Title: Tots!
Author: Dan Whalen
Publication: May 15, 2018
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company
Genre: Cookbooks, Food
Pages: 160
SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)
This quirky single-subject cookbook features more than 50 recipes for making fun, delicious, and over-the-top meals with tater tots, from Chicken Tot Pie to Totchos (tot nachos), Hots ‘n’ Tots (jalapeno tot-poppers) to Apple Tot Crisp.
REVIEW:
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.**
When I saw the title of the cookbook I knew I had to request it. My daughters love Tater Tots, as do I. My husband, on the other hand, thinks that they are the least of the potato product family. He repeatedly and vocally compares them to “satan’s a**hole”. He has a lot of opinions. I hoped this cookbook would be a radical re-imagining of Tater Tots.
When I think of tater tots I think of a quintessential American meal. I was raised on tater tots. Whenever I went to my grandparent’s house they were usually a side dish to dinner. Tots! is a cookbook that has tots in every form. It even has how to make your own tots from scratch. A few of the recipes I tried were the Garlic and Chive Tots and the Sesame Ginger ones. The garlic and chive, as well as the sesame ginger, were both very easy to make. I used premade tots for these to cut down on cooking time. The recipes for both call for you to cook the tots and then toss and coat them after you have cooked them. Being careful while doing so, so they don’t fall apart. They are quick and easy only having a few ingredients each.
I really wanted to like this cookbook. At the end of the day, they are still tater tots and there are not very many ways to hide that fact. While the sauces were very good, they would have been good on anything. They didn’t remake the tot, just dressed it up. The recipes we did do, we scarfed down in no time. The flavors were good and they added that extra flavorful layer to plain potatoes. Don’t let my opinion of the cookbook sway your thoughts on it. I do most of my cooking from scratch so this is something that I would not use all that much.
STAR RATING: 3/5
Tots! by Dan Whalen can be picked up on Amazon . Also check your local bookstore.
