Pan Dulce Archives

Conchas (Mexican Sweet Bread)

I have conchas to share with you today!

These babies were a labor of love. I started developing the recipe for back in August, and because they need a good amount of attention, I only got to test them a few times. There are a few things I learned, and I’m happy to share the knowledge so you can easily make these at home.

One of the more important things I realized, especially after making pan de muerto last year, is that you need to take your time with bread, don’t take any shortcuts and don’t rush your process. Give the yeast plenty of time to proof, and give your dough enough time to really rise.

Conchas (Mexican Sweet Bread)

The quality of your ingredients also makes a difference. Fresh ground spices will give you a more flavorful bread. I like to use the milling blade from my nutribullet to grind down cinnamon, and cloves, and then I just use a microplane to grate fresh nutmeg. If you happen to have any vanilla bean paste, vanilla beans, or high quality vanilla extract, use it instead of imitation vanilla extract. Be sure to keep imitation vanilla out of the streusel though or you’ll end up with a something that tastes like play-doh. I used imitation extract the first few times and It took me a while to realize it was really messing with the taste.

When it comes to equipment, you can easily score the streusel topping with a knife, but if you’d like a concha cutter, you can purchase the one I used here. I also suggest using food coloring gel instead of liquid food coloring if you decide to add some color to your topping, as the liquid will make your topping really sticky and you’ll need a lot of it to get good color payoff.

I know they are a bit of a process but I promise they’re so worth it! Be sure to share your pictures with me if you happen to make them!

Nos vemos pronto!

Click here for more pan dulce recipes!

Classic Tres Leches (Pastel de Tres Leches)

Polvorones Rosas (Mexican Pink Sugar Cookies)

Pan De Muerto

*This post is sponsored by Samsung, all thoughts and opinions are my own.*

Feliz Dia de los Muertos!

If you’re not familiar, this holiday is celebrated in Mexico and in certain countries throughout Latin America, lasting 3 days to honor those who have passed. On the days leading up to the celebration, families start to set up altars dedicated to loved ones and pets that have passed–as a way to remember them and celebrate their spirits. Personally, death and the afterlife wasn’t something I really thought of until my grandma passed away a few years ago. Celebrating Dia de los Muertos helped pacify the blow of her absence by making me totally rethink of what and how I thought about death.

The altars people set up can often be very, very elaborate. They’ll be adorned with pictures of the deceased, marigolds, their favorite alcohol, water, their favorite dishes, sugar skulls and items of theirs amongst other things. If you happen to be in Mexico during the celebration, you’ll often see an influx of marigolds all around because they are an important part of the celebration. These bright blooms are said to be used to guide the deceased to their altars, and illuminate the path to their graves. Pan de muerto is a big staple in this celebration, and bakeries in Mexico often start selling this bread in early October, because people love it so much.

This year, I decided to refine my recipe for pan de muerto and added notes of orange, clove, ginger and cinnamon and really took my time forming each separate loaf. One of the things I’ve learned about making pan de muerto is that this recipe requires your tender love and care. You need to take your time carefully forming the crossbones and really give it some time to rise after it all comes together or it won’t cooperate with you while it bakes. Luckily, my Samsung range has a built in compartment that allows you to proof your dough, so everything proofs in the perfect amount of time, every single time!

I hope you all have a great weekend, and if you have anytime for a baking project this weekend, get the family involved! This would make a great group activity to get everyone together and celebrate and share memories of those who have passed on!