“Necessity is the mother of invention”, thus when the schedule reflected an increase in the dreaded “noon kickoff”, the need for hearty breakfast fare at the Tailgate was highlighted. Our challenge in the Tailgate Kitchen was complicated by “dietary complications” limiting our abilities to use such staples as products containing wheat or corn! Added to this is the fact that the Clubhouse Tailgate “grazing” is practiced actively and for that practice the primary eating utensil is the hands. We also cook outside, on top of grills or in fireboxes. So we needed something that you can mostly cook outside on top of the grill, eat with your hands, with no wheat or corn involved. Men love potatoes, thus the “Tailgate Twice Baked Breakfast Potato” was born.

Ingredients:

  • Potatoes – I use medium to small sized baking potatoes, the really large ones take more time to prepare and are less than optimum for “grazing”. I usually allow 2-3 per Tailgater.
  • Onions – I like medium red onions – allow 1 onion per 6 potatoes
  • Meat – Unless we are feeding attractive female vegetarians, we usually have meat in this recipe. We have used ground ostrich, ground venison, venison sausage, ground turkey, turkey sausage, ground beef, pork sausage….about anything that can be ground or chopped up. When using “prepared products” we have to be cautious about the content of the offending wheat and corn (corn syrup is in everything!!!!). The amount here can vary; obviously the dish is “meatier“if you use more meat. I usually use about a pound of meat for every 10-15 potatoes.
  • Eggs – I like the “Egg Beaters” products, they travel well, are easy to use and sometimes have interesting flavors that you can play with. We have used the regular but folks seem to like the southwestern type. I usually use about 2 pints for every 10-15 potatoes.
  • Cheese – I like to buy the pre-shredded stuff…again for ease. About a pound per 10-15 potatoes. Either the straight cheddar or any of the mixes work well. Do not use fake cheese….Tailgaters do not like fake cheese and you will be called names.
  • Olive Oil – Enough to cook with.
  • Other Stuff – All optional…you can add about anything you like in an omelet, green peppers, mushrooms, diced tomatoes, etc. Many also like having hot sauce, salsa or similar products to have on top of these (even ketchup). Seasonings are also “to taste”, we sometimes use minced garlic, ground pepper or other seasonings.

Preparation:

I LOVE the microwave, for this recipe I start by “nuking” the potatoes until they are done, I just pierce the skin about 3 times with a knife, put as many potatoes as I can get on the plate, and go! I usually go with 10 minute increments checking the potatoes by squeezing lightly until they are cooked. This is best done either the night before or at home, either way once the potatoes are done they must be refrigerated. The microwave in the Clubhouse is not as large or as powerful as the one I have at home so there is a real advantage to doing this at home…it also allows you to focus on Pre-Tailgate Tailgating!

The onions may be peeled and diced either the night before or Tailgate Morning. If the meat item requires any dicing, this should be done Tailgate Morning. If done the night before, refrigerate! You can also buy this stuff cut up if you are really lazy!

Tailgate Morning the potatoes are first halved, then using a regular spoon the center potion of cooked potato is scooped out creating a “bowl”. This is way easier to do after the potatoes have had the overnight period to cool! The potato is retained for use later.

Directions:

  1. In a pan, begin by cooking the onions (along with green pepper or similar ingredients being used). As the onion cooks fold in the meat item until all is cooked, then fold in the potato that was scooped out of the skins and finally the eggs. Mix all together in the pan. Seasonings are added to taste. Hint, we have found that “throw away” aluminum pans will work for this, this spares you some cleanup!
  2. Once the “filling is done it is then scooped into the hollowed potato shells. We will usually have the shells laid out in aluminum pans. You have to be careful here not to “overdo it” you need to fill all of the shells that you have created. Once the shells are filled, the potatoes are topped with cheese and go into the fireboxes to cook. If you are doing this on top of an open grill, covering the pan with foil would be a good idea. At this point everything is already cooked, so what you are looking to do is to ensure that the potato shells are heated and the cheese is melted, medium heat is best and usually 10 -15 minutes will suffice.
  3. Once the cheese is melted, uncover and serve. You can serve these “from the grill” if your space is limited….at the Clubhouse grill space is usually at a premium so these are usually removed to serving trays at the Tailgate Table.

This is a great dish….easy to make and requiring very little time if you elect to bake the potatoes and chop the veggies at home. Tailgaters will graze on these for breakfast, then they can be reheated as a postgame side dish (if there are any left!). Enjoy!

[ratings]

Brought to you by our good friends at Clubhouse Tailgate