Wash the potatoes and pierce the potatoes several times with a fork to allow steam to release while cooking.
Coat the potatoes with olive oil.
Bake for one hour.
Once the potatoes are baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 30 minutes.
Making the Bacon
Cook the bacon until crispy. This can be done on the stove in a skillet or in the oven. I prefer to bake the bacon because it seems to be less mess.
Once the bacon is crispy, place on a paper towel lined plate.
Putting it all together!
Preheat the oven to 375℉
Cut the potatoes in half long ways so that you have 4 pieces. Place these on a sheet pan.
Carefully scoop the middle out of the potatoes and place the flesh into a medium sized mixing bowl. Return the potato skins/shells to the sheet pan. *Try to leave about ¼ inch of potato flesh all around the outside of the potato. This is the vessel that will hold the creamy potatoes inside. If you take too much, it will hold less structure. If you don't take enough, there will be less of the loaded mashed potato inside.
Add the butter, milk, sour cream, garlic powder, sea salt, and black pepper to the mixing bowl.
Using a hand mixer, beat the ingredients together until very creamy and there are no longer any chunks of potato.
Using a rubber spatula, fold in HALF of the shredded cheese, half of the bacon, and half of the green onions.
Divide the mashed potato mixture into each of the potato shells.
Sprinkle remaining cheese, bacon, and green onions on top of the potatoes.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the inside of the potatoes are piping hot at 165℉.