Q. I'm a big fan of the Twice-Baked Potatoes on the marthastewart.com Web site. I make them for special occasions and normal dinners alike. Please, can you lighten them up? I would love to see how many calories and grams of fat you can take off.

A. What says "comfort food" or "savory" like twice-baked potatoes? They've got everything you could possibly need for major satisfaction — the spud, cheddar cheese, butter, sour cream and chives.

The original recipe is for four servings (using two russets). However, this recipe is quite a bit of trouble for just four measly halves. Let's crank up the servings a notch or two and use 8 potatoes (to make 16 halves) because here's a little secret — they freeze well. You can have enough for a dinner party or freeze some for those busy weeknights.

To lighten up, we cut the butter from 8 tablespoons to 3 and switched to whipped butter (or a less-fat margarine). We added a little more sour cream but switched to nonfat. For the cheese, we used regular-fat cheddar cheese — because it gives a full flavor and melts well, unlike lower-fat cheeses. But we used only half as much cheese. The original recipe calls for adding half of the cheese as a sprinkle over the top of the potato halves. We can definitely do without this (or at least a lot less).

To boost the flavor, we added a couple teaspoons of Garlic & Herb Mrs. Dash salt-free seasoning, but you can add whatever spices and herbs you want. Do this and you cut the calories by 125 calories and 12 grams of fat (8 of which are saturated) per potato half.

Original recipe contains 293 calories, 16 grams fat, 10 grams saturated fat and 47 milligrams cholesterol per potato half.

Feel free to use reduced-fat sharp cheddar if you prefer.

GARLIC & HERB TWICE-BAKED POTATOES

8 medium-large russet potatoes, scrubbed

3/4 cup fat-free half-and-half, low-fat milk or whole milk

3 tablespoons whipped butter or less fat margarine

3/4 cup fat-free sour cream

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

2 teaspoons Garlic & Herb Mrs. Dash salt-free seasoning (or similar)

Freshly-ground pepper to taste (salt to taste is optional)

1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese for garnish (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pierce potatoes with a fork and cook to tender in the microwave set on high (the time varies by microwave but is around 20 minutes). Finish baking potatoes on oven rack until outside is a little crispy and brown (about 20 minutes).

Halve potatoes lengthwise and using a large dinner spoon, scoop flesh into mixing bowl, leaving a thin shell. Place the potato shells on a jellyroll baking sheet.

Add fat-free half-and-half or milk, whipped butter, fat-free sour cream, cheese, and Garlic & Herb seasoning to mixing bowl with hot potato flesh and beat together on low until blended well. Season with pepper to taste and stir in chives.

Spoon filling evenly into the potato shells (sprinkle 1/4 cup cheddar over the top if desired) and bake until heated through (15 to 20 minutes). Serve. If freezing, let the potatoes cool before wrapping and storing in the freezer.