Easy Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pão de Queijo)
It's a delicious and easy bread that's crunchy on the outside and cheesy on the inside. It's naturally gluten-free and takes less than 25 minutes from start to finish.
Servings: 24 cheese rolls
Calories: 88kcal
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil (vegetable oil can also be used)
- 2 tablespoons melted butter (vegetable oil can also be used)
- ⅓ cup milk
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt (milk also works)
- 1 egg
- 6.5 oz tapioca starch (1½ cup - also known as tapioca flour)
- ½ tsp salt (or to taste, depending on the cheese)
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
- 3 oz shredded cheese (About 1 cup - Queso fresco, Mozzarella, and Parmesan work great)
- More cheese to sprinkle on top (optional) (Parmesan works great)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400ºF. Grease a 24 mini muffin pan.
- Add all ingredients in a blender, but cheese, and blend until smooth. Scrape sides as needed.
- Add the shredded cheese, and press the pulse button a few times, just to mix in the cheese.
- Pour batter in the greased mini muffin cups, about ¾ full.
- If you want, you can sprinkle some finely shredded Parmesan cheese on top.
- Bake it for about 15-18 minutes, or until it gets a light golden color.
- Remove it from the oven and let it cool for just a few minutes. It's best when fresh and hot. You can also open it and spread some butter or cream cheese inside. Yummm!! Enjoy!
Notes
The mix of olive oil and butter gives the cheese bread a great taste, but if you don't have them on hand, vegetable oil also works.
The original Brazilian cheese bread uses a sour type of tapioca starch that I can't find in the U.S. So, to compensate I found out that yogurt works pretty well. If you don't have it though, you can use milk (⅔ cup instead of ⅓).
This is a fast version of the traditional Pão de queijo. Some people like to use Cheddar or other strong-flavored cheeses. You can change the cheese to your liking. Just have in mind that it'll taste a little different from the original, and it might have a different texture inside. You can also add some spices or herbs to create your own style of Pão de Queijo. The possibilities are endless.
If using Parmesan cheese, don't use the pre-packed one. They don't have much taste and change considerably the inside texture of the cheese bread.
Nutrition
Calories: 88kcal