjoy with additional sour cream!

PS The beauty of seasoning the outside of the baking potato first is that you can also eat the skins, if you happen to enjoy that. Which I do.