I fell in love with these breads long before I stopped eating gluten. I love how simple they are to make. And I love their chewy texture.
I have made versions of them for brunches and they are always a crowd pleaser. And they are so fast to make. The most time-consuming part of the recipe is putting the batter into the muffin tins. The batter can be made ahead and kept in the fridge for up to a week.
The original recipe is for Brazilian-style cheese breads and uses queso fresco. Since I’m not trying to replicate a traditional pão de queijo, I use a variety of other cheeses.
I have made these with feta, Parmesan, chèvre and cheddar. Each type is delicious, but the cheddar are my favourite. They are good eaten both warm and cold, but, let me warn you, they are so addictive that if you start eating them warm, you might find you don’t have any left to find out exactly how they taste at room temperature.
Makes 24 miniature cheese breads
Adapted from Easy Brazilian Cheese Bread, Elise Bauer, Simply Recipes
1 egg
1/3 cup canola oil (or other light vegetable oil)
2/3 cup milk
a scant 1 1/2 cups tapioca flour
1 cup grated old cheddar cheese, loosely packed
1 tsp of salt
Heat your oven to 400 F. Whisk together the egg, oil, milk and salt. Add tapioca flour and blend, using a hand blender. Next, blend in the grated cheddar.
Grease a 24-cup mini muffin tin using oil or a cooking spray. Make sure to grease the sides as well as the bottoms. Divide the batter evenly among the cups.
Bake at 400 F for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from tin with the help of a plastic knife. Let cool slightly on a rack. Eat warm or cold.
Notes
- • If you don’t eat gluten, make sure to use a cooking spray that is oil only. Some contain wheat flour.
• If using Parmesan or chèvre, use a fully packed 1/2 cup of cheese. If using feta, use up to 1 cup of cheese.
• When I use chèvre, I add a bit more milk to thin out the batter.
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