Can you hear that? Sounds like someone is hopping around… Might just be Easter bunny :–) At my place it’s more likely my personal “bunny” (=my husband) lurking around the kitchen, trying to sneak in unseen. Why? No, not to hide Easter eggs (as is tradition here)… But to nick as many pães de queijo (= Brazilian cheese rolls) as he can possibly carry! And he has big hands! Well… I have to admit, those little cheesy puffs are rather addictive. Rock’n’roll for your taste buds. Or maybe Samba… Either way, a party in your mouth ;–)
If you have ever had the chance to eat some of these gorgeous rolls in Brazil, you will know what I mean. Otherwise, you HAVE to try this recipe. It will definitely broaden your bread-horizon :–)
It was quiet a challenge to get it right, AFTER using up all the necessary tapioca (starch gained from manioc roots), that I got from my last visit to Brazil. The tapioca flour available over here in Austria is just not the same. However, I think I got pretty close now. At least, measuring my success in sudden disappearances of large amounts of pães de queijo, I suppose I did it ;–)
I wanted to share the final recipe with you before Easter, so you would have an amazing, new (if not Brazilian ;–)), quick-to-make, savoury snack to serve at your Easter brekkie/brunch/lunch/dinner or just between all those Easter eggs.
It’s a complete crowd pleaser – I promise! And with this recipe super quick to make, as you do not have to actually shape all the rolls by hand, but simply pour batter into a muffin tin :–D Might not be the most authentic way of doing it, but that’s how I got best results in taste and consistency with the ingredients at hand. Which are nothing out of the ordinary, except of course the already mentioned tapioca flour. If you don’t happen to have it sitting in your pantry already, you can usually find it in Asian grocery stores and definitely on the internet. It might also be sold as tapioca starch and, either way, looks much like corn starch. Just make sure you do not use tapioca pearls. They don’t work well here. Trust me, I have tried. Even after processing them to flour, they don’t behave as needed for pão de queijo.
This type of bread tastes best fresh from the oven, while still warm. You can keep the batter in your fridge up to a week and bake them fresh as you need them. Just make sure you give it a good stir before you pour it into the muffin tin.
I should probably also mention, that I tried to make pão de queijo with corn starch. I figured it would be nice to have a plan B in case I could not get my hands on any tapioca. Well, as I don’t like to through away any food if I can help it, I decided to invite my neighbour’s chickens for lunch ;–) They pecked away happily and I could forget all about this (in hindsight) completely horrible idea of corn starch. So, no alternative, tapioca flour it has to be!
Last Thursday, which was Maundy Thursday, or as we call it “Green Thursday”, I even snuck in some spinach. Such a pleasant feeling to have some spring-inspired green on your table, while spring’s greens are currently being drowned by grey clouds and rain. Besides, it is custom here to eat something green on Green Thursday. And it worked out beautifully! If you like spinach, you should bake that next, right after the “normal” just-cheese version! I imagine some mixed in herbs or dried tomato would taste awesome too, but that I will have to try yet.
Another word to the “normal” version: I use feta in my recipe (after trying all kinds of cheese) and my Brazilian husband tells me, that this tastes right. However, if you are in the mood for something a bit more tangy, mix in some parmesan.
Also: if you are rather a fan of not too gooey pão de queijo, I recommend adding parmesan and omitting the oil.
Anyway, green (=springy-sunny) or not (=rainy-grey like here…), I hope you are enjoying amazing Easter holidays! May Easter bunny bring you many yummy eggs and good, colourful vibes!
And here is the way to my present favourite snack:
Ingredients:
(1 cup holds 250 ml = average coffee cup)
“Normal” version:
- 1 egg
- 3 tbsp neutral (e.g. rapeseed oil) tasting oil (or omit if you want less gooey, more crunchy pães de queijo)
- 1/3 cup milk
- 3/4 cup tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup feta cheese crumbled
- 1/2 tsp salt
- optional: 1/4 cup parmesan roughly grated (for more tangy or crunchy pães de queijo)
- a minimuffin tin (for 24 pieces)
“Green” version:
- 1 egg
- 1/3 cup milk
- 100 gramm = approx. 1/2 cup blanched spinach
- 3/4 cup tapioca flour
- 1/4 cup feta cheese crumbled
- 1/4 cup parmesan roughly grated
- 1/2 tsp salt
- dash freshly ground nutmeg
- a minimuffin tin (for 24 pieces)
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 200 °C top-bottom heat.
- Lightly grease the muffin tin with a little extra oil.
- Add all ingredients to your blender/food processor and blend until a smooth white (or green), liquid batter has formed.
- Pour the batter into the muffin tin, leaving around 3 mm of space at the top.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned.
- Enjoy fresh out of the oven, if possible.
Yields 24 pieces (approx. 1 mini-muffin tin)