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Gluten-Free Cheesy Tapioca Bread

 This is my ultimate treat! Cheesy, gooey gluten free bread made with tapioca flour.

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I am so excited I finally got this recipe perfectly and I can share it now! I’ve been trying different recipes of gluten free cheesy tapioca bread for a while and eventually found the perfect one here.

Meet Pão de queijo

Pão de queijo (cheese buns) or cheesy puffs, as I am calling, are the Brazilian equivalent of North American donuts or muffins, although not sweet, it is a savoury snack gluten free bread, freshly baked to be enjoyed at any time of the day, along with any kind of beverage.

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It is a cheesy and puffy type of bread made with tapioca flour or sour cassava flour and grated Parmesan (or actually any other cheese you like). This type of starch makes the dough stretchy and a bit gooey but when baked, the puffs turn into this amazing cheesy, melt in your mouth consistency, with a crisp and crunchy top. Irresistible!

In Brazil, pão de queijo is the treat to have with a small espresso any time of the day, or as a quick breakfast, a cheesy bread that can be found at any bakery (padaria) or cafes around the corner, always fresh and hot, out of the oven.

The added benefit to this delicious tapioca flour cheesy bread: is gluten free!

The original recipe goes back to the XIX century in Minas Gerais, a Brazilian state, famous for its home made culinary, reminiscent of the big farms where milk and eggs were abundant and women were always on a quest to feed generously their large families. To this day it is a feast to be invited to a dinner cooked by a Minas Gerais local! Their culinary hospitality goes beyond anything you have ever tasted!

Despite all the historical facts that are known in Brazil about these gluten free bread (pães de queijo), and how they are so ingrained in the Brazilian fast food culture, this recipe can also be compared to the French version of cheese gougres.

It is not so easy to find gluten free bread recipe and it is a great option for your dinner rolls, specially if your main entrée is something lighter as sea food, for example. You can have it all ready to go, just pop them in the oven 25 minutes before you’re ready to serve them, and you will be ready to impress.

Related: Homemade Milk Buns that Melt in your Mouth

Or enjoy it with your coffee or tea, jam, cream cheese or even peanut butter on the side. It melts in your mouth, really to die for!
Also it is light enough to be used as an appetizer in which case you can make the balls a bit smaller.

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If you can find sour cassava you will get the characteristic subtle tanginess of the real ones, but regular tapioca is a great substitute. I must say this is the tastier gluten free type of bread you can ever find!

Cheesy Tapioca Bread (Pão de queijo)

2 dozen puffs

1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups (10 ounces) tapioca flour or sour cassava flour
2 eggs
1 – 1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese or any other cheese you like

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a baking pan with parchment and set aside.

Combine milk, oil, and salt in the saucepan, and whisking occasionally, bring it to a gentle boil over medium heat. Remove from heat as soon as you see big bubbles coming through the milk.
Add all of the tapioca flour to the saucepan and stir until there is no more dry tapioca flour in the bowl. The dough will be grainy and gelatinous at this point.

Transfer the dough to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. (Or you can do the next few steps by hand but be ready for a work-out!). Beat the dough for a few minutes (3 or 4 min) at medium speed until it smooths out and has cooled enough that you can hold your finger against the dough for several seconds.

With the mixer on medium, beat the eggs into the dough in two additions. Wait until the first addition has been fully incorporated into the dough before adding the second. Make sure the dough is well mixed.

With the mixer still on medium, beat in the cheese until fully incorporated. The resulting dough will be very sticky, stretchy, and soft with a consistency between cake batter and cookie dough.

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Using an ice cream scoop, a tablespoon measure, scoop rounded portions of the dough into mounds on the parchment-lined baking sheet or even easier, these Non stick silicone baking liners. Space the mounds an inch or two apart.

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Transfer the sheet with the puffs to the oven and immediately turn down the heat to 350°F. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the puffs have puffed, the outsides are dry, and they are just starting to colour. Cool briefly and serve still warm! Leftover puffs can be kept in an airtight container for up to a week and re-crisped in a warm oven or toaster oven.

They can be frozen before baking. I baked them out of the freezer, for approximately 30 min at 400F. It is a quick snack and normally I just bake them using my mini oven.

If you love bread you might also like these Home made milk buns. Check it out!

How to make Pão de queijo

cheesy tapioca bread

gluten free cheesy tapioca puffs

Melt in your mouth cheesy Brazilian puffs