Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Brazilian cheesebread

waitertheressomethingWhen I learnt about Waiter Waiter There is Something in my Bread, the event organized by Spitton Extra I thought of so many different recipes. I read various different books that I have but without being able to make up my mind. It was only with the help of my dear friend Pat that I ended up deciding to post this recipe here which is so close to my heart.

Brazilian cheese bread is such a popular recipe in Brazil. It spans all the five regions in which the country is divided and no matter your background or where you come from you are very likely to be fond of it. Obviously there will be some who don’t.

There are many different recipes and I personally baked using a different one for a very long time until last year when I came across this recipe with potato in the dough. It fascinated me.

The main flour for cheese bread is tapioca flour (or potato starch in some countries). There are two types of tapioca flour in Brazil: a) the sweet or fresh starch, and b) the sour starch. The latter has a more acid taste than the former. It has all to do with the fermentation process of the cassava juice. In some parts of Brazil you only find one of the types. Luckily in London I find both of them and sometimes I have halfof the tapioca flour amount of the sweet one and the other half with the sour flour. I personaly believe that the sour flour gives a nice crust. Where the sweet one is odourless, the sour one is rather 'acid'( slightly smelly).

Melissa from The Traveller’s lunch box wrote a very good article about our national treasure – as a Brazilian I was marvelled by her accuracy of the facts.

The recipe below can be kept in the fridge for up to 2 days but it cannot be frozen. I tend to keep it in a sealed container. And bake medium portions at a time. The time in the oven tends to be around 15 minutes at least. The cheese bread will be nice and round(ish). If they are not left in the oven for the correct amount of time they will deflate as you remove them.

You can read more about it in an article I published at my Tapiocaflour blog. Please note that the cup measures in that article are for a 200ml equivalent cup – it applies to milk and vegetable oil amount.

Brazilian cheesebread - another variation

Approximately 30 units

140g tapioca flour ( tapioca starch)

300g cooked and mashed potato

100g grated parmesan cheese ( I tend to add a wee bit more)

1 tablespoon butter ( approx 15g)

1 egg

Put the tapioca flour and the mashed potato in a bowl and mix with your hands. Then add the milk and do the same. The next step will be to add the oil. The cheese is added after the oil is well incorporated into the mixture. Finally, bet the eggs lightly and then add them to the bowl. Here I prefer to mix everything with a woden spoon first, and then use my hands towards the end to ensure that the mixture is even. The mixture will be ready when it no longer stick to your fingers.

Make small balls and put then on a baking tray – no need to grease the tray. You can also freeze some of the recipe and bake the cheesebread from frozen.

Preheat the oven to medium temperature – 180oC , for about 15min and bake the cheesebread rolls until they become golden.

21 comments:

Pille said...

I remember these from Melissa's blog - they look really delicious (well, cheesy small puffs - what not to like). I cannot get hold of tapioca flour here, but maybe I can use some other starch?

Patricia Scarpin said...

My dear friend, I'm so glad you posted this recipe. It has Brazil written all over it.
I'm so proud you're showing the world some of the great food we have here in Brazil.
Your cheese bread look delicious, Tina!

MyKitchenInHalfCups said...

So, they're like little puffy cheese balls. They look just perfect. Look like they'd make fun little sandwiches too!

Anonymous said...

Dear Valentina,

I was sooo looking for this recipe! It's just a shame it's so hard (if not impossible) to find tapioca flour here in Coventry. Well, one more thing to add to my to-buy list next time I'm in London. Ps. Love your blog!

Anonymous said...

Hi Valentina! Your Brazilian cheesebread sound just lovely! I can think of a number dishes that they would be a nice accompaniment to!

Andrew said...

sound and look delicious! Many thanks for taking part in Waiter.

Freya said...

This sounds like a wonderfully moist bread! They look so moreish!

Deborah said...

These look so tasty! I have never used tapioca flour before - I will have to see if I can find it so that I can try this recipe.

Brilynn said...

cheese and bread together is the perfect marriage of two great things!

Jeanne said...

YUm yum yum. These look like the ultimate indulgence - starchy and cheesy. Thanks for sharing a wonderful recipe!

Valentina said...

Pille, I wonder if I could send you a bag of tapioca flour.Will enquire at teh local post office.

Pat, thank you for the support

Tanna, i like the sandwhich idea. That's one of the things I love aobut sharing recipes: all the new possibilities.

Eli, I live in Surrey and I buy tapioca flour at my local health food store. they have all sorts of flours. Perhaps you could check near you.

Gilly, you must let me know if you give it a go.Would love to know what you think of it.

Andrew, I loved the idea. Will be joining future events.Thank you for organizing it.

Freya, it is indeed very nice.hot out of the oven.

Deborah, whre I live my local health food store stores tapioca flour - they have all sorts of flour

Brillyn,a marriage made in food heaven if you ask me.

Hi Jeanne, my pleausure.will try and bring different recipes from Brasil every so often.

thepassionatecook said...

this looks delicious - we make similar rolls in austria, but i not with tapioca, of course. where in london do you buy this flour? i'd love to try this!

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

Those breads look gorgeous! I've been meaning to bake a batch of those once and I guess it's about time that I use my tapioca flour...

♥ mesa para 4 said...

Olá, esta receita de pão de queijo é bem diferente de uma que eu uma vez exprimentei que levava polvilho azedo... não gostei. Como nunca fui ao Brazil, nunca provei um verdadeiro pão de queijo e o nome é tão apelativo. Acho que um dia destes vou exprimentar já que a minha praia (como voçês dizem) é mais bolos.
É bom escrever em português para variar.
Um abraço de Portugal

Anonymous said...

Oh, Valentina!

They look so delicious!

Catherine said...

These are very popular (and expensive) at our local farmers' market (Marin, nr San Francisco). I'm glad to try my hand at baking these. Thanks for sharing.

Lis said...

They are gorgeous, Valentina! I know I would absolutely adore these lil guys! Wonderful entry for the event!

xoxxo

Peabody said...

Yet another type of flour I need to buy!!!

Anonymous said...

It looks delicious, I'm going to try it, thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

Hello!
This is my first time reading this blog, and I must say I'm very pleased to find it! I lived in Brasil for almost a year and ever since returning to Canada, I have been searching for mandioca/tapioca flour to make pao de queijo and tapioca (the pan-fried kind, not the pudding!) and finally today I broke down and ordered some off the internet. Very pleased to find this recipe, thank you so much!!

wildfilly said...

Valentina seems you forgot the amount of milk in this recipe! How much would I use? fitart@aol.com
marilyn