These tater tots are not your average deep-fried shredded white potatoes. First of all, they’re baked. Second of all, they’re filled with shredded zucchini. These two features make ’em a lot easier on the gut: they’re lower in fat and richer in nutrition. And how about the taste, you ask? As finger-lickin’ good as ever! These tater tots are super quick to make and a lot more fuss free than I originally expected. Plus, they only require two main ingredients. Make a big batch and watch them fly off the plate – they’re a hit with kids!

Regular tater tots are often pre-made in a factory and frozen for your later enjoyment. Sure, that’s convenient, but it requires digesting a lot of synthetic ingredients, including preservatives. Even if you make them yourself, traditional tater tots recipes call for the addition of white flour and then deep frying. The taste checks out alright, but not so much the body-friendly part. This tater tots recipe is baked to avoid excess fat consumption and kept simple without the addition of any unnecessary nutritionally-devoid ingredients. Instead, it adds zucchini to make for a unique and nutritious touch.

Zucchini adds glow-worthy health benefits:

Zucchini: has only 36 calories and 10% of the recommended daily allowance of dietary fiber in just one cup, lowers cholesterol by attaching to bile acids and aiding in digesting fat, contributes to “regularity”, prevents cancer with its high antioxidant content, aids prostate health, is high in manganese (19% of the recommended daily allowance in one cup), lowers blood pressure, is anti-inflammatory with its vitamin A and C content, and prevents heart attack and stroke.

Baked Zucchini Tater Tots Recipe

Serves 2

Ingredients

• 2 large russet potatoes
• 2 large zucchinis, shredded/grated
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions

Skin the potatoes and place them in a pot over high heat. Fill the pot with water until the water is just above the height of the potatoes. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Close the pot with a lid and let simmer for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drain and rinse the potatoes, letting them sit at room temperature until they are cool enough to start grating. Grate the zucchinis into a bowl and then add the grated potatoes, salt, and garlic powder.

Fold the mixture together. It will stick together easily, so you can form tater tot-sized rectangular flattened patties. Place them on a lightly-greased parchment paper or aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Pop the baking sheet into the oven (you may have to do this in two rounds) and cook for 30 minutes, flipping the tater tots about halfway through.

When they’re done, let them rest for about five minutes before carefully transferring them to a serving dish. They will be super soft when they come fresh out of the oven but harden as they cool. Be careful not to squash them while they are still piping hot.

Serve them with a dip of choice. I like this homemade ketchup!

If you like this recipe, you may also like…
Parmesan Zucchini Dippers
Overnight Zucchini
Quick Zucchini Lasagna