This week, I took Simple Potatoes 5-ingredient fix challenge and prepared these cute little hashbrown bites for my son’s school lunch. They reminded me so much of tater tots.

One of the fun memories I recall often is the first time I tried tater tots.  I had just recently moved from Mexico to the U.S. a little confused about lunch time in a cafeteria, getting in line and giving the lunch lady a purple “take one” ticket in exchange for a tray-plate with a little compartment for your fork.  I found that extremely odd.
At the elementary school I attended in Mexico, we didn’t have a cafeteria.  Picnic tables, concrete planters and a low brick wall served as our dining area.  My friends and I sat with our knee-high, white sock legs and Mary Janes dangling from that wall.  Giggling and eating our home made egg and chorizo torta until the bell rang or the janitor shooed us back into our classroom.

Lunchtime completely changed when I moved.  No knee-high socks, no tortas for lunch and no brick wall.  New things happened!  Indoor cafeteria, western burgers and yes, my favorite, tater tots.

I looked forward to these new foods being introduced to me every day but tater tots hold a special place in my heart.  They remind me of those days when I was afraid of the unknown only knowing that everything would be ok in this new school with a new language.

Now that my son is of school age, I decided to prepare my own version of friendly tater tots.  I call them hashbrown breakfast bites because every one of these bites, holds an entire breakfast.

They keep well in the refrigerator so they make perfect a make-ahead lunch.  Because they are compact, no flatware is needed, they fit perfectly in their little hands and in their lunch box.

To prepare, I took Simply Potatoes’ 5-ingredient challenge and whipped these up quickly with very few ingredients.  Because working with Simply Potatoes is so easy, they are giving away cash prizes in their 5-ingredient fix challenge.

What can you come up with?  Submit your idea here and enter to win one of the following:

–  one (1) Grand Prize $3,000 cash.

–  one (1) People’s Choice Winner will receive $1,250 cash

–  one (1) Sweepstakes Prize Winner will receive $750 cash

Hashbrown Breakfast Bites
Makes 12

Ingredients
1-20 ounce package of Simply Potatoes Shredded Hash Browns
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
2 all-beef hot dogs, chopped in small 1/4″ pieces

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Spray a muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
Place Simply Potatoes Hashbrowns in between paper towels.  Press to absorb any liquid.
In a large mixing bowl, combine shredded potatoes and cheese. Mix with hands until evenly combined.
In a separate mixing bowl, beat eggs and bouillon.
Pour beaten eggs into potato mixture and add hot dog pieces.  Stir and mix well.
Spoon mixture into prepared muffin tin. Approximately 2-3 tablespoons and should be able to distribute mixture among the 12 muffin molds.
Bake for 45 minutes or until tops begin to brown slightly.
Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes before serving.

For rules on how to enter the Sweepstakes click here.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Simply Potatoes. The opinions and text are all mine.