The day I had to say "tater"

I'm due for a rant. A recipe comes out of this though, not to worry.

It all began Thursday night. Ryan was having a tough week. He was a worn out, stressed out, and, well, a crabby husband. Typically my plan of attack when I have a crabby husband is to heal the wounds with food. So I offered to make him anything he wanted (in a crock pot, of course).

My heart was crushed. He suggested an phenomenon (I call it a phenomenon, not a recipe) called "Tater Tot Hotdish"

"Say what? Tater? Did you just say ta-ter? Oh, You mean po-ta-to hotdish? Wait, HOTDISH? You want hotdish? I can't make that! I don't even know what that is".

#appalled.

Ryan smirked, "I bet you could figure out how to google and find a recipe."

So I did. I found a recipe. I googled "Lot Fat Tater Tot Hotdish". Tater Tot Hotdish is a phenomenon created by school lunch ladies. It makes a sloshing sound, as it is slapped on your tray.

**Warning: Particles of taters and tots may splash customers. Safety goggles advised**

"I love you. But I cannot be seen in a grocery store buying tots. It goes against all my morals and values.", I cried. (you know, because I'm a celebrity and people watch me grocery shop? I don't know why I fret about some of the things I fret about)

"I have faith you can figure it out, love ." was his smug response. Oh, boys.

So there I was at the grocery store - Where does a person even find "tots"? I looked in the baking section , I looked in the fresh produce section (by the potatoes). Finally, I had to ask someone. But I had to make it look as though I am not the person consuming these tots.
"Excuse me, ma'am, I'm making a recipe for someone and it calls for po-ta-to tots? Do you know where these would be located?", I asked in a tone showing that I don't eat *tots*.

"Oh, tater tots? Yeah, they're in the frozen food section, sweetheart"

*ah, cringe. Why do southern people use words like sweetheart, miss, & darlin'. I'm a ma'am.*

"Yes. Ta-ter Tots. Thank you, ma'am.", my solemn response.

So there I was in the frozen food section, eyes darting around making sure no one I knew would see me. And then I see a wife of one of Ryan's classmates, I quickly start power-walking away. *I cannot be seen buying these.*

(You'd think I was buying hemorrhoid cream or condoms or something embarassing the way I was reacting)

Once the coast was clear.......I was introduced to a section of the grocery store, that in my "grocery buying years" I have never seen. So many varieties of frozen potatoes and french fries and "potato tots"! Where do I even start? And then I chickened. I just couldn't do it. I had to put an original spin on this lunch-lady-special.

So my spin on "Tater Tot Hotdish" included the following:

• 20 oz Frozen sweet potato bites
• 1 lb ground turkey, (brown before putting in crock pot)
• 12 oz fat free sour cream (next time I'm doing greek yogurt)
• 1 bag organic frozen peas
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• S & P
• 1/2 cup skim milk
• fresh basil

I put all of the above in the crock pot for about 3 hours at 200 degrees F. Served it up with a little sriracha hot sauce. It wasn't terrible.

My husband loved it. It made me feel a little sheepish, because this created the most enthusiastic response ever out of him. "This is the best recipe ever!!! You should make this all the time! Yum! I'm going to eat the s*** out of these leftovers!"

I'm just going to attest that he was in need of comfort food. Somtimes canned beats sounds better than fresh avocado. So I get it. Sometimes macoroni & ketchup is more appealing to me than grilled salmon.

But yes, that was the day I had to say tater.