Turn Loaded Tater Tots Into A Tasty Handheld Appetizer With This Simple Trick

While everyone is waiting around, drooling over the main course, I'm always here for the appetizers — first and foremost. If you have ever seen the movie "Mermaids" where Cher plays a housewife who only cooks hors d'oeuvres and food on sticks, that is the exact level of commitment to appetizers that I am always operating on.

If you also have a deep love of food on sticks, you can transform frozen tater tots with ranch seasoning, or by shish kabobing them on a skewer and loading them up with toppings. Loaded tater tots are always a crowd pleaser for watching football games and hosting parties of all sorts, but putting those loaded tots on skewers makes them much less messy and more fun to eat. Even the lowly tater tot feels pretty chic when elegantly laced onto a skewer. You don't even need a party to make these; Be like Cher and make a boring weeknight dinner feel a bit more sophisticated. (We can all stand to be a bit more like Cher.)

Before you skewer your tater tots, cook them according to the directions on the bag. This will ensure that the tater tots get amply crispy before getting threaded on sticks; If you were to bake the tots from frozen, wood skewers could easily burn if left in the oven for too long. Make sure to season your tots when they are freshly baked, so your seasoning sticks. You can use any salts, herb blends, and even one of the best powdered food mixes for seasoning, to amp up the flavor.

After baking your tots, slide about five tots onto each skewer and line them up on a baking sheet. Here is where the fun comes in and you have carte blanche to add any toppings you like. A basic but delicious choice would be to take the loaded baked potato route and top your tots with shredded cheddar and chopped bacon before popping the skewers into the oven to melt the cheese. Sprinkle with chopped green onion and serve with sour cream on the side.

The options are endless. Go for the classic chili cheese vibe with a little homemade or canned chili and a sprinkle of cheese over your tots. Put a spin on Sonic's barbecue chip-seasoned tots by adding your favorite bottled sauce, chopped grilled chicken, and cheese. Personally, I would take a page out of my diner favorite — pizza fries — and top my tots with marinara sauce and mozzarella, adding some fresh chopped basil after taking them out of the oven.