Truth be told: certain foods can only be appreciated by the ones who’ve been eating them since childhood. Take for example the famous Dutch candy known in the Netherlands as ‘dropje’: it has an odd taste and it is not sweet as one would expect from a candy. I dare to say that no one, except Dutch-borns, actually like it.

Many will also agree with me about the eccentric Japanese sweet made with black beans or the Thai recipes made with the smelly fruit Duran. While others would say they can’t stand the Brazilian “brigadeiro” which is so sweet that only natives can enjoy and not get diabetes from it (the amount of sugar Brazilian children from the 80’s were allowed to consume is something out of this world).

Speaking of Brazil, yesterday I found in a tea shop in Amsterdam-West one of these typical delicacies from our home country that are far from causing repulse in foreigners: “pão de queijo”. Translated into cheese bread, it has a dough made with flour and cheese, shaped in small spheres and heated in the oven until they get a beautiful light gold color.

The secret of a perfect “pão de queijo”, in my opinion, is to use the correct intensity of cheese and finely tune the balance between a crispy texture on the outside with a moisty-soft inside.

I’ve never heard of any foreigner disliking our tender pão de queijo.

P.S.: if you are visiting or live in Amsterdam and wonder where to find the best "pão de queijo" in town I highly recommend the Little Brazil shop. There you can taste not only this delicious salty snack but also feel the warm hospitality for which Brazilians are so famous (the sweetheart owner, Brunelli, will make you feel like home).