Nama’s Tater Tot Hotdish
Ingredients needed:
1 pound ground beef (you could substitute turkey or chicken)
salt, pepper
onion powder, you could use minced fresh onion (My Man is not having that)
garlic powder (i use fresh crushed garlic)
seasoning salt
4 cups frozen mixed vegetables (any that your family enjoys), mine like corn, green beans, carrots and green peas. This is heavy on the veggies for nutrition.
2 (19 ounce) cans cream soup , you may use family favorites, i use reduced fat celery or chicken.
1 (32 ounce) package frozen potato rounds/Tater Tots/Tater Puffs….you know what i’m talking about.
Brown 1 pound ground meat in skillet, season with 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 1/2 tsp. onion powder, 1/2 tsp. garlic powder ( or 1 tsp. crushed garlic) . Drain excess fat.
Mix together in large bowl: Browned meat, frozen vegetables and cream soup.
Notice the creased back edge of this bowl, our Tylor (now 26) sat in the bowl one evening after the popcorn was all gone, making himself comfortable while finishing the movie Balto, he was such a happy little guy in his little nest. i treasure all the little gingerbread crumbs that remain along this family path we walk.
Spray a 9×13 pan with aerosol olive oil, spread meat/veggie mixture evenly in pan. i often double or triple the recipe and freeze a couple. This was a meal for tonight, a meal for the freezer and a meal to share with a new mamma and daddy.
Top the meat mixture with the potato things.
My clan likes the Tots alot so i waste a whole bunch of time and line them up standing on end, i really really am ridiculous enough to do this everytime i make the casserole. You may say “just dump a bunch on, pile them up, you get lots-a- tots that way!” The problem…they don’t all get a crisp top surface, and that crispy top really makes or breaks the tot deliciousness. The image shows the other more reasonable options, long aligning or random dump. Once you have your top covered in tots sprinkle ever so lightly with seasoning salt.
Bake at 350 degrees until heated through, bubbly and the Tater Tots are slightly crispy brown on top, 45min-1 hour.
Now a few more fun vacation pictures. i am pretty sure from tater tots to tadpoles is not an ideal transition, but here goes.
Tadpoles
There were thousands of these guys our first evening at the beach.
Finley loved them.
She wanted to get closer and learned to say “Tadpole”.
Blessing caught them.
A Grandma, a Nama, an Aunty, Finney and a “tadpole” that had turned into a frog. (in Grandma Linda’s hand) Grandma Linda is more fun with frogs than Nama, and is anyone else concerned about the “caution” shed in the background ?
We shared 4 of our vacation days with Tiffany’s parents and sister. One of my favorite experiences as a grandma is sharing the grandbabies with the other set of grandparents. Double the fun to see others treasuring our little jewels as much as we do.
