Pão de Queijo

These are gluten-free little Brazilian cheesy bread-balls. They're great, and they don't keep worth a damn, so be prepared to eat the lot as soon as they're cool enough! Taught to me by the wonderful Maria and Leonora.

• 0.5 cup vegetable oil
• 0.33 cup water
• 0.33 cup milk
• 1 tsp. salt
• 8 oz. (2 cups) tapioca starch
• 2 eggs
• 6 oz. hard cheese such as pecorino romano or parmesan

Pre-heat your oven to 375F.

Bring the oil, water, milk, and salt to boiling point on the stove. Stop immediately white foam appears.

Add this hot mixture to the tapioca starch. Mix well with a wooden spoon and let it rest for about 15 minutes. You will get a white ball. Mix in the eggs and cheese. You will get a gooey, sticky mass.

To form balls, cover your hands and a teaspoon with oil, use the teaspoon to roll spoonsful of dough into rough ball shapes (they will smooth out during baking). Each ball should be about 1" in diameter.

Space them out on a baking sheet, lightly greased or covered with parchment paper, and bake for 20–25 minutes until the tops begin to brown.

They make great alcohol-absorbers at a party, or feed 4 with soup.