Delicious Reading: Potato love

For my February column, in honor of Valentine's Day,I considered looking into "romantic" foods (those that are part of traditional candlelit dinners, like chataeubriand and chicken roulade) or foods associated with being an aphrodisiac (oysters, chocolate and other foods that are supposed to contain substances that put us in the mood for amore). However, the two dishes I have served my family most recently that earned the most accolades and made me "feel the love" were created from the humble potato.

Yes, this lowly starchy vegetable has been the star around our house lately. The first time these spuds received acclaim was when I decided all the kids were old enough to have their own baked potato. When I checked on Pinterest to see suggested oven temperatures and baking times, I discovered the suggestion to get a better, crispy, edible skin by not wrapping the potato in foil. I tried it and the result was a "restaurant quality" baked potato, according to my husband and requests from the kids to have "baked potato bar" night.

Later in the week, I decided to make some oven fries to go with the loose meat sandwiches I was serving. I consulted my "Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook" and applied just a little oil and a lot of seasoning. As my oldest daughter crunched into a fry, my husband commented on what a nice job I had done on them. Eva looked up at me with her eyes wide and asked, "You mean you made these? You didn't just bake them from a package?" Nope, Ore-Ida had nothing on me that night. I basked in their admiration.

All this affection from a $4 sack of potatoes from Aldi! See if you can earn some potato love this month, too.

Perfect Baked Potatoes

Adapted from the "Gimme Some Oven" blog and favfamilyrecipes.com

• 4-6 large Russet potatoes
• Olive oil
• Kosher Salt
• Pepper

(I used McCormick's Montreal Steak Seasoning)

Heat oven to 450.

Cover a cookie sheet with foil.

Wash and dry the potatoes, then prick them 6 to 8 times with a fork.

Place the potatoes in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil, then sprinkle with salt, pepper or seasoning.

Put potatoes on a cookie sheet and bake for one hour.

Check for doneness by squeezing the potato (using an oven mitt since it's a hot potato!). If the insides are nice and soft and give under pressure, remove them from the oven.

Use a small paring knife to cut down the middle of the potato, and then give it a squeeze to open. Serve immediately, with your desired toppings.

Chili-Seasoned Potato Wedges

Adapted from the "Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook"

• 1 tablespoon onion soup mix
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 4 large baking potatoes
• 2 tablespoons canola oil

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine the soup mix, chili powder, salt, garlic powder and pepper. Cut each potato into eight wedges; place in the bag and shake to coat.

Arrange in a single layer in a greased 15x10x1-inch baking pan. Drizzle with oil.

Bake, uncovered, at 425 degrees for 12 to 20 minutes on each side or until crisp.