Bored of broccoli? Spruce it up by making some of these Broccoli Cheese Tater Tots! They’re easy, healthy, and cheesy, and make broccoli much more interesting. Serve them with your favorite dipping sauces for a great snack, appetizer or side that’s perfect for babies, toddlers, and the whole family! {Vegetarian & gluten-free-friendly}
Homemade Broccoli Tater Tots
If you’re struggling to get your family to eat plain ol’ broccoli, then you’ll definitely want to give these broccoli cheese tater tots a shot!
These tots are a super fun way to eat veggies and due to their cheesy flavor and soft texture, they’re great for baby-led weaning or served as a finger food for toddlers. But older children and adults will totally love them too.
They’re my favorite way to serve extra veggies to picky eaters, and they’re easier to make than you’d think!
Similar to these Cheesy Cauliflower Bites and Sweet Potato Tots, you can make up a batch of these broccoli tots and store them in the fridge or freezer for an easy and kid-friendly bite throughout the week.
Why We Love This Easy Broccoli Tots Recipe
- Kid-friendly flavor the whole family will enjoy
- Soft enough for babies to chew with the perfect shape for baby led weaning
- Completely homemade with everyday ingredients
- Golden brown and crispy on the outside with a warm, cheesy middle on the inside
- Dietitian-approved for all ages!
- Healthy side dish to pair with your favorite meals
- Great source of fiber and nutrients
- Deliciously cheesy flavor
- Freeze the extras for easy homemade tater tots anytime!
Ingredient Notes
- Fresh broccoli: Forms the base of the tots. You can use frozen broccoli florets, too.
- Potato: Is mashed along with the broccoli to form a soft texture. You’ll need about one small white potato.
- Garlic powder: Injects some extra flavor into the bites. You can also use fresh garlic, use onion powder, or skip altogether to keep the flavor more neutral.
- Cheese: This is what really makes these crispy baked broccoli tots irresistible! I usually use cheddar cheese, but parmesan cheese is great or try your family’s favorite cheese.
- Chives: Chop them finely so that there aren’t large chunks throughout the tots. You can also use finely chopped green onion or skip them altogether.
- Egg: To coat the broccoli tots to help the breadcrumbs stick. You can skip the egg and breadcrumb coating if you want to keep the recipe egg-free.
- Bread Crumbs: To absorb some extra moisture and are also used as a breading on the outside. Use homemade or store-bought whole-wheat bread crumbs. You can also sub in gluten-free bread crumbs or almond flour if preferred.
How to Make Baked Broccoli Tots – Step by Step Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium saucepan, bring about an inch of water to a boil. Place a steamer basket in the saucepan and fill with diced potato and broccoli. Cover and steam for about 10-15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft enough to mash.
- Add the steamed broccoli and potato to a large bowl. Mash until mostly smooth, leaving a few chunks here and there. You can also do this step in the food processor.
- Mix in the chopped chives and shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder, salt, and 1/2 a cup of breadcrumbs until combined.
- Using your hands, form the mixture into the shape of long tots about 2 inches long and 1 inch wide.
- Beat the egg in a separate bowl. Coat each tot lightly in the egg mixture and then roll in the remaining breadcrumbs.
- Place each broccoli tot on the parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Bake in oven for 20 minutes, carefully flipping tots half way through.
Keep scrolling to the bottom of the page for the full broccoli tots recipe!
How to Make Homemade Breadcrumbs
Homemade breadcrumbs are a great way to use up leftover bread and add a great texture to this recipe! Personally, I used Ezekiel bread since it tends to be lower in sodium and higher in fiber with less processed ingredients. It worked out really well for the purpose of this recipe and no complaints from my taste testers!
- Dry the bread out in the oven or use stale bread. You can also pop the slices of bread in the toaster for a faster method.
- Break up the toasted pieces of bread with your hands into smaller chunks.
- Toss those pieces into the food processor and pulse until you achieve the desired consistency.
Special Tips: For best results, add the chunks of bread in smaller batches. And keep in mind that they’ll be slightly fluffier than your typical store-bought bread crumbs, but that’s what makes them so good! Store in an air-tight container or resealable bag in the fridge for up to one month or in the freezer for up to three months.
Expert Tips
- Chop the broccoli before you measure it. Try to use more of the florets rather than the tough stems.
- You can either mash the broccoli and potatoes in a large bowl using a potato masher or transfer the steamed veggies to a food processor and blend until mostly smooth. You can also finely chop the broccoli and potato instead if mashing if you want the tots to have more texture.
- If you find that the broccoli mixture is still too moist before forming it into tots, add some additional bread crumbs until desired consistency is achieved.
- If making homemade breadcrumbs, you’ll need about 3 slices of whole-grain bread.
- If you want to keep these lower carb and egg-free, you can skip the egg/bread crumb coating.
- If serving these tots to babies under the age of one, you may wish to reduce or skip the salt to reduce sodium intake.
Storage and Reheating Guidelines
Refrigerator: You can store them in an airtight container or large ziplock bag in the fridge for up to four days and in the freezer for up to three months.
To freeze: Store the tots in an freezer-safe container or large ziplock bag in the freezer for up to three months.
To defrost and reheat: Leave the frozen broccoli tots to thaw in the fridge for several hours or overnight, or reheat them right from frozen. To reheat, pop them in the oven or air fryer at 400 degrees F for 5-10 minutes or until the cheese gets all warm and gooey and the outside gets a little crispy.
You can also warm them in the microwave if in a pinch, but I prefer the oven method.
Recipe FAQs
Yes! You can either mash the broccoli and potato mixture in a bowl along with the other ingredients or transfer the steamed vegetables to a food processor and blend. Mashing the vegetables will allow for a bit more texture while the food processor will give it a slightly smoother consistency.
These broccoli cheddar tots are great for all ages ranging from 6 months old and beyond! They make a great starter food for baby-led weaning since they’re easy to hold and chew even for babies with no teeth.
Homemade broccoli tots are definitely a healthier option than your typical store-bought tater tots. The broccoli incorporates extra nutrients like fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, iron, and potassium. The cheese also adds some additional calcium and protein that traditional tater tots lack.
Additionally, because you make them yourself, no preservatives are required and you can control how much salt is added, which can make them a lower sodium option.
Serving Suggestions
The best part about these broccoli cheese tater tots is that there are so many ways to eat them! The kids love to dip these in their favorite sauces, like Ranch dressing, tzatziki, ketchup, or marinara sauce. The grown-ups love them with a little roasted garlic aoili.
You can serve them:
- Warm or cold
- Warm on a platter as a party appetizer
- As a side dish along with a source of protein like these chicken meatloaf muffins
- As a healthy lunch box item or after-school snack for kids
- As a finger food for babies and toddlers
Recipe Variations
- Swap out the potato: Use a sweet potato instead of white potato.
- To make gluten-free: Use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
- To make egg-free: Skip the egg. You can either roll the tots in the breadcrumbs without the egg or skip the breading all together.
- To make low carb: Skip the breadcrumbs and use almond flour instead.
- To make vegan: Use a vegan cheese and skip the egg coating. Roll the tots in the breadcrumbs without the egg or make the tots without the breading.
More Recipes You’ll Love
- Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa Bites
- Chicken Avocado Poppers
- Healthy Zucchini Fritters
- Spinach Zucchini Frittata
- Veggie Quinoa Muffins
Did you make this recipe? Scroll down to leave a star rating and review!
Homemade Broccoli Cheese Tater Tots {Baby-Friendly}
Ingredients
- 1 cup diced white potato, peeled and diced into about 1/2 inch cubes
- 2 cups broccoli florets
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped chives (or sub in green onion)
- 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 1/2 cups homemade or store-bought whole-wheat bread crumbs* (can sub in gluten-free if necessary)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium saucepan, bring about an inch of water to a boil. Place the steamer basket in the saucepan and fill with diced potato and broccoli. Cover and steam for about 10-15 minutes or until the vegetables are soft enough to mash.
- Add the steamed broccoli and potato to a large bowl. Mash until mostly smooth, leaving a few chunks here and there. You can also do this step in the food processor.
- Mix in the chopped chives and shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder, salt (if using), and 1/2 a cup of breadcrumbs until combined.
- Using your hands, form the mixture into the shape of longer tots about 2 inches long and 1 inch wide.
- Beat the egg in a separate bowl. Coat each tot lightly in the egg mixture and then roll in the remaining breadcrumbs.
- Place each tot on the parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Bake in oven for 20 minutes, carefully flipping tots half way through.
Notes
- Chop the broccoli before you measure it. Try to use more of the florets rather than the tough stems.
- You can either mash the broccoli and potatoes in a large bowl using a potato masher or transfer the steamed veggies to a food processor and blend until mostly smooth. You can also finely chop the broccoli and potato instead if mashing if you want the tots to have more texture.
- If you find that the broccoli mixture is still too moist before forming it into tots, add some additional bread crumbs until desired consistency is achieved.
- You can use homemade or store-bought bread crumbs for the broccoli tots. I’ve used homemade and store-bought whole-wheat panko bread crumbs for this recipe and both worked well. If making homemade, you’ll need about 3 slices of whole-grain bread.
- If you want to keep these lower carb and egg-free, you can skip the egg/bread crumb coating.
- If serving these tots to babies under the age of one, you may wish to reduce or skip the salt to reduce sodium intake.
- To reheat, place in the oven at 400 degrees and bake for 5-10 minutes or until heated through.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted February 2019 and was updated March 2022 to include better tips and photos. It was updated again in January 2025 to revise some of the text and add some updated photos.
Looking for more healthy Baby-Led Weaning recipes, tips and meal ideas?
Get a copy of Healthy Baby Foodie!
Featured Comment
Incredibly easy to make and delicious for the whole family. – CJ