Growing up, and still to this day really, one of my favorite foods was the classic potato “tater tots”. More recently, I’ve noticed a new frozen product called “crispy crowns” and that is what this recipe for Easy Baked Vegan Broccoli Tots was inspired by. We’re still using grated potatoes, but ours has the addition of broccoli.
Now, you could all sorts of things to these including vegan parmesan, but I am keeping it simple.
Let’s make these Easy Baked Vegan Broccoli Tots!
There are just a few steps to these Vegan Broccoli Tots and the first is to boil the potatoes. I’ve tried this many ways and the best way is to boil them whole (with the skins on). Then, just as they are cool enough to handle, either rub with a paper towel or use a vegetable peeler. Easy peasy!
Those potatoes get grated and the defrosted broccoli florets are minced finely in a food processor until they look like rice. Combine the two.
The potatoes, riced broccoli and some salt (and/or pepper) get mixed thoroughly. At this point, I ended up deciding to add half of a flax “egg” to bind the ingredients. This is nothing more than ground flax and water allowed to thicken for a few minutes. If yours seems a bit too wet, add a tablespoon or so of flour. Checking to see if you can mold them into tots with your hands is the best indicator.
I used a small cookie scoop for consistently sized tots. You could roll them and then form into the traditional cylinder tot shape OR…you could use a small juice glass sprayed with olive oil cooking spray and give a quick press to flatten. A pinch of salt is all that is needed from here.
The broccoli tots get baked in a 375 degree oven until golden (give them a flip halfway through) and allow to set just slightly before serving with your favorite condiment, such as tomato ketchup!
Did you make this recipe for Easy Baked Vegan Broccoli Tots? If so, leave a comment below and let me know what you thought! And if you enjoyed the recipe, please consider pinning it for later 🙂
Vegan Broccoli Tots
Ingredients
- 1 large Russet Potato
- 14 oz Bag of Frozen Broccoli Florets thawed
- 1 Flax "egg" 1-1/2 tsp of ground flax mixed with 1-1/2 tbsp of water - allow to sit until thickened and gelatinous
- 1 tsp Salt
- pinch Pepper
- Olive Oil SPRAY
- Flour (if needed) if your mixture seems to "wet", just add a bit of flour.
Instructions
- Place whole potatoes in a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Once they are nearly fork tender, remove and allow to cool enough to handle.
- Using a peeler (or your hands and a paper towel), remove the skins while they are still warm.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Now, grate the peeled potatoes on a box grater (larger side). Add to a large bowl.
- In a few batches, add the defrosted broccoli to the bowl of a food processor. I find that it doesn't fully process if you try to do the whole bag at once and we need this finely minced for the tots to hold together. 2 or 3 batches works best, emptying into the bowl with the grated potatoes.
- I added one half of a flax "egg" to the mixture to ensure they held together nicely. A flax "egg" is simply 1-1/2 tsp of ground flax to 1-1/2 Tbsp of water. Allow it to sit until it becomes sort of gelatinous.
- Combine everything together in a large bowl, including salt, until it starts to look like it will form well.
- On a lined baking sheet and using a small cookie scoop, place the mixture and form. I chose to create basic flattened discs, but if you would like to try to the actual tater tot shape, just know that they will need to bake a bit longer. I just used a small juice glass sprayed with cooking spray to flatten.
- My spray is olive oil, so I used that to finish and sprinkled with a bit more salt.
- Into the preheated oven they go for about 30 minutes or so. Carefully flip them halfway through the baking process.
- Serve with your favorite condiment. Mine is the classic tomato ketchup 🙂