What better way to celebrate Valentine's Day than to serve up some good comfort food like bacon and cheese french fries! I guess the past few days I have had a craving for fried food! After making the chicken and fries, I was thinking bacon and cheese fries would be good. This instructable is how I came up with a way to do exactly that! I was happy because the first time around was a success which does not happen very often when you create a recipe. Put on that apron and let's fry some spuds!

Step 1: Ingredients

2 Large baking potatoes (russet)
1/4 Cup Crumbled bacon
1/4 Cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 Cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 Cup flour
1 Beaten egg
Salt and Pepper according to taste
1/2 - 1 Red bell pepper
Peanut oil
You will also need a small heart shaped cookie cutter, paper towels and kitchen scissors are helpful.

Step 2: Preparations

Peel Potatoes
Cut into wedges almost 1/4 inch thick.
Cut out heart shapes in the tops of the wedges as shown, or just cut out large hearts and fry them.
Soak wedges in cold water in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Step 3: Breading

Set up a breading station using shallow dishes.
Mix the bacon and the cheese together.
Dip the chilled potatoes into the flour.
Then dip them into the beaten egg.
Then bread them with the bacon and Parmesan cheese mixture.
Then dip them back into the beaten egg.
Then dip them into the bread crumbs and place on a plate.

It is a little tricky to do the breading. I used the method above I but I think you could omit the flour and instead dip the potatoes into the egg then the cheese and bacon and then back into the egg and then into the bread crumbs, or you can make these the simple way and omit the breading and make them with the hearts.

Step 4: Fry the Potatoes or Bake

Heat the oil until bubbles form when a wooden spoon is inserted into the oil.
Cook the fries until golden brown.
Place them on a plate with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
OR
Place the potatoes into a shallow pan with a little oil and bake in the oven at 350 for about 30-45 minutes. You can add the bacon and Parmesan cheese a few minutes before serving or omit altogether.

Step 5: Cut Out the Heart Shapes

Wash pepper.
Slice the bell pepper.
Remove the seeds and membrane.
Cut out the same shapes as you did for the potatoes.

Step 6: Insert the Hearts

Insert the hearts into the heart shaped potato tops.

Step 7: Sunshiine's Final Thoughts

Well, there you have it! They were easy to make after I had a system down and cooked 2 batches. My first batch did not turn out as nice because I tried to skip the cold water bath. The second batch was perfect. We liked the fried ones better than the baked but they were both good.

I wish to thank instructables, our sponsors, authors, and loyal readers for making this a great place to share! Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a Happy Valentine's Day!

Sunshiine