Despite the lack of Halloween recipes on here, it’s actually my favorite holiday. Getting to dress up as someone/something else and just be extra frivolous for the night with handfuls of candy is just my jam. I can barely remember my costumes from when I was little, but the last few years I’ve been making my own costumes and letting the Halloween spirit take over most of October.
With everything else going on, I haven’t quite started my costume yet and it’s totally freaking me out. Aside from cutting apart a few foam crafting balls today, I’ve actually done basically nothing but buy the supplies. I’ve been channeling all of my creative energy (well, my energy in general) into making dinner. Mostly, nothing even that impressive. The other night, I basically ate roasted veggies and a vegan sausage.
I’m counting this casserole as the most impressive thing I’ve made lately, and it’s actually pretty easy. You can start with canned sauce if you’re feeling especially lazy or make your own if you’re into that sort of thing. Same with the tater tots. Either way, it’s crazy delicious and crazy comforting. Perfect for fall and chilly weather.
12 oz soy crumbles (or 3 c of other meat substitute)
2½ c sloppy joe sauce (homemadeor about 2 cans pre-made)
1½ c shredded cheddar cheese, divided (see note)
16 oz tater tots, frozen (see note if you’d like to use homemade)
Instructions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and spritz an 8 x 8 inch pan with nonstick spray.
Add the carrots, mushrooms, and onions to a saute pan over medium heat. Cover the pan. The liquid released from the mushrooms will help soften the carrots. Stir occasionally. When the veggies are tender, remove the lid and allow the excess liquid to evaporate. Spritz the pan with nonstick spray if sticking is an issue.
Stir in the meat substitute, sloppy joe sauce, and ⅓ c of the cheese into the veggie mixture.
Spread the mixture in the prepared pan. Top with ½ c cheese, layer with tater tots (see note for homemade tater tots), and top with remaining cheese.
Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the tater tots are crispy.
Notes
To make this vegan, use vegan cheese (or omit) and ensure your tater tots are vegan. To use homemade tater tots, prepare without adding the tater tots on top. Bake for 15 minutes, top with pre-cooked and ready-to-eat homemade tater tot, and bake an additional 5 minutes
Everything about this casserole is calling to me…SLOPPY JOE SAUCE?! Sluuuuuurp! I’m loving how simple it is to prepare this dish and it’s right up my alley considering my unrelenting love for potatoes and cheese. Hope you ended up having a marvelous Halloween, m’dear!
I’m totally lame and don’t do much for Halloween, but I can totally get on board with this casserole!! Tater tot casseroles are genius and I want to eat this entire thing for dinner!
I love tots, but I’ve never had tot casserole. This looks so amazing with the sloppy joe sauce running everywhere, and all that cheese. I’m pinning this, and then I’m gonna find some parachute pants to I can tote my tots around, a la Napoleon Dynamite.
How are you with cauliflower? I’ve seen (but haven’t tried) recipes for cauliflower tots floating around. I bet they’d be incredible with parsnips, too! Oooh or turnips! (I think I might just be really hungry right now, lol)
I know you posted this a bit ago but I’m really excited to make it! I love having casserole leftovers for a few days! 🙂
Everything about this casserole is calling to me…SLOPPY JOE SAUCE?! Sluuuuuurp! I’m loving how simple it is to prepare this dish and it’s right up my alley considering my unrelenting love for potatoes and cheese. Hope you ended up having a marvelous Halloween, m’dear!
I’m totally lame and don’t do much for Halloween, but I can totally get on board with this casserole!! Tater tot casseroles are genius and I want to eat this entire thing for dinner!
I love tots, but I’ve never had tot casserole. This looks so amazing with the sloppy joe sauce running everywhere, and all that cheese. I’m pinning this, and then I’m gonna find some parachute pants to I can tote my tots around, a la Napoleon Dynamite.
I miss tator tots (of all things) like crazy right now. This is not helping! 😉
How are you with cauliflower? I’ve seen (but haven’t tried) recipes for cauliflower tots floating around. I bet they’d be incredible with parsnips, too! Oooh or turnips! (I think I might just be really hungry right now, lol)
Now this looks like a comforting meal, and I love that it is vegan too. Just shows that vegan food can still be really comforting.