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Pão de Queijo

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It’s Cheesefare Week, a.k.a. Butter Week, for Orthodox Christians, this week before Lent. That prompts me to post this recipe again, for Brazilian Cheese Rolls. Maybe you have found them in the freezer aisle of Trader Joe’s or elsewhere in recent years, but they are easy to make at home. They are full of eggs and cheese, and gluten-free, because the starchy component is tapioca flour. I am fond of the mochi texture, and will likely enjoy a few this week.

I’ve copied below what I found on the website years ago, and also linked to the site, where the author shares some of the culture behind the eating of these rolls in Brazil, where they are very popular, to put it mildly, and often eaten for breakfast. The pictures are of my own results.

Pão de Queijo

There seems to be widespread consensus that these are quite tricky to make, but I didn’t find this to be the case. One thing I would recommend is to measure the tapioca starch by weight if you can, which is infinitely more reliable than by volume. If you do measure by volume, note that I use the lightly-aerate-then-scoop-and-level method. In the recipe I’ve given some clues as to the texture you’re aiming for in the dough – the important thing to note is that it should not actually be firm enough to make balls, but rather soft, misshapen little mounds. If you’re worried, you can always test-bake a couple to see if they puff up like they should. As for the tapioca starch/flour, you should be able to locate some in an Asian or other ethnic market (where you might find it under the names yuca, manioc, cassava or polvilho azedo/doce, any one of which will fit the bill), or any place that stocks gluten-free baking supplies.

yield: 20-30 rolls, depending on size
source: adapted from Valentina and other online sources

4 cups (500g) tapioca starch (aka polvilho, yuca, manioc or cassava flour/starch), plus more if needed
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups (375ml) milk
1/2 cup (115g/125ml) unsalted butter or vegetable oil (oil is traditional, butter gives more flavor)
2 eggs, at room temperature
7oz (200g) finely-grated parmesan cheese

In the bowl of your heavy-duty stand mixer* combine the salt and tapioca starch. In a saucepan combine the milk and butter and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Fit your mixer with the paddle attachment, turn on medium-low, and begin drizzling in the hot milk mixture. At first it will all clump up, but keep drizzling in, stopping and scraping down the bowl and paddle as necessary, until it comes together and forms a smooth, thick, gluey dough. Beat for a minute or two, then turn the mixer off, cover the bowl with a cloth and let rest for 15 minutes, or until just warm to the touch.

Preheat the oven to 425F/210C. When the dough has cooled down a bit, turn the mixer to medium speed and add the eggs one by one. When they are completely incorporated add the cheese and mix for another minute. The dough should have a sticky, stretchy consistency somewhat like spent chewing gum (but a little softer). It shouldn’t be firm enough to roll into balls, but it should be firm enough to hold its shape on a spoon. Add a bit more starch or a splash more milk if needed.

Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a well-greased spoon (or a couple of spoons, or a spoon and your hands – whatever works), drop mounds of dough about the size of unshelled walnuts onto the sheets, spacing them at least an inch (2.5cm) apart. Don’t worry if they are not perfectly shaped, or if the surfaces are not smooth – in the heat of the oven the irregularities will melt away. Bake them for about 20-25 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway, until they’ve puffed up nicely and are golden brown in spots. Remove immediately to cooling racks and allow them to cool slightly before eating. The recipes say to enjoy them warm, but I liked them at room temperature as well – the texture is slightly different but still very good.

(*I don’t think I’d trust a handheld mixer to confront this sticky, viscous dough and survive, but it can be mixed by hand in a large bowl with a sturdy spoon – just be prepared for a good workout!)

https://travelerslunchbox.com/2007/02/04/list-making-for-dummies/

Sesame Flax Crackers

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Here’s the recipe a few of you were interested in:

SESAME FLAX CRACKERS

Makes about 25 crackers

1/2 cup (60g) ground flaxseeds
1/2 cup (80g) golden flaxseeds
1/2 cup (75g) unhulled sesame seeds
1 cup (240ml) water
1 1/2 tablespoons tamari
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
(optional: I added extra salt and some cayenne pepper; you could experiment with other seasonings.)

In a medium bowl combine all ingredients and stir well. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour. [That’s what the original recipe says, but I think it gets too thick in that amount of time; try 20-30 minutes.] The mixture will thicken up considerably and form a gelatinous slurry that is pourable. Add a little water if it is too thick to pour.

After about 45 minutes preheat the oven to 350F (175C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Transfer the “dough” to the lined baking sheet and spread it as evenly as possible with a spoon or rubber spatula. Score the dough lightly with a pizza roller or knife to indicate the eventual cracker shapes, anywhere from 15-35 crackers.

Bake for 30-45 minutes until lightly browned. At this point you can turn off the oven and leave the crackers in there with the door slightly ajar, for them to finish drying and crisping. But I like to speed up the process; I turn the oven down and often break the crackers apart, then keep baking them as long as necessary to achieve the desired crispness.

When they are cool, break them apart if you haven’t already, and store in an airtight container at room temperature for as long as two weeks. If they absorb moisture just bake them at a low temperature for about 15 minutes to re-crisp.

The pictures show two baking sheets because I always make a double batch. They are too easy to eat!

Spicy and Colorful Stew

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I’m trying to use up some things in the cupboard and freezer. So this afternoon I started defrosting a gallon bag of cooked garbanzo beans, which had been prepared that far and stashed away some months ago as the first step in using up a big bag of the legumes that had been acquired “way back.”
There are usually a few boxes of frozen spinach around, so I set one of those out, and sat down at the computer to search online for recipes that would use both items. The first recipe I found was a Spanish stew with North African influence, but I scrolled on down the search results to an Indian dish, which I noted would also use up the lime I’ve had around for a couple of weeks.

Coriander and cumin were sautéed in oil along with onion and garlic.

Lucky me, I had just bought the tomatoes this week. Of course, the dish could be made with canned garbanzos, fresh tomatoes, etc. I don’t know about canned spinach, though….it sounds nasty. Frozen spinach, by the way, has been found to retain more nutrients than bunches of fresh spinach, as it is processed so quickly in our modern world, while fresh spinach often sits around for days losing vitamins. If you are going to cook it anyway, you might as well use the frozen and convenient product.


One recipe said to use lime OR tamarind juice. I don’t know anything about tamarinds.

 

 

 

You can see that the spinach also was not completely defrosted when I added it along with the tomatoes, after the onion and garlic had browned.

As soon as I put those two items in, it came back to me that cast iron + greens + tomatoes can have a color-deadening chemical effect, so I quickly spooned the mix into a stainless steel kettle. After about 10 minutes of simmering I added the garbanzos and remaining seasonings, and simmered the lot until the beans were soft and had absorbed some flavor. (Canned garbanzos would likely have already been more salty than my frozen ones were.)

Spicy Indian Chickpea and Spinach Stew

About 10 cups of cooked garbanzo beans
1 large yellow onion, chopped
10 oz. frozen chopped spinach
3 cloves garlic, diced
About 1/4 cup oil
1 large can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 teaspoons mild chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
2 teaspoons sugar

This recipe made about 3 quarts of stew, plenty to freeze and some to eat later in the week. I can see it being the basis for elaborations and extensions into pots of soup as well. One could add lamb or chicken, more tomatoes or spinach, other vegetables, etc., and perhaps purée a portion to add back in.

Lucky again, I had some fresh coriander, a.k.a. cilantro, in the fridge, to pretty things up, as the spinach, of course, was no longer bright. This is a vegan dish that fits right in with this season of the church, The Apostles Fast, when we abstain from animal products generally. The flavor was a nicely complex balance of the various spices with just the slightest heat. A bowlful of this dish would be good with some chewy bread for dipping–but that was something not to be found in the house!