Pandebonos with Quince Filling

Pandebonos are the Colombian answer to the Brazilian pao de queijo, these little cheese puffs do not require any flour and are thus gluten-free. I already published one recipe on the blog, which requires mozzarella and feta to replace the Colombian cheese queso campesino. This variation uses farmer’s cheese and a quince paste. Normally Colombians make the paste from guava instead, this guava paste is called bocadillo.

Colombia is a country that does love mild cheese. I have used mozzarella and feta to replace the cheeses, however, here in Germany farmer’s cheese is even closer to the original. I also made the recipe a bit simpler and cut out the sugar. We don’t need any sugar in the dough as we have a sweet filling. Pandebonos are usually served as a snack in Colombia, you may even have it for breakfast. Street vendors have several variations they offer non-stop in bigger cities.

Print Recipe

Pandebonos with Quince Filling

Serves: One tart from of about 12

Prep Time: 15min – Cooking Time: 25min – Total Time: 35min

Pandebonos are gluten-free cheese puffs with a quince filling.

Ingredients

• Pandebonos
• 30 grams of butter
• 240 grams of tapioca starch (also known as cassava or maniok flour, to be found in Asian stores)
• 20 grams of cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 250 grams of farmer's cheese
• 1 egg
• 30-70 grams of milk
• 
  
• Quince Paste
• 100 grams of quince paste, homemade or bought

Instructions

1

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper for the pandebonos and preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Melt the butter and set aside.

2

Combine all other ingredients except for the milk and quince paste in a large bowl. As the tapioc starch tends to create a mess once you start mixing, be sure to cover your bowl with a kitchen towel. Mix for about a minute. If the dough is still crumbly, add a bit of milk. If needed, add another tablespoon of milk.

3

Divide the dough in 12 equl parts and roll into balls. Punch a hole into each and press about two squares of quince paste in each (see pictures). Cover the hole and form into balls again.

4

Bake in two batches for about 20-25 minutes, they will still stay pretty light. Serve immediately or within a few hours.