These potatoes, oh man. I can’t get enough. They’re perfectly cooked – crispy and salty on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside – and topped with a mountain of spring vegetables, creamy black eyed peas and the thickest most delectably awesome cashew sour cream ever. When I sat down to write up the recipe for this post and noted that you’ll need two russet potatoes, 3/4 – 1 pound each, it immediately made me think of those giant pound plus chocolate bars at Trader Joe’s. The wrapper used to read something along the lines of, “if you eat this whole bar you will gain more than a pound.” Consider these Loaded Vegan Baked Potatoes the healthier equivalent of gorging yourself on a giant chocolate bar. It’s definitely a lot of food but it’s all veggies, so who cares! These potatoes are also the answer to my very non-vegan husband’s oft-asked request for more vegan mains.
For the most amazing oven baked potato I’ve ever laid a fork on, I’ve got to give credit to a good ol’ Google search for helping me find the steakhouse method described by Tastes Lovely. I slightly adapted her recipe to settle on a tater that rivals all taters. The secret(s) are, in a very particular order: thoroughly coat the potato in olive oil and sea salt, roast at a high temp (425 F) for an hour and do not – I repeat do not! – poke your spuds with a fork or wrap in tinfoil. Sit them on some parchment paper and call it a day. At the one hour mark, pull those spuds out and drop them from about 10 inches onto a counter or cutting board. Yes, you read that right. The impact breaks up the insides and yields a fluffier potato. Once you’ve smacked ’em around a bit, cut into the top of the potato and pinch the sides to widen the opening, then sprinkle with more sea salt and use a fork to further fluff up the insides. Potato nirvana.
As if things couldn’t get any better, the fully loaded toppings for these potatoes include zucchini, asparagus, corn, black eyed peas and green onion. I’ve given instructions for cooking these on the stove top but this would make a killer barbecue meal. Simply oven cook the potatoes as directed, brush the zucchini, asparagus, and whole ears of corn with olive oil, salt and pepper, and grill outside. Make a whole potato bar of toppings! I love black eyed peas in this recipe, because they’re light and mild in flavor. You could sub cannellini beans but I’d stay away from black beans or garbanzos. Last but definitely not least, cashew sour cream. I worked really hard to make this the stuff of dreams. Actually, my Vitamix worked really hard. With only three ingredients – soaked cashews, apple cider vinegar, and sea salt – cashew sour cream is one of the easiest vegan condiment subs to make. For extra thick and rich results, use as little added water as possible and let the blender run for a few minutes. The result, a pillowy bowl of sour cream perfection. I know I say this about everything, but seriously, I want to put it on all the things.
Ok, that’s enough talk from me. Let’s eat potatoes!
- 2 russet potatoes (3/4 - 1 pound each)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 cups zucchini, chopped
- 2 cups asparagus, chopped
- 1 cup prepared black eyed peas (drained and rinsed if using canned)
- ½ cup frozen corn
- ½ cup green onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 cup raw unsalted cashews, soaked for 2 - 24 hours*
- 4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅓ cup water
- Preheat oven to 425 F. Rub the potatoes with olive oil until very well coated and then sprinkle with salt. Place the potatoes on a parchment lined baking sheet and roast for 1 hour. (Do not poke any holes in the potatoes!)
- After removing the potatoes from the oven, drop onto a plate or cutting board from 10" up, this will help break up the center of the potato and yield a fluffier filling. Cut a slit down the length of each potato and pinch the edges together to make the opening bigger. Sprinkle with more sea salt and black pepper use a fork to further fluff up the insides.
- When the potatoes have 15 minutes left to cook, begin preparing the veggie filling. Heat tablespoon oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Add asparagus and zucchini and cook until softened and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add corn to pan and cook 2 minutes more. Lower heat to medium and add black eyed peas. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- To assemble potatoes, top with the veggie filling, add sour cream and garnish with green onions.
- Add drained cashews, apple cider vinegar, salt and ⅓ cup water to a high speed blender (such as a Vitamix). Using the variable setting, start on low and gradually increase the speed until you reach the highest setting. Continue to blend on high until the mixture is smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.
- For a more pourable sour cream, add up to an additional ⅔ cup water.
- Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
This just made my DAY! I love your vegan version. That cashew sour cream? Yum! My mom is vegan, I have got to make this version for her. And all those veggies in there are amazing. I love your pictures! Aren’t baked potatoes the best? Thanks for linking to my post friend!
Natalie, finding your post for baked potatoes made my life! 🙂 I’ll never make them any other way. Thank you so much for checking out my post.
Thank you for this advice on the perfect baked potato! I do all the “bad” things…poke holes with a fork, foil, etc. Can’t wait to try your way bc I’ve been obsessed with baked potatoes lately!
I kept it simple tonight with just some vegan cheddar, but this is absolutely the perfect way to bake a potato!!! I even skipped the parchment lined baking sheet and put ’em right on the oven rack 🙂
Right?! They’re so good and can be dressed up or down a million ways.
Wow! These look gorgeous. Love your ideas for the perfect baked potato…I’ve tried some of these things but I’d never have thought to drop the potatoes from a height…will have to try that next time!! And your recipe for vegan sour cream sounds amazing…going to have to try that!
It really is the best way to make a baked potato, perfect every time. You’ll have to let me know how yours turns out, and the sour cream!
I love loaded potatoes and these certainly look wonderful. It’s like a whole meal in a potato…awesome!!
Right?! You can never go wrong with throwing almost anything on a baked potato.
This sounds great and so easy!! Thanks for sharing a new take on baked spuds.
Thanks, Mayimuna!
My eldest daughter has recently decided to change over to being vegan but in stages. So, at the moment she is vegetarian. I always said I wouldn’t because I love meat BUT having had some dinners at her place a few times and really enjoying it, I am replacing many of my meat based meals with vegetarian ones and I love them. I’ve fallen in love with dried pulses lol. So, when I saw this I was SO excited to try it but I have a tiny problem,.I am on a pension and don’t have and can’t afford a Vitamix. Can you please tell me how to make the make sour cream workout one? I do have a ninja and an old fashioned food processor, can I use either one of these? Thank you for helping, I hope 🙂
Hi Angela, I’ve never made the cashew sour cream in anything but a high powered blender, but your food processor or Ninja should work. It will likely take longer to blend, but you should eventually get the same creamy result.
Dear Angela, I have used my practically ancient Oster glass container blender and have had great results making cashew sour cream. I usually used lemon juice…works just as nicely as can be. I also have a NutriBullet and it works great too. Just keep going (testing as you go) until you get a smooooth creamy mixture. You are going to LOVE your NEW sour cream !!!
Fabulous recipe! My whole family loved it. The cashew sour cream was amazing! Thank you for sharing. Can’t wait to check out the rest of your website. Shalom to you. <3
Awww, so glad your family loved the taters! They’re a weekly staple in our house.