I love going to a Blue Jays home game whenever I’m in Toronto and my work schedule lines up just right. Like plenty of other people, I’ve felt especially invested in the team ever since last year’s World Series run. Honestly, I think I’m still riding the adrenaline from fall 2025, and the fact that I now check the Blue Jays home schedule before booking media work in Toronto feels like proof enough.

So when I started thinking about game day appetizers for some recent TV segments in Toronto, I knew I wanted to create something with a bit of personality. Perhaps not surprisingly, my brain landed on fan favourite Ernie Clement. The Rochester-born baseball player is equally wildly likeable and talented, and exactly the sort of player who deserves an edible hometown tribute.

That tribute comes in the form of these spicy Garbage Plate-inspired tater tot cups, a playful nod to Rochester’s most famous late-night dish. Traditionally, a Garbage Plate is a glorious mess of burgers, home fries, macaroni salad and meat sauce all piled together into one chaotic, deeply satisfying heap. It’s the kind of dish that is best consumed post-bar adventures in the early hours of the morning...or the afternoon afterwards to cure what ails you.

And because every food tribute deserves a face to go with it, here’s the man of the hour.

 

 

 

 

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Anyway, this version keeps all of that comfort-food energy intact, but turns it into something a little more party-ready and easy to eat in two bites. First, thawed tater tots get pressed into golden little cups, which is a clever technique I happily borrowed from TikTok, because honestly, bless TikTok food tricks when they actually work.

Here, they really do, creating the perfect crunchy vehicle for creamy macaroni salad, juicy burger, rich meat sauce, pickles and mustard-macerated onions.

Now, one of my favourite details in this game day recipe is the mustard-macerated onion situation. Letting sliced white onion sit overnight in pickle brine and yellow mustard softens its sharp raw bite while pulling in acidity, tang and just a little zip from the mustard itself. The result is an onion topping that still has presence, but tastes more rounded, punchy and deeply snackable, which is exactly what you want when you’re trying to cut through all that rich, beefy richness happening elsewhere in the dish.

(And don’t you dare skip the pickle slice garnish.)

Mustard-macerated onions

1 white onion, quartered and thinly sliced

1/4 cup pickle brine

1/4 cup yellow mustard

Method

In a small bowl, toss the sliced onion with the pickle brine and yellow mustard until well coated. Set aside to soften and lightly pickle while you prepare the remaining components, or cover and refrigerate overnight for even more flavour.

Tater tot cups

48 frozen tater tots, thawed

Celery salt, for seasoning

Method

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin. Place 4 thawed tater tots into each muffin cup. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven.

Using the bottom of a lightly greased shot glass or small glass, press the tater tots down and up the sides of each muffin cup to form a cup shape. Return to the oven and bake for 20 minutes more, or until deeply golden and crisp.

Let cool in the tin for 5 minutes to help the cups set, then carefully remove and transfer to a serving platter. Lightly season with celery salt.

Garbage Plate meat sauce

1 Tbsp canola oil

500 g lean ground Canadian beef

1 yellow onion, finely minced

1 cup good-quality beef stock

1/4 cup tomato paste

2 Tbsp ketchup

2 Tbsp barbecue sauce

1 Tbsp yellow mustard

1 Tbsp honey

1 tsp Tabasco

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 pinch cayenne pepper

1 pinch ground cloves

Salt and pepper, to taste

Method

Heat the canola oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and minced onion, then cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until the beef is browned and the onion is softened, about 6 to 8 minutes.

Stir in the tomato paste, ketchup, barbecue sauce, yellow mustard, honey, Tabasco, chili powder, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne and cloves.

Pour in the beef stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened and reduced by about half.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm until ready to assemble.

Assembly

1 cup good-quality deli-style macaroni salad

3 cooked Canadian beef burger patties, cut into quarters

12 pickle slices, for garnish

Yellow mustard, for drizzling

Method

To assemble, spoon a small dollop of macaroni salad into the bottom of each tater tot cup. Top each with a piece of burger patty, followed by a generous spoonful of the warm meat sauce.

Finish with mustard-macerated onions, a pickle slice and drizzle of mustard if desired. Serve immediately while warm and crisp!