Big Mac Tater Tot Casserole

 

 OK, I have a confession to make. I absolutely love McDonald's. Like seriously, LOVE it. The fries, the Quarter Pounder with cheese, even the filet o'fish, and especially, the Big Mac. Frankly, I don't think I've ever met a fast food burger I didn't like. Back story... when I was little, it was always a special treat to stop and get McDonald's, so I always think of it that way. Is it terrible for you? Probably. But so is ice cream. And fried foods. And chocolate cake. But I'm certainly not giving up any of that. Everything in moderation, right?  Now, as an adult, I still think of having McDonald's as a treat, reserved only for when I go on a vacation involving long drives, or sometimes as a matter of convenience when I'm hopping between theme parks.

  And then I saw this casserole on a tiktok video. I wish I could remember whose it was, but I forgot to note who posted it, or whose recipe this is. But all I could think was "I'm making this!" Of course, true to form, I didn't leave the recipe alone. I tweaked it ever so slightly, just to make it that much better.

 It has all the flavors of a Big Mac, and you'll know it as soon as you taste your first bite. It's super simple to make, and it feeds a crowd too. And when you're shopping for ingredients, you don't even have to write anything down. All you need to do it sing the jingle.. "Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a ses'me seed bun!" 

You sang it with me , didn't you..LOL 

Love it. Enjoy!

 

 

 

1 bag frozen tater tots
1 1/2 lbs ground beef, browned and seasoned with salt and pepper
1 cup Thousand Island dressing
1/4 cup chopped dill pickles
1 onion, finely minced

Velveeta or American cheese
Sesame seeds
Shredded lettuce, for serving

 

Arrange tater tots in one layer across the bottom of a 9x13 casserole dish.
Place in oven. Turn on oven to 350ºF. Let it heat up to crisp the tots slightly.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, stir together browned beef, dressing, pickles, and onions. 

Remove dish from oven.  Add a layer of sliced or shredded cheese over the tater tots.
Now pour the beef mixture over the cheese.
Do another single layer of tater tots, then another layer of cheese.
Sprinkle sesame seeds over the top. 

Bake for 30-40 minutes until bubbly and heated through.

Serve with some shredded lettuce over the top, and maybe a little ketchup on the side.

 

 

 

Tips:

The original recipe included ketchup and mayonnaise in addition to the Thousand Island dressing, and it also included sweet pickle relish instead of dill pickles. First, the dressing and relish used together made it too sweet. And I'm pretty sure they use dill pickles on a Big Mac, so I switched the relish to dill pickles. Second, it seemed like A LOT of "special sauce" to add ketchup and mayonnaise in addition to the dressing. That just seemed kind of redundant to me. Of course, as I always say, if you like a lot, add a lot, and you know I also say more is more, but in this case, I don't think it needs so much. And finally, I added an extra layer of cheese as I was layering, I sprinkled it with sesame seeds before I baked it, and I served it with shredded lettuce on top, since this was not even included in the original recipe. I mean, come on, it's in the jingle! It needed to be there! 

Oh! and one more thing.. if you love pickles as much as I do, try serving this with a little Heinz Pickle Ketchup instead of regular ketchup on the side. It's so good!