"Pão De Queijo" - Brazilian Cheese Bread

Ingredients

• 2 cups of "polvilho doce" (Sweet Manioc Starch or Almidón Dulce de Yuca - AMAFIL is a good brand)
• 1 cup of natural parmesan cheese 
• 1 cup of shredded monterey jack cheese
• 16 oz of cream cheese
• 2 tsp of baking powder
• 1 tsp of salt 
• 2 egg yokes

Preparation Yield 50 

1. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix it all together with your hands for about 20 minutes or until all ingredients are well combined.  
2. Let dough rest for a few minutes (optional)
3. Spray three cookie sheets with cooking spray or just spread butter around it so that the bread doesn't stick.
4. With your hand grab the dough and circle it around your palms making the shape of a ball (about half a Tblsp worth although you can make it bigger if you'd like. Just be aware that the yield would be less)
5. Preheat oven to 350
6. Place the dough balls on the cookie sheet at least 1 1/2 inches apart so they don't join. 
7. Bake the cheese bread for about 30 minutes.  When their bottoms are golden brown they are done.  Don't let it get too dark on the bottom or else they'll burn.

Experience

I will be making this quite often!  The smell is amazing and the taste is even better!  The suggestion is to make it a "pão de queijo" party!  Thanks for the idea Vera Silva!  You can set up platters with spreads and other fill-ins like bacon in sour cream, cold cuts, and preserves.  We ate ours with a great apricot preserve.  The combination is incredible!

For my next "pão de queijo" I will be experimenting using asiago cheese instead of parmesan and I'll also use mozzarella (usually that's the cheese used instead of monterey jack).  In the Brazilian culture and especially for people from my home state of Minas Gerais, "pão de queijo" is a must have at get togethers!  We just love it!  Kids love it too.  Summer begs for it almost every single day!  You can find the manioc flour in Brazilian grocery shops.  I also included the name in Spanish in case you need to go buy it in a Spanish grocery shop.

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