Pandebono is a bread made with masarepa, yuca flour, cheese and egg. This Colombian cheese bread is very popular, easy to make and delicious.
What is Pandebono?
It is a traditional Colombian cheese bread. I have been getting a lot of e-mails asking me for this recipe, so here it is my friends. I made these delicious Pandebonos last week and they came out perfectly and were delicious. For a minute, I did not miss Colombia while eating these fantastic cheese balls, accompanied by a cup of Colombian coffee of course. I ate so many of them, I could not get up from the couch for a while. Try them, you’ll thank me for it 🙂
Like many Colombian recipes there are many variations and every cook has its own.I am not a professional baker, but try to recreate the food I miss from my home country.
These wonderful Colombian pandebonos are perfect for breakfast or for an afternoon snack with a cup of coffee. This bread recipe is also gluten free.
Ingredients You will Need
All the quantities, baking directions and step by step video are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Tapioca Starch: You will find here in the United States as Tapioca flour or starch in a lot of supermarkets or online.
Precooked Cornmeal: Also known as masarepa.
Queso Fresco: In Colombia we use quesito, but here in the US I use farmer cheese or queso fresco.
Feta Cheese: Mixing feta cheese with queso fresco gives the perfect flavor and texture to this pandebono recipe.
Egg: I recommend using cage free eggs.
How to Make Pandebonos
- Pre-heat the oven to 400°F.
- In a food processor, place the yuca flour, cheese and masarepa. Process until well combined. Add the egg slowly while food processor is running.
- Divide the mixture into 12 equal size portions, shaping them into balls.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for about 15 to 20 minutes or until golden on top. Serve warm.
Baking Tips
*I like to use a food processor to mix the dough, but you can do it by hand if you prefer. Start by mixing the tapioca starch and precooked cornmeal in a bowl, then, in another bowl, combine the cheeses and the egg. Add the flour mixture to the cheese and mix well using your hands until well combined. If the dough is dry you can add a tablespoon of milk.
*The dough is sticky, I recommend oiling your hand to roll the bread.
*You can bake the pandebonos immediately after making them or store them in the fridge until ready to bake. I like to keep them in the fridge to settle for at least 15 minutes before baking.
*If you want the pandebono to have a more round shape use a muffin pan to keep them in shape.
More Colombian Style Breads:
Pandebono (Colombian Cheese bread) Recipe
Ingredients
- ⅔ cup cassava starch or yuca flour
- ¼ cup precooked cornmeal or masarepa
- 1 cup Mexican queso freso or Colombian quesito
- 1 + ¼ cup feta cheese
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400°F.
- In a food processor, place the yuca flour, cheese and masarepa. Process until well combined. Add the egg slowly while food processor is running.
- Divide the mixture into 12 equal size portions, shaping them into balls.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake for about 20 to 30 minutes or until golden on top. Serve warm.
Milena
Thanks Erica, I just found your site and just in time for Christmas, I am Colombian born but have lived most of my life overseas - Sydney Australia. My Mum is having a Novena Party tomorrow, so I am going to attempt this recipe and the one for Natilla.... fingers crossed.
Thank you, it is great to see Colombian food being celebrated.
Happy holidays
yolanda
Hola Erika,! mil gracias por la receta, yo trabajo en la cocina de una compania multinacional con empleados de todo el mundo, uno de los chefs es italiano, y le encanta la panaderia colombiana, espero sorprenderlo no solo a el si no tambien a todos los empleados esta semana, cuando prepare pandebono para colocar en la linea de desayuno, algo bien apropiado para esta epoca del ano. Felicidades a ti y tu familia.
Julia
How do you pronounce the name?
Erica
Nico- Just follow the recipe.....they are all different, but these are really easy and delicious.
Nico
I am super excited to make these!!! Quick question, because I was comparing with your pandequeso and almojabana.
The pandebono has a total of 2.25 cups of cheese for 12 servings? Just making sure i didn't misread the 1 + 1 1/4 cups 🙂
And there is no leavening in the pandebono? I saw that the pandequeso and almojabana had baking powder.
Salud!
Adele
HI Erica,
would this recipe work which plain cornmeal that isn't pre-cooked?
Erica
Adele- I did not make it with plain cornmeal,so I don't know!
Lisa
Hi Erica,
These look fantastic! Can they be frozen at the dough ball stage? If so, would the cooking temperature be the same?
Thanks!
Lucy
Hi Erica
Thank you for your work,I live in Canada. Is there another cheese to replace
1 cup Mexican queso freso or Colombian quesito. Would Mozarella cheese be good enough? Thank you
Annie
Even though it's almost 4 years later, I wanted to comment for anyone coming late to the party that mozzarella would definitely *NOT* be a good substitute for queso fresco, which is more crumbly. The Gourmet Sleuth has an article about Mexican cheeses and substitutions which might be helpful. gourmetsleuth.com/articles/detail/mexican-cheeses
This recipe is great, by the way. I made it for my Colombian neighbors and my son, the delivery boy, came back an hour later with an empty container!
Jeannie
These were on my Colombian menu for a party I catered last night- they really are wonderful! The other 'hit' was the Black Bean Soup. Not being familiar with Arepas, I'm not sure they were well received. I loved making them! Thank you for these wonderful postings...and pictures! Can't do without them!
Katia
Hi,
I love your blog and the recipies, Colombian pastries are the best!!!! I am planning to do Pandebono, which I eat almost every week and I love it.
My only question is - where I can find yuca flour, I live in NY, but I haven't seen it nowhere ?
Aleja
I made these pandebonos yesterday!!!! fantastic 🙂 Thank you for helping me to cook my wonderful Colombian food.
Anonymous
We loved this bread.....it was wonderful. I made it for a class project about Colombia and everyone loved the pandebono. Thank you for posting this.
Julia
My friend is Brazilian and her mom makes something similar to this quite often. They are delicious! I was looking up recipes for La Semana de las Idiomas del Mundo for my school and I am considering making these. Gracias!
kristy
I have to agree with all of them! These breads look fantastic. I wish I could find the ingredients here to try this. Thanks!
Regards, Kristy
Marilyn
WOW!! I just made these and they came out DELICIOUS. I used costeño cheese, since I'm in Barranquilla right now and I don't think they have feta here, but followed the recipe exactly aside from that. Gracias, Erica! 🙂
Kelly
Just found your site and SO excited about the pandebono! I made them last night and they were delicious.. just like the ones from the Colombian bakery I've been to!!
For those of you who were asking as well - I found tapioca flour at Whole Foods, but what I didn't know was that tapioca flour IS yuca flour - they are both cassava/yuca starch. Just FYI. =) Thanks Erica!
iris
I have to correct you: Tapioca and Yuca Flours are NOT one and the same. While sometimes interchangeable in a few recipes that I've examined, you do not get the same results. And yuca flour is way higher in carbohydrates....google each and you'll learn the precise differences. I've tried Brazilian cheese puffs (buns) which calls specifically for tapioca flour. BIG time difference! I prefer the results with the tapioca flour. Lighter, a bit crisp on the outside. And tapioca flour (also called tapioca starch -- same thing, no differences here) is way cheaper than cassava (yuca) flour.