You all could appreciate this... Duggars

[SimplyMe]

A mom of one of the children in my son's preschool class had a baby last week so a different mom started a Food Tidings meal calendar for the family. Today, while in line to pick up my son, a mom asked if I had signed up to bring the family a meal yet. I told her I hadn't because I need to first figure out what to bring. I'm not a casserole person and mostly a vegetarian and generally just don't make things that I feel sure will be universally liked. Anyway, this lady says, "Oh, I make the same thing every time someone has a baby. It's easy and everyone loves it. I got the recipe off a TV show- it's called Tater Tot Casserole."

 

I was drinking a Chai tea latte at the time and just about spit it out my nose. I had to take deep breaths to keep my laughter contained- how could I have explained to her why I found that so funny?!

 

When I got home I looked on the webpage and sure enough, the first meal on the list is the Duggar's famous TTC!

[Buzzard]

Please tell me thats a joke!

[NurseNell]

I actually laughed out loud! If someone brought me tater tot casserole it would go in the garbage, it's just not something I'd eat.

[BoomerLynn]

[SimplyMe]

Totally not a joke! The mom isn't some backwoods country bumpkin either. She's actually a smartly dressed, seemingly fit, attractive and well spoken mom who apparently likes TTC. Go figure?

[Kelya]

Do they hold ill will to the new mother and family? Why would you ever cook that for someone?

I just had a spate of deaths in the family and people brought food- sausage soup, broccoli soup, salad, caprezze salad, a chicken, broccoli and penne dish, fresh bread, rolls, cake, fruit plates, all of which was very appreciated, because people took time and effort into cooking and putting together healthy and tasty food for my family during the hard time, you know? They didn't just open three cans and some fake potatoes and smush it all together.

[clarinetpower]

Simplyme, I do a lot of baby meals. If you're a non-carni cooking meat, you can't go wrong with a pork tenderloin. Easy and fairly cheap. Throw some herbs at it and bake. I served my last one with coconut rice, roasted butternut squash and homemade mango sorbet. It was a big hit.

And N to the O to the TTC. Yikes.

[TheJewAmongUs]

It was funny last night on the show Jinger and I think Jill said in their interview that they could cook healthier stuff to help Jim Bob out on his diet. Then they all went out for Mexican food...

(It's also funny they the only word in the above post that my browser underlined as misspelled was "Jinger.")

As far as cooking food, what about $10 gift card to a pizza place that delivers? It costs more, but it's so much easier.

[DistantStar]

Three or four years ago my mom and I both went to visit her mother, and when mom picked me up from the airport, she warned me that Grandma had put together a TTC for dinner. Don't ask me where she'd gotten the idea, but at least I know if she knew about the Duggars she'd be as horrified as my mom and I are.

To her credit, Grandma's had actual fresh veggies in it, if more carrots than I really like. One of the better meals I've eaten that she cooked. All those commercials about Grandma's cooking? They make me laugh.

[FuManchu]

I'm not familiar with Tater Tots, but I just looked them up and then looked up the Duggars' recipe. If I served that to anyone at all they'd be entitled to ask where I was hiding the real meal - although if I can find English equivalents I might make it for a joke.

I don't quite understand their recipe, though - it calls for "ground turkey cooked, seasoned, drained", but later says "brown [the] meat". If you've already cooked the turkey meat ('ground turkey' presumably being turkey mince), surely you've browned it? Or are they implying that you can buy pre-cooked turkey mince?

[annalena]

I've never had TTC, but the recipe seems like one of the grossest things on earth to me.

I wouldn't even dare to bring that somewhere!

[Guest Anonymous]

I'm not familiar with Tater Tots, but I just looked them up and then looked up the Duggars' recipe. If I served that to anyone at all they'd be entitled to ask where I was hiding the real meal - although if I can find English equivalents I might make it for a joke.

I don't quite understand their recipe, though - it calls for "ground turkey cooked, seasoned, drained", but later says "brown [the] meat". If you've already cooked the turkey meat ('ground turkey' presumably being turkey mince), surely you've browned it? Or are they implying that you can buy pre-cooked turkey mince?

I am suitably ashamed to say I have explored options...in the Uk you would have to use use hash browns from the frozen potato product section of the supermarket, I think. The only tater-tot-shaped frozen potato we get is called a 'croquette' and is mashed potato with a crunchy coating.

I have to admit, it has crossed my mind to make a TTC for fun.... but I would have no-one to share it with, I would definitely be asked where the real meal was in my house! :D :D

[Deleted02]

Oh wow! That seems so cruel to bring a person. :lol:

[GenerationCedarchip]

I will admit that I do like Tater Tots, but I can't imagine making the Duggars' casserole. That thing looks like a biohazard. And I grew up with the traditional rural Southern pro-casserole mentality!

[TheJewAmongUs]

Casserole just ruins a perfectly good tater tot.

[nuri]

I had something similar today! A friend of mine and I work for the same large company and we are chatting over inter-office IM and he mentioned that his new girlfriend is going to meet him for lunch today AND have dinner for him when he gets home. I'm suitably impressed -- she's a teacher, and that's a time sink for her, so she must like him.

And then he tells me she's making Tater Tot Cassarole. And two things happen; my head automatically shortens it to TTC; and I decide I need to make sure she's not fundie-lite. Also, I stifled a laugh.

[buddingmedievalist]

I mean, I do like a good TTC every once in a while. But I haven't had it in a really long time. We always had it with several veggie side dishes, though, when I was growing up.

[The Archivist]

OMG I think I am going to make a tater tot casserole for Thanksgiving, just to see how people respond. It will be my own private little joke.

[2xx1xy1JD]

There are foods that I miss since I became kosher - but I do NOT miss the fact that I can't eat this!

What would the fat and sodium content be?

Is there a vegetable anywhere in sight?

I admit that I've never been to the South, but I wonder if people realize that you can make fast and cheap meals with canned diced tomatoes and a can of (rinsed) beans. Just alter the spices and extras, and it can be a curry, chili, stew, soup, etc. I mean, you could throw that into a slow cooker with the ground turkey, skip the cream of crap and tater tots, and throw in some whole wheat couscous, barley or quinoa for a 5 min meal.

[SimplyMe]

Thank you for the suggestion, clarinetpower, pork loin does sound easy and like something everyone would like. I don't think I'm going to make this family a meal (I know, that's terrible, huh?). I don't really know them at all, but I'll see if the list fills up and if it doesn't, I'll probably go ahead and do it.

For things like this, I often make an Asian Chicken recipe that everyone seems to love with some steamed rice and veggies on the side. However, if a family isn't crazy about Asian flavors, they'd hate that. And it doesn't transport well as the chicken is in a liquid. Last time, even though I thought it was securely closed in one of those oven proof Glad container things, it leaked all over the carpet in my car.

Where I'm from, cream of this and that casserole isn't terribly popular, at least not with my family and friends. I can see where casseroles are well suited for these type of things though- easy transport and all that. Just not Tatertot casserole, yuck! Until the Duggars, I thought Tatertots were only found in elemenatary school lunches at in fast food breakfasts. I didn't realize people buy them for use at home. I guess I usually bypass that part of the freezer section at the store.

Nuri, I can't believe you had a TTC encounter too! Who would have thought that stuff was so popular. I hope it doesn't scare this guy away.

For your viewing pleasure, I managed to find a way to protect the privacy of all involved to show you the attached....\

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[SimplyMe]

Thinking about this casserole, I do actually have a friend who would probably love it. She's always making some type of cream of crap casserole or another. She does 30-day cooking and many of the meals are simliarly artery clogging concoctions. She makes one that uses canned (or does it come in a pouch?) chicken chunks with cream of mushroom soup, Velveeta cheese and a Ritz cracker and butter crumble on top. I could NEVER bring myself to eat that, even if I ate meat. It's like a heart attack in a bowl.

[ceg045]

Sometimes I feel like the only person in the world for whom TTC holds absolutely no appeal. Don't get me wrong, I'm far from a food snob, but there's nothing about that recipe that sounds appetizing to me.

[nuri]

Whoever is providing dinner on the 8th can bring it over to us, too. That sounds delish. Husband doesn't like green beans, but I'll handle that!

[IReallyAmHopewell]

TTC has been around, in various versions for years. People generally DO like it well enough--some versions being much better than others. It's a staple at Church pitch-in dinners. Some add cheese, some use chili, like it or hate it KIDS generally will eat it to have the TTs.

[ems]

I will admit that I do like Tater Tots, but I can't imagine making the Duggars' casserole. That thing looks like a biohazard. And I grew up with the traditional rural Southern pro-casserole mentality!

I like tater tots too (try the ones at Sonic if you have it around!) but don't generally like casseroles. (As a picky eater I prefer my foods not all mixed together. And especially not tater tots IN a casserole.