Gluten-Free Cheese Rolls (Brazilian Cheese Bread, Pao de Quejo)

If you’re a longtime gfe reader—a really longtime reader—you may remember me showing you these gorgeous and delicious Gluten-Free Cheese Rolls previously. I wanted to remind you about them now because I think they will make a wonderful bread selection for your Thanksgiving celebration.

I first shared these photos and talked about these rolls when I participated in an Adopt a Gluten-Free Blogger event years ago. Have any of you been here long enough to remember those fun events?

When a blogger joined in that now-retired event, they would share a post on a gluten-free blogger they had “adopted” by exploring the individual’s blog and then sharing their experience with at least one of the blogger’s gluten-free recipes that they had made.

As I reported when I adopted Kate of Gluten-Free Gobsmacked, all of her gluten-free bread recipes really got my attention. But it was specifically her post on Pao de Quejo, Brazilian Cheese Bread, that drew me in. Or as she also called it, homemade Chebe bread. (I’m sure many of you are familiar with the Gluten-Free Chebe Bread Original Cheese Bread Mix.)

Her photo of her cheese rolls just made you wish you could reach through the screen and grab one. So I had to make them.

The recipe was not difficult at all. Plus, it could be made pretty inexpensively, too. Tapioca flour (which is downright cheap if purchased at one’s local Asian market), cheese, eggs, butter, baking powder, and seasonings. That’s it.

The fact that there’s no yeast used in this recipe means there’s no rising time needed.

You mix all the ingredients together, roll the dough into balls with your hands, and bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet. All in about 15 minutes total, I should add.

Then you enjoy them—in a big way!

Tapioca flour is also called tapioca starch because it is a starch extracted from the tubers of the cassava plant. No matter how it’s labeled, it’s not to be confused with cassava flour. “While both flours derive from cassava roots, tapioca flour is made only from the starch obtained from the root’s pulp. Cassava flour, on the other hand, comes from the entire root.”

Tapioca flour is very light and finely ground, and as a result will practically jump out when you’re scooping it from the package or stirring it in the bowl. (I mentioned that fact when I shared my Gluten-Free Pizza Bombs, which are a variation of these Gluten-Free Cheese Rolls.) So go slowly and carefully.

Tapioca flour thickens mixtures. That’s why the flour works so well in this recipe and—when combined with the cheese and eggs—gives the rolls a wonderful chewy texture. Tapioca flour “sets up” quickly though. So don’t dilly dally on mixing all your ingredients together.

In other words, don’t walk away to do another task before mixing all the ingredients into a dough. If you do walk away, you will end up with thickened hard pockets of flour that can no longer be mixed easily (and maybe not at all). 

These rolls would be a fantastic addition to your Thanksgiving table. They have such a wonderful taste and texture. I have made them for my whole family for Thanksgiving more than once (although my Gluten-Free Popovers are also a tradition for holidays). Everyone absolutely loved them! Chewy cheesy rolls that don’t taste gluten free—and that’s the way all gluten-free recipes should taste, right? 

Not only do they taste wonderful but they’re also such photogenic dinner rolls. What’s not to love?

If you make them for Thanksgiving or maybe even do a dry run before then, please report back!

More Gluten-Free Brazilian Cheese Roll-Inspired Recipes and Gluten-Free Bread for Special Dinners

~ The Best Gluten-Free Dinner Roll Recipes

~ The Best Gluten-Free French Bread Recipes (Including Baguettes)

~ The Best Gluten-Free Sourdough Bread Recipes

~ Gluten-Free Brazilian Un-Cheese Rolls (Grain-Free, Vegan)

~ Gluten-Free Homemade Red Lobster Garlic Cheese Biscuits

~ Gluten-Free Pizza Bombs

~ Top 20 Gluten-Free Challah Bread Recipes

Gluten-Free Cheese Rolls (Brazilian Cheese Bread, Pao de Quejo) Recipe

Yield: 12 rolls

Gluten-Free Cheese Rolls (Brazilian Cheese Bread, Pao de Quejo)

Print

Delicious easy-to-make rolls that are crisp on the outside and chewy and light on the inside.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes

Total Time 13 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 ¼ cups tapioca flour/starch
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ¼ to ½ tsp pizza seasoning or Italian seasoning
• 2 cups shredded cheese of choice (I like using a blend with some cheddar included for color)
• ¼ cup melted butter

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Add eggs to large mixing bowl. Beat slightly. Add other ingredients in the order shown, stirring some after each addition. (Stir gently when adding tapioca flour as it tends to “jump” out of the bowl. Also, be sure to stir immediately or the ingredients will thicken and stirring will be very difficult.) Once all ingredients have been added, stir well until ingredients are fully incorporated. I like to use a wooden spoon (gotta keep up one’s hand and arm strength).
3. With lightly greased hands, form dough into balls about 1 ½ to 2 inches in diameter and place on the baking sheet about 2 inches apart. At this point, you can flatten the dough balls with your hands some if you wish, but I usually just leave mine “as is” because I think that the centers turn out chewier this way.
4. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown.
5. Let cool just a bit and then remove from baking sheet.

Notes

Very slightly adapted from Kate Chan, Gluten-Free Gobsmacked.

Worth repeating: Do not let ingredients sit in the mixing bowl before blending. Mix immediately after adding all ingredients.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

Originally published November 15, 2024; updated November 17, 2024.

Free Email Updates to gfe Please enter all required fields Correct invalid entries