Category Archives: Breads

Brazilian Corn Cake with Guava

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Bolo de Fubá com Goiabada

Minas Gerais is a Brazilian State known for delicious homemade guava marmalades and jams. It is also known for corn cakes, so adding the two together just makes sense.

Brazilian corn cakes are usually sweet and there are endless recipes with all sorts of variations and additions. They can be made with coconut milk, orange juice, caramel, guava, other marmalades and even cheese.

Here is a recipe for a family favorite made with guava marmalade — which can be found in many Asian markets at the Latin American, Hawaiian and the Philippines sections. It is also very easy to find online.

Corn Cake with Guava is a wonderful treat with a cup of coffee or tea anytime of the day.

Ingredients:

  •  1 cup of sugar
  •  1 cup milk
  •  1/2 cup vegetable oil
  •  1 egg
  •  1 cup very fine corn meal (not coarse)
  •  1 cup flour
  •  1 table spoon corn starch
  •  1 table spoon fennel seeds
  •  1 table spoon baking powder
  •  approximately 12  pieces of guava marmalade about 1 inch sizes
  •  1/2 cup guava jelly or jam
  •  1 table spoon unsalted butter

Directions:

  1. Heat oven to 350F. Line medium-size rectangular cake pan with parchment paper, leaving a small edge on the sides to pull the cake when ready and grease it. Set aside.
  2. Beat sugar, oil, egg and milk in a food processor or blender.
  3. Mix corn meal, flour, corn starch in a large bowl. Add liquid mixture and gently mix with a whisker until well blended. Add baking powder, fennel seeds and fold in well.
  4. Pour batter in cake pan spreading evenly. place the guava pieces inside batter and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.
  5. While cake is baking, place guava jam or jelly in a sauce pan at a medium heat and stir constantly until it melts. turn off heat and stir in the butter.
  6. When cake is ready spread the melted guava over the top. If guava hardened, heat it up again on a low heat. Let cake rest and cool. Pull it out of the pan by the parchment paper.
  7. Cut cake in squares and place on serving platter.

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Brazilian Coconut Cake with Creamy Coconut Caramel Sauce

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Bolo de Côco com Bába de Môça.

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Brazilians love coconut! Well, most of them. There are so many recipes from sweet to savory that uses coconut; I can safely say, coconut is definitely a signature Brazilian ingredient. The recipes for coconut cakes are endless and it is my pleasure to share all the ones I love to make for my family and friends.

If you are following this blog, you will notice that there are other recipes, in which I used the same coconut caramel sauce. It is a very popular sauce to use on desserts and cakes in Brazil. In Portuguese, it is called, “Bába de Môça”. It is sooo good!

This recipe can easily be made vegan. Vegan alternatives will be posted side by side with original ingredients.

Ingredients to make the Cake

  • 2 cups of flour ( I like to use 1 cup of flour and 1 cup of coconut flour)
  • 1 cup of sugar
  • 1 cup of coconut flakes
  • a pinch of salt
  • 1 table spoon baking powder
  • 4 table spoons of softened butter or 1/4 cup coconut oil
  • 3 eggs ( use vegan egg substitute if making this cake vegan)
  • 1 and 1/2 cup coconut milk ( from the dairy section)
  • 1/2 tea spoon of vanilla extract

Ingredients for Coconut Caramel Sauce

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 can light coconut milk.

Directions

  1. Pre heat oven to 350F and lightly grease a cake pan ( I like to use a bundt pan).
  2. Mix butter or oil with sugar in a food processor, beat it until creamy and smooth. Add coconut flakes and pulse a few times. Add eggs and beat it again until well mixed. Add vanilla and coconut milk and beat it again.
  3. Then, add flour and salt, and mix well. Finally, add baking powder and pulse a couple times.
  4. Pour dough mixture in the cake pan and bake for 35 minutes or until the fork comes out clean. Let it rest.

Let’s make the sauce

  1. Heat sugar in a sauce pan, stirring constantly to caramelize the sugar. Once sugar is melted, turn heat to low and slowly add the coconut milk. The sugar will sizzle, so stay back for a few seconds to prevent getting burned. The sugar will harden a little, forming gooey caramel pieces, so it is important to keep stirring constantly for them to melt back to the sauce. Turn heat to high to help hard pieces of caramel melt faster. Once all melted, pour sauce in to a glass container. If there are still gooey pieces in sauce, heat it in microwave for 15 seconds.
  2. Turn cake over on to a serving platter and drizzle coconut caramel sauce over it. Save about half the amount of caramel sauce to drizzle over individual pieces.
  3. If the caramel hardens, just put it back in microwave for 10 seconds.

This cake is also delicious with a scoop of coconut or vanilla ice cream on top and a drizzle of coconut caramel sauce over it.

Note: English is not my first language, I apologize for any incorrections or mispellings. Please feel free to contact me in my inbox with any corrections. I just ask to be kind! Thank you

Banana Cake with Caramel Swirl

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Bolo de Banana com calda de Caramelo

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Bananas are a very common fruit in the Brazilian house hold and there are several types of bananas everywhere. They are inexpensive and widely available, which means lots of different recipes for banana cake. Banana cake with caramel sauce is one of my favorites because it’s easy to make with only two bananas and it’s very flavorful.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of cake flour
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 bananas mashed
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup oil
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 tbsp baking powder

For Caramel:

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup hot water

Directions:

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350F and grease a round cake pan with a hole in the middle.
  2. Add all ingredients for the cake (except for the baking powder) to a bowl and mix well until smooth,preferably an electrical mixer. Add baking powder. Gently mix.
  3. Transfer to the baking pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. The cake is ready when fork comes out clean.
  4. While the cake is baking, melt sugar in a sauce pan, stirring constantly until it is golden brown. Turn heat to low and add 1/2 cup of hot water. Keep stirring to prevent the sugar from hardening. If needed, add the rest of the hot water and keep stirring until a caramel sauce is formed. Transfer the sauce to a glass cup and let it rest until the cake is finished and cooled. Once the cake is cooled, transfer it to a serving platter and drizzle with the caramel sauce.

Enjoy!

 

Milk Rolls

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“Paezinhos de Leite”

These rolls are so easy to make, very popular with butter or stuffed with deli meat and cheese, it is a perfect lunch snack and is usually paired with a nice cup of coffee. This is a basic recipe but you can jazz it up with potatoes*,herbs, garlic, onion, just add to the dough. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

  • 3 and 1/2 cups of flour
  • 2 table spoons of sugar
  • 1 table-spoon of salt
  • 1 and 1/2 tea-spoon of active dry yeast
  • 1 cup of lukewarm milk
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil or melted butter
  • 3 eggs

Directions:

  1. Dissolve yeast in lukewarm milk. Pour milk, 2 eggs, oil or butter, sugar and salt in a blender and blend well, about 1 minute.
  2. Pour mixture in a large bowl and add the flour slowly. Mix with a fork until all ingredients are incorporated. Then use your hands to gently knead until dough is  no longer sticky.
  3. Place parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Roll about 16 rolls placing them on cookie sheet. Beat the other egg and brush the top of each roll. Then place them in oven at a 350F for 18 minutes. Notice that oven is not to be preheated.

*If making potato rolls, you will need 2 potatoes peeled and boiled until very soft. Add the potatoes to the blender with the other ingredients.

 

 

 

Pita Bread

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Pao Arabe

Pita Bread is so easy to make, the perfect pair for Hummus! The warm and rich flavor of the Arab cuisine that reached Portugal and Brazil.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups unbleached white flour
  • 1 tea-spoon salt
  • 2/3 cup lukewarm water
  • 1 table-spoon olive oil
  • 1/2 tea-spoon dry yeast

Directions:

  1. Mix flour and salt in a bowl.
  2. Dissolve yeast in water and add olive oil.
  3. Make a hole in center of flour and add yeast mixture, then slowly knead mixture to make a soft dough.
  4. Turn dough on to a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.
  5. Place it back in the bowl, brush top with a little extra olive oil, cover with a plastic wrap and set aside, in a warm place to rise for about 1 hour.
  6. Punch dough, place it on a lightly floured surface and divide it in 6 balls.
  7. Roll each ball in to a circle or oval shape about 1/3 inch thick. Brush each one with a little more olive oil, cover them back and let them rest for 30 minutes.
  8. Meanwhile, pre heat oven to 400F. Place 3 pita circles on a pizza pan or cookie sheet. You will need to pans or bake in batches.
  9. Bake for 6 minutes or until they puff up and are golden brown.

So Yummy!

Brazilian mini Doughnuts

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“Bolinhos de Chuva”

“Bolinhos de Chuva” translates to English as ” mini rain cakes” or perhaps “rain scones”.  Bolinhos meaning “little cakes” and “chuva” meaning “rain”. The popular say for the origin of the name is that when you drop the batter in to the hot oil it forms what looks like a rain drop. Brazilians love “Bolinhos de Chuva”, it is easy to make and very much resembles a doughnut hole. It is usually served with coffee or tea but it can also be a dessert, definitely a treat. It is delicious!

Ingredients:

  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 table-spoon vegetable oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 and 1/2 cups of flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • zest of 1 lime or orange
  • 1 tea-spoon baking powder
  • extra oil for frying ( I like to use coconut oil)
  • powdered sugar and cinnamon

Directions:

  1. In a large bowl beat eggs and sugar until smooth. Add milk, vegetable oil, vanilla and lime zest and whisk until well mixed. Add flour, salt and baking powder, whisk until a batter is made.
  2. heat oil in a medium low temperature. If oil is too hot it will burn the doughnuts before the inside in fully cooked. Drop batter using a tea-spoon full.
  3. Place doughnuts on a paper towel. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar!

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Brazilian Sweet Bread ” Rosca Doce”

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Brazilians love sweet bread!  there are many varieties of this delicious treat and you find them in every bakery around the country. Sweet bread was brought to Brazil by the Portuguese, it is as popular there as it is in Brazil. Great with butter and honey or fruit preserves, it is usually  served at breakfast or in the afternoon accompanied by a cup of bold strong coffee or” café au lait”

Ingredients:

  • 1 package active dry yeast
  • 1/4 cup lukewarm water
  • 1/2 cup lukewarm milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 tablespoons of butter softened
  • 4 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup granulated coconut sugar or brown sugar

 

Directions:

  1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add milk, 1/2 cup sugar,salt, vanilla, eggs, butter and 1/2 cups of flour and whisk all together, it will look like a cake batter.
  2. Then add remaining flour and knead until dough is elastic and easy to handle.
  3. Turn dough onto the counter top and grease the bowl. Set dough back in bowl and turn greased side up. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and place dough in a warm area and let it rise for ate least 1 hour. I like to place mine outside , the warmth of the sun is perfect.
  4. Cover a cookie tray with parchment paper and set aside
  5.  Punch  dough and place it on a lightly floured kitchen counter. Divide dough in half. Then divide each half into three parts. Roll each part into a 16 inches string approximately and braid them. Makes 2 braids. Place them on cookie tray and let them rise for another hour.
  6. Heat oven to 325F. Bake them until  golden brown, approximately 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven, brush bread with water and sprinkle granulated coconut sugar or brown sugar on top.

ENJOY!

Brazilian Cheese Puffs

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Pão de Queijo

They are very tasty and very popular in Brazil especially in the State of Minas Gerais, perfect with coffee, as a snack, party treats , with dinner, with cream cheese and jam, anyway you want. Very easy to make and gluten free.

They are also delicious stuffed with guava marmalade.

You can never eat just one!

Ingredients:

  • 1 Pkg 14 Oz of Tapioca Starch
  • 1 Cup of Milk
  • 1/3 Cup of Vegetable Oil
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 Eggs
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
  • 1 cup crumbled fresh cheese like farmer’s cheese or “Queso Blanco”.
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt.

Directions:

  1. Bring milk, oil and salt to a boil. When milk mixture starts to grow and turn off the heat. Add tapioca starch and mix with a fork until some gooey lumps are formed. Do not mix completely but mostly, leaving some starch still loose in the pot. Set aside and let it cool for 30 minutes.
  2. Heat oven to 350 F.
  3. Transfer the gooey starch to a food processor. Add all other ingredients and mix/knead until a dough is formed.
  4. Take small amounts like a teaspoon full and roll them into balls, place on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.
  5. It will make approximately 40 rolls. If you do not want to bake them all, cover rolls with a plastic wrap and freeze them. Once frozen, place them in a zip lock bag and store in freezer. Take out as many as you want when ready to bake. They bake beautifully frozen.

ENJOY!