Honesty. It's Not For Everyone: Or “How I Use Mushrooms to Exact Revenge"

“Did you have an appointment today?”

“No.”

“It took you an hour to call me back.”

“Sorry I was in the shower. I will try harder to keep my phone at arm’s length at all times.”

“You were in the shower for an hour? What were you doing? Shaving your legs?”

“Yes. You need a new razor. And I was dying my hair.”

“I don’t know why you even bother with that. The white hairs are all in your head.”

“I know they are in my head. That’s why I need to cover them.”

“You have like two white hairs. Nobody can see them unless they comb through your hair with a tweezers.”

“Would you cover your bald spot with more than a hat if given a chance?”

“My bald spot isn’t that bad next to your white hairs.”

“I’m making something with copious amounts of mushrooms for supper tonight.”

I have no idea why the other adult in my house even called me. I am sure he had a reason other than wanting to know about my hair care habits. After discussing white hairs and bald spots, he then wanted to know how the Twinkers were doing with their potty training adventures. I can’t even remember what we talked about before there were children. Alcohol? What the elderly couple across the hall thinks about our living situation? How much my nose ring and tattoo irritate his mother? Who knows. I certainly don’t.

So what am I making for supper tonight? Well, I want to make Tater-Tot Hotdish. For those of you outside the Midwest, I think you refer to a hotdish as a casserole. You’re wrong but that’s fine. If you don’t call it a casserole, you probably don’t call it pop either. Again, that’s fine. I don’t judge. Out loud.

I ate a lot of hotdish growing up. My mother was far from Julia Child. Fancy for us was if she put steak in our hamburger gravy. In her house, a hotdish consisted of a can (or two) of cream of something (usually mushroom) soup, a kind of meat (Hamburger if we were lucky. Tuna when we weren’t so lucky. As an adult, I have a huge aversion to tuna. It’s gross.), and some noodles (maybe rice). When the other adult and I were first living together, I made hotdish just like my mom because it was cheap and it was enough food to last for a week. Now that I have a brood of my own, I’m trying to be a little more creative with my meals but there are some tried a true favorites that I just can’t get away from.

Enter Tater-Tot Hotdish. I love Tater-Tot Hotdish. I don’t know if Minnesota has an official food but if it does, it’s Tater-Tot Hotdish. There’s a winery in Alexandria, Minnesota that produces a wine made to pair with hotdish. It also pairs well with a wineglass and my couch after my children have gone to bed.

Everyone from Minnesota will tell you they have their own way of making Tater-Tot Hotdish. They will also tell you, their way is the right way. That may be true but I’m pretty partial to my version.

Tater-Tot Hotdish

1 lb ground beef

1lb ground turkey (optional but we like a little more meat in our hotdishes)

1 can of cream of mushroom soup (I don’t actually use can of cream soup any more. I have a dry mix recipe that I use instead. It works great. I promise to share it soon.)

1 12oz bag of frozen mixed vegetables (Most people tell me this is wrong. Purists will only put a can of corn in their hotdish. My kids aren’t huge fans of vegetables. This is a clean your plate meal for them. I add vegetables. It also eliminates the need for a side dish.)

1 32 oz bag of Tater-Tots

2 cups of cheese, divided (Your choice. I use cheddar. Again, this is a no-no among purists.)

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Brown the turkey and the hamburger. Drain.
3. Add the cooked meat, bag of vegetables, can of soup, and 1 cup of cheese in a large bowl. Mix well.
4. Grease a 9×13 dish. Pour meat mixture into prepared dish. Line tater-tots across the top of meat mixture. Sprinkle with remaining cheese.
5. Place in the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes or until tater-tots have started to turn golden brown and the dish is cooked through.

This dish doesn’t exactly give me the copious amounts of mushrooms I promised the other adult but I chop them up small enough to cause problems. It drives him nuts to know they are there but he can’t see them. Kind of like my white hairs.

2017 Edit: There is a winery in Alexandria Minnesota. It is called Carlos Creek Winery. They make a red wine called Hot-Dish Red. Not only is it my favorite bottle of wine ever (or at least to this point), it also pairs perfectly with this dish. 

Originally Published on March 31, 2016