Last updated on June 30th, 2020
Do you love cheese as much as I do? Did you wake up at 3am to make nachos the other night too? No? Just me then? Hm. Anytime you want to stop by at 3am to wake me up for a nacho-fest, I’m totally in. I know I’m supposed to be all hyped up on summer’s stone fruit and berries (which I am), but guys – I’m going through cheese right now like it’s going out of season.
The test batch of these cheddar Brazilian cheese bread balls disappeared in one evening. So did the second batch the very next night. I’ve made them three times now and they never last more than a few hours. Any excuse to eat more cheese.
A couple of weeks ago, I found myself on a hotel express elevator in Madison, WI with a stranger who decided the 30 seconds from the 11th floor to the lobby was an opportune time to strike up a conversation. “So, what brings you to Madison?”
“The Cheese.” And with that, the doors opened. He looked totally baffled, but we were out of time for further explanation.
I wasn’t joking – I flew out to Madison to visit with the Wisconsin Cheese Board in an attempt to eat my body weight in cheese (and to join in a cheesy harvest feast for their upcoming Grate. Pair. Share.). To start the trip off right, they left an ice chest with fresh cheese curds waiting for me in my hotel room. If only every hotel I stayed at came with fresh cheese curds, I’d forever be a happy traveler (also a cat – all hotel rooms should come with a cat option, I think).
The History of Brazilian Cheese Bread
Since returning home, I’ve dreamt almost exclusively about cheese and of creating a seeded cheddar version of the naturally gluten-free Brazilian cheese bread I fell in love with at a street fair many years ago. Pão de queijo (also called Brazilian cheese bread) has become a staple in Brazilian cuisine, that through the years, has created a global craze. The creation of pão de queijo’s is credited to enslaved people in Minas Gerais, Brazil who started making bread out of leftover tapioca flour from processing the yucca root, mixing in cheese. Today, cassava or yucca root is still essential to the liveliehoods of many indigenous populations in South America.
This version I’m sharing here is my attempt to make them at home using ingredients I keep in my kitchen, but one day I hope to travel to Brazil to eat the real thing and Olivia’s Cuisine has a recipe for traditional Brazilian cheese bread. I added molasses wash on the outside to help them crisp up and brown on the outside. Inside, they’re chewy, bready, and cheesy. The seeds are not at all traditional, but add a bit of crunch, inspired by some cheesy breadsticks my friends brought to a potluck once.
In my cheese-obsessed opinion, this cheese bread is meant for summer BBQs and dinner parties (or for any other reason you’re gathering 2+ people together at the same table) – who doesn’t love something chewy and cheesy to chase down dinner?
Seeded Cheddar Brazilian Cheese Bread
This spin on naturally gluten-free Cheddar Brazilian Cheese Bread is crispy on the outside with crunchy seeds, and chewy, bready, and cheesy on the inside.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup safflower or vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon + 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
- 1½ cups tapioca flour/starch (180 g)
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, finely grated
- 1/2 teaspoon molasses
- 2 teaspoons water
- 1 tablespoon pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
- ½ tablespoon sunflower seeds
- ½ tablespoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a small saucepan, bring the milk, oil, and 1 teaspoon of salt to boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
- Just when the milk begins to bubble, remove pan from heat.
- While stirring, slowly add the tapioca flour to the pan. Continue stirring to combine (the mixture will be sticky and might not incorporate completely, but that's okay).
- Transfer the sticky dough to stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until the dough is smooth and cool enough to touch.
- Whisk the egg in a small bowl. With mixer on medium-high speed, add the egg into the dough and beat until combined. This might take several minutes and might at first look like it won't incorporate, but keep at it for several minutes until it's smooth.
- Add the grated cheese a small amount at a time and beat over medium until fully incorporated and there are no more large cheese chunks showing through.
- Wetting your hands between each roll, grab a ball of dough about 1-2 tablespoons big and drop them 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Whisk the water and molasses together in a small bowl and lightly brush the top of each roll with this molasses wash.
- Sprinkle each roll with a bit of salt (1/4 teaspoon total).
- Combine the pepitas, sunflower seeds, and sesame seeds in a small bowl and divide them among the top of the rolls, lightly pressing the seeds down.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake the rolls for 30-33 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Serve warm. (Reheat rolls for 9 seconds in the microwave or for 5 minutes in the oven).
Lisa / Good on Paper -
I love Brazilian Cheese Bread! My half Brazilian bff introduced it to me and I was hooked. Yours looks especially delicious!!!
Sarah Menanix -
It’s so addicting, right?? Maybe I’ll make some for our next date when you’re back from your trip!
Karen @ The Food Charlatan -
Haha!! Um let’s be real though, why would anyone else go to Wisconsin. :)
I’m waiting for you to set up this cat-hotel. I think you will make a fortune. But you will probably have to move to Portland or somewhere else with a lot of hipsters. Maybe you should leave Brazilian cheese bread on their pillows too, in place of mints. (Okay, actually, “Come to our hotel, we have cheesy pillows” doesn’t really scream romantic weekend getaway spot…)
Sarah Menanix -
Cat hotel! I should really start looking for investors for this idea…
Tieghan -
If only I still had those curds…THE BEST!! Also, I semi-hate awkward stranger convos. UGH!!
This bread is so amazing and I would love it! Gimme all the cheese and carbs please! :)
Sarah Menanix -
Dude – the curds, right? I need them in my life asap.
todd wagner -
Yeah, yeah…the cheese is the star, but for me these are all about the seeds. Excellent touch! Oh, and that guy deserves to be confused for starting a convo in an express elevator.
On a side note, is every elevator in a Holiday Inn Express an express elevator? What happens if you try to strike up a conversation about cheese on one of THOSE?!!
On a side, side note, be careful who you invite to late night nacho-fests. I’ve had a few awkward encounters….just sayin.
Sarah Menanix -
Yeah – like a friend who stayed for a week and ate all your food and used your computer?? (I kid, I kid)
Traci | Vanilla And Bean -
Goodness, Sarah, look at that cheese to flour ratio in these little rolls! I can see you have cheese on the brain for sure, flyin all the way out to WI for such a craving. Perhaps the cat option should be a cats option, especially with all the cheese left in your hotel room… you may need help eating it. OMGeee midnight nachos, yesss, with big ole’ jalapeños and copious amounts of sour cream and guacamole… uh. Hand up high. !!
Sarah Menanix -
You’re right – two cats is way better than one! Want to go into business on a cat hotel with me???
Amanda Paa -
sounds like your trip to wisconsin was great! the elevator conversation you mentioned is quite typical :) i am all over these cheese balls, and i love how pretty they look with the seeds. xo
Sarah Menanix -
The midwest was even more charming than I expected! Thank you so much Amanda! <3
Veronica -
Yes! I will be your partner in Crime for cheesy nachos! Love this recipe and all those beautiful seeds! A girl after my own heart!!
Liz @ Floating Kitchen -
Yes to all the cheeses. Can never get enough. these cheesy, carby rolls look insane. They definitely wouldn’t last more than a few hours at my house!
Michelle @ My Gluten-free Kitchen -
I’m so impressed with these Sarah! I love Brazilian cheese bread, but never thought to take them up a notch with seeds! Can’t wait to make these!
Vivian -
Ugg! Don’t have stand mixer, will it work with hand mixer?
Sarah Menanix -
As long as you’ve got some patience with holding it, a hand mixer will work just fine!
Zoe Bedeaux -
Hi there,
I fell in love with these too! Even bought a ready mix bag back wasn’t quite the same as the Brazilian cheese they use is so good..It’s been a few years and i’m over trying to replicate that exact cheese taste.Can I substitute Corn starch for tapioca in this recipe?
Thanks.
Sarah Menanix -
I would not sub in corn starch – the nature of tapioca starch is that it adds stretchiness/chew to the dough. Corn starch I imagine would be very brittle, dense, and dry/chalky.