Cheesy Veggie Tots

Soft, savoury, oven-baked veggie tots made with potato, sweet potato, broccoli, cheese and a little ground flaxseed.

These are the kind of snacky little bites that feel familiar first: golden edges, soft middles, cheesy flavour, and easy to serve with a favourite dip. The veggies are mixed through gently, and you can absolutely swap them depending on what your family is more likely to accept.

A simple fibre-friendly recipe for snack plates, a dinner side, after-school hunger, or those real-life beige-food days where we’re just doing our best.

Ingredients

• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 small sweet potato, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• ½ cup cottage cheese
• ⅓ cup parmesan cheese
• 1 egg
• 1½ cups panko breadcrumbs, plus extra if needed
• 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed / flax meal
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt, optional
• Olive oil spray or a light drizzle of olive oil
  
  
  

Method

1. Add the potato, sweet potato and garlic cloves to a pot of water. Boil until the potato and sweet potato are tender.
2. Add the broccoli in the last few minutes of cooking, just until softened.
3. Drain everything really well. Let the veggies sit for a few minutes so some of the steam escapes.
4. Add the cooked veggies and garlic to a large bowl. Mash well.
5. Add the cottage cheese, parmesan, egg, panko breadcrumbs, ground flaxseed, onion powder and salt if using.
6. Mix everything together until the mixture comes together.
7. If the mixture still feels chunky or hard to shape, blitz it briefly with a stick blender until it becomes easier to work with.
8. If you have a food processor, you can pulse the mixture instead. This can help create a smoother, more even texture that may feel more familiar for some little ones.
9. If the mixture feels too wet to shape, add a little extra panko, one tablespoon at a time, until it holds together.
10. Shape into small tots, nuggets, little logs or patties.
11. Place on a lined baking tray and spray or brush lightly with olive oil.
12. Bake at 200 degrees celcius for around 20–25 minutes, turning once halfway, until golden and firm.
13. Let them cool slightly before serving. They will firm up more as they cool.
    
    
    

Recipe notes

This mixture is soft because of the cottage cheese and cooked veggies. Draining the veggies well helps, and the panko helps bring everything together.

A food processor or stick blender is helpful if your mixture is too chunky, or if your child prefers a smoother texture. For a more rustic texture, simply mash and mix by hand.

If the mixture feels too wet, add extra panko gradually until it is easy to shape.

Swaps and variations

Feel free to use the veggies your family is most familiar with. If broccoli is a hard no right now, try extra sweet potato, carrot, pumpkin, peas, corn or cauliflower instead.

For wetter veggies like zucchini, squeeze out as much moisture as you can before adding them to the mix.

You can swap parmesan for ½ cup grated tasty cheese or cheddar if that’s what you have.

You can use ½ teaspoon garlic powder instead of boiling fresh garlic cloves with the veggies.

Regular breadcrumbs can be used instead of panko, though panko helps keep the texture a little lighter.

For a smoother-looking tot, blitz the mixture well before shaping.

For more visible veggie texture, mash by hand and leave some small broccoli pieces.

For crispier edges, shape them into flatter patties instead of thicker tots.

Serve with a familiar dip if that helps - tomato sauce, yoghurt dip, mayo, sour cream, or whatever is currently accepted.

Little Belly note

These cheesy veggie tots use familiar ingredients like potato, sweet potato and cheese, with broccoli and a little ground flaxseed mixed through for a gentle fibre-friendly boost.

They are a simple way to offer veggies in a soft, savoury, snacky format - without pressure, and without expecting every little one to be ready to try them straight away.

Some little ones may not be ready for veggie tots yet, especially if homemade textures, mixed foods, or visible green bits are tricky. That is okay. Exposure still counts, and you can always start with the foods they already trust.

Optional Keep It Moving serving idea

Keep It Moving is not an ingredient in this recipe.

If your family uses Keep It Moving, serve these alongside a familiar drink with your child’s usual serve stirred in for extra prebiotic fibre support.