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Mané pelado
Cassava, coconut and cheese cake
Goiás cassava, coconut and cheese cake
On farms around Goiânia and across the Goiás cerrado, mané pelado is the cake for coffee time and for June festivals: raw cassava grated straight into the bowl, mixed with fresh coconut, eggs, sugar and a handful of grated cheese, then baked until the top is deep golden. It is dense, moist and slightly chewy, sweet with a faint salty edge from the cheese. There's no flour, so it is naturally gluten free. Cutting it hot is the mistake to avoid; the starch needs time to set, and warm slices are gummy, so let it cool fully. Use sweet cassava (the ordinary kind sold for cooking), always cooked through; frozen grated cassava works well. The cheese in Goiás is a semi-cured queijo minas; any mild, salty semi-hard cheese works, or a vegetarian alternative. Chef's tip: grate the cassava on the fine side of the grater; coarse shreds stay stringy.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ lb cassavapeeled weight, finely grated (or frozen grated cassava, thawed)
- 3 eggs
- 10 ½ oz sugar
- 1 ¾ oz buttermelted, plus a little for the tin
- ¾ cup coconut milk
- 3 ½ oz grated coconutfresh or desiccated
- 3 ½ oz grated semi-hard cheesequeijo minas meia-cura or similar, or a vegetarian alternative
- 1 pinch salt
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Butter a 20 × 30 cm baking dish.
Step 3: Stir in 1 ¾ oz butter, ¾ cup coconut milk and 1 pinch salt.
Step 4: Add 1 ¾ lb cassava, 3 ½ oz grated coconut and 3 ½ oz grated semi-hard cheese and mix well with a spoon; the batter will be thick and wet.
Step 5: Spread it evenly in the dish and smooth the top.
Step 6: Bake for 50–55 minutes, until the top is deep golden brown, the edges pull from the dish and a skewer comes out with only moist crumbs, no liquid.
52 minStep 7: Cool completely in the dish, at least 1 hour, before cutting into squares. It keeps for 3 days, covered, in the fridge; bring back to room temperature to serve.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 300 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 46 g
- Fat
- 11 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mané pelado take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 55 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of eggs?
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water per egg, left for 5 minutes (baking only; vegan).
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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