Pao de Queijo

So you know how the powers that be at Fogo de Chao hope you fill up on the salad bar before the parade of meat begins? Yeah, I don't even go to the salad bar. I just wait for the waiter to bring the basket full of cheese bread. Then I fill up on that and don't end up eating much meat at all. That is some expensive bread I've been eating. I needed to find an alternative.

I have been dying to make these for weeks. My friend Susan sent me a recipe that I tried and the results were less than stellar. I was convinced I hadn't read the instructions carefully, so I tried again. The results were no better. I was bummed but after some internet research I realized I was using the wrong kind of tapioca flour. I went back to Whole Foods and could not find the correct type of flour so I ordered online. Five days later I was back in business!

I used this recipe but skipped the blender and the toppings. I cannot adequately describe how amazingly these turned out. I want to eat them all the time.


Pao de Queijo
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Add all ingredients into a medium mixing bowl. Blend very well, making sure no bits of tapioca starch are left unmixed.

The mixture will be a little thinner than pancake batter. Pour the batter in mini-muffin tins, to no more than 3/4 of their capacity, and cook for 20 minutes. Most will come out right away without sticking. If some stick slightly, allow them to cool for a few minutes and probe them out gently with the tip of a knife. The recipe makes 20-24 little cheese breads.