I fondly remember a time when I served warm gougères (savory French cheese puffs), along with a glass of bubbly, to everyone who entered our house. This pre-dinner routine lasted a good long time, in part because the cheese puffs looked and tasted sophisticated, but were deceptively simple to make.
My love affair with gourgères ended abruptly when my gluten intolerance began. Fortunately not much time passed before I started reading about a popular Brazilian snack called Pão de Queijo, or cheese bread. The bread, which usually comes in the form of mini rolls, gets its structure from tapioca flour. Brazilian versions often use a combination of both sweet and sour manioc (another name for tapioca) starch. Hunting down both of those flours sounded like a chore, so I experimented using only the relatively easy-to-find tapioca flour and the results tasted great.
Whipping up the dough in a stand mixer is a cinch. You can mix it by hand as well, but remember the dough is rather thick and sticky; you’ll need your arm muscles. Some Pão de Queijo contain only one type of cheese, but I like the salty-and-gooey combo that comes from using both Parmesan and cheddar. You can certainly substitute other cheeses; Gruyere would make an excellent choice.
When you taste the cheese puffs for the first time, I hope you’re intrigued by their chewiness. The texture may not be what you anticipate, but it’s nothing if not addictive. I eat them as hors d’oeuvres, or as the perfect accompaniment to a hot bowl of soup. Slice them in half and make little tea sandwiches with turkey and Dijon mustard, ham, or chicken salad. Or bake larger versions in a regular muffin tin and use them as buns for sliders or popover-like cups for scrambled eggs. I’m sure with a little experimentation you’ll come up with your own favorite new twist.
I LOVE this recipe and use it often as the bun for lamb sliders, turkey and havarti tea sandwiches and chicken salad. Thank you for posting this!
Yes, Kyra was the genius who thought to use these as little buns. I was just popping them in my mouth as-is, but this idea adds infinite possibilities…
Oh boy, I have to try this as well! What a great idea for a bun!
Can’t wait for your cook book!
Thanks!
Laura, these are absolutely fantastic! I used smoked gouda because I miss Whole Foods’ gouda rolls and I accidentally shredded 2.5 oz of gouda. They came out great and hubby and I nearly ate all of them while waiting for the lamb chops to cook on the grill. Hubby wonders if this would make a good dumpling…? Thanks so much for the recipe and good luck with the book (I’ve already pre-ordered my copy!).
I’m so glad you like them. Addictive, aren’t they?! I’m intrigued by the dumpling idea–would you poach them in a soup? Let me know if you try it.
Have you ever tried making the wet dough with the cheese as a batter and just cooking off the next morning/day?
I have not tried that method. The batter may form a crust, which I suspect you could eliminate by pressing a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface, but I wonder if it might negatively affect their ability to rise in the oven.