After School Special

Back in November I did a blog post about my adventure and subsequent video of me making Tater Tot Hot Dish (TTHD) after having Ore-Ida Tater Tots at Sharks Cove in Hermosa Beach (the "h" is silent).

Once in a while when no one else can (I'm going to assume it's not 'cuz I am the last choice but out of respect for my time and kindness), I'll pick up my buddy, Ace, from school.  Don't tell his mom, but since it is only every once in a while I enjoy us hanging out.  I let myself act more like a kid when he's with me.  We go places, play games, talk about our hopes and dreams (yes, I still have some).  In a word, we have "fun".

Sometimes Ace is a little less than truthful.  Not in a bad way.  Just sometimes I can't 100% trust that something he said he's done in the physical isn't just something he's done in his mind.  So when I shared my Tater Tot Hot Dish video with him, he shared that he'd made the dish before.  True?  Not true?  I wasn't going to let it matter.  Instead, I figured why not just enjoy making the dish together.  Ace is awesome on camera.

So....with that out of the way, let's go right to the video.



P.S.  If I didn't say, would you have noticed that in all of our excitement of combining this with making Rice Krispies Treats that we forgot to film the finished product?

Tater Tot Hot Dish Bleepin' Bjork Style

I had a wonderful surprise when my oldest son and his wife-to-be flew from Minneapolis/St. Paul to LAX to visit for a quick Saturday/Sunday visit.

The Viking Fan (and not a fair weather one either) and the Packer Princess (she has a Packer Favre jersey in pink) managed to talk my man and I into going to a bar in Hermosa Beach, Sharks Cove, which caters to Steeler Fans.  In case you don't know, when a football game starts at noon in Pittsburgh, that means it starts at 9 AM in Hermosa (the "h" is silent, means beautiful en espanol) Beach.

I don't know about you, but that time of morning is usually when I enjoy eating breakfast.  Breakfast at the bar.  Just may have been a first.  Here's what I found sort of exciting.  This bar serves tater tots with its breakfast instead of hash browns.

I mention all of this 'cuz...well...do you ever have some foods from your younger days that just seem like they will always be comfort food even though they may never be considered healthy or low-cal?  For me, tater tot hot dish is just one of those said dishes.

So, with this tater tot nudge I just had to make me some tater tot hot dish and see if I would still enjoy it.  You know, or is the memory better than the reality.  And as long as I was going to take this undertaking why not video it for posterity.

P.S.  Tater Tots are a registered trademark of the Ore-Ida company, first created in 1953 and first available in 1954.  Congratulations, Ore-Ida on 55 years of the tater tot.  Mahalo!

P.P.S.  I loaded the video to my Funny or Die page 'cuz I think it is at least a couple degrees of funny.  I decided I'd test seeing what happens if I embed the video from funnyordie.com.  What do you think?  Not so sure I love it compared to YouTube.  In case you would rather watch the video from YouTube instead, here's the link.

P.P.S.S.  To my Chicago, soul sister of the same name and the same light (yes, we will meet one day), I just want to say (1) thank you and (2) I believe this recipe is gluten-free.  I'm just sayin'!