crispy yummy potatoey buttery yum (did I say yum already?)

Tonight I discovered the ultimate compensation for having to do fiddly things to toddler food. I don't exactly have the pickiest toddler on the planet but there are some textures she just won't do. Potato skins are one of those things, so as I carefully scraped all the fluffy baked potato out of the crispy skins I wondered what I should do with the skin. I briefly considered giving them to the dog, but that seemed wrong. My gaze slid over to the butter dish, and before my food conscience kicked in I cut off a pat (not a small one, let's say) of cold butter and smooshed it between the two potato skin halves.

Well, I have to say, that was a little - no, actually a substantial portion - of heaven, if one believes in such a concept. Warm crispy potatoey goodness filled with cool smooth buttery yum. It was so good that it completely overrode any sensation of guilt with one of blissful food discovery. It's so simple, but at the same time so elusive - the potatoes have to be perfectly cooked, with thin skins that crisp in the oven, and the crispness only lasts a few minutes so you really have to almost burn your fingers getting the insides out. And the butter has to be right out of the fridge. This is not something that could ever be served in a restaurant or even on a plate. It's the perfect cook's treat.

(FWIW the potatoes were from a bag of organic Yukon Golds (I think?) from the Fraser Valley. The butter was Avalon Organic, which overall I am unimpressed with but it did the trick here.)