Recipe: Cheesy Tater Tot Casserole

This post is sponsored by MacKenzie-Childs, all thoughts & opinions are 100% my own.  If this thing has taught me anything, it’s to slow down,…

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This post is sponsored by MacKenzie-Childs, all thoughts & opinions are 100% my own. 

If this thing has taught me anything, it’s to slow down, savor the time I have with the people I love most in life & well mess happens! My daughter, Emily, has really been into cooking together, sitting at the kitchen table together for dinner & talking about our high/lows for the day. Today I’ve partnered up with MacKenzie-Childs to share my best piece of advice for getting the whole family to open up about their day along with our favorite breakfast for dinner recipe!

Sitting down at the dinner table can be intimidating, I mean what do we talk about? How do I get everyone to talk about their days without sounding like a nagging mom? Well, I remember sitting at the table as a kid & the usual “How was your day” question would be asked…guess what? Even as the chatterbox I am, I would answer “fine” it’s just an automatic response that we are almost programmed to give. But our friends shared how they ask this direct question “What was your high & your low of the day?” & we implemented that right away. Guess what? There are no easy answers to this, you’ve got to file through your day, through your feelings & give an answer. We go around the circle & usually by the time our family is done we’ve finished dinner, strayed off-topic & talked the entire time. It’s AMAZING & my hands-down favorite way to get the family talking quickly at dinner about their days. And if your little ones don’t quite understand we use to ask our daughter to name a thing that made her happy/sad for the day. 

For a while, I’ve eyed the classic along with whimsical pieces created by MacKenzie-Childs to add to my kitchen! And now that I have a few pieces that, my kids have already taken notice & pick to bake in the colorful bakeware instead of our old clear glass ones. They are sure to become that nostalgic serving dishes that my kids always remember & that just makes me smile to think about! I think we all have those classic pieces our parents still have in their kitchen that we see & bring a nostalgic grin to our faces. when my kids see MacKenzie-Childs pieces in anyone’s kitchen I hope they think of all the recipes we made together, the love served up on a plate & how much joy being in the kitchen together brought us because I know I have those memories of my mom that just tug at my heart whenever I see her burnt blue spatula in her kitchen that she refuses to get rid of. 

Now onto the one recipe, everyone cheers for & I keep it in my back pocket for when someone’s had an overwhelming day and needs a comforting dinner! Also, it’s an easy one to let the kids help with. Emily is our little egg cracker & mixes everything for me. A quick tip for when you’re letting kids crack eggs, have them crack into a separate small bowl so if they drop shells in they are easy to fish out before mixing everything together. Also! I’ll link all our the MacKenzie-Childs that are in CONSTANT repeat in our kitchen, like the pinch bowls I let Emily crack eggs in, we also use them for ice-cream nights, bowls of fruit at snack time, salsa & guac, honestly they are just THE perfect size! 

MacKenzie-Childs Products I’m loving & always using:

Pinch Bowls (6 patterns available!) | Courtly Check Enamel Casserbole |Flower Market Breakfast Bowl | Flower Market 3 Qt. Saute Pan | Flower Market Dinner Plate (multiple colors) | Courtly Check Enamel Abundant Bowl

Cheesy Tatertot Breakfast Casserole Recipe

Ingredients for Tatertot Casserole:

  • 1 pound breakfast sausage
  • 3 cups shredded cheddar
  • 8 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 tbsp garlic salt
  • 16 ounces frozen tater tots

Directions to make Tatertot Casserole:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9X9 baking dish with nonstick spray.
  2. Add the sausage to a skillet over medium heat and cook, stirring often to break up the sausage, until the sausage is cooked through. Drain the grease and spread the sausage in a single layer in the prepared pan.
  3. Sprinkle 2 cups of cheese over the top.
  4. Add eggs, milk & garlic salt to a mixing bowl and whisk. Pour over the casserole.
  5. Arrange the tater tots in a layer over the egg mix.
  6. Bake covered for 45 minutes or until eggs are set.
  7. Sprinkle top with remaining cheese & bake uncovered until cheese is melted. 

 

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