Happy Sunday, today we are going to be making mantecadas!
Mantecadas are these sweet and buttery sugar muffins typically wrapped in a red liner that you are highly likely to stumble into at your local panadería, as it is a staple when it comes to pan dulce.
I tested this recipe a few times trying different baking temperatures and using different levening agents until I got the right crumb I was looking for. A traditional mantecada is made with yeast, but I opted to swap the yeast out for baking soda and baking powder, giving me a more flavorful and fluffy muffin. When making these, it is important to let the batter chill in the fridge so the baking soda has enough time to react with the rest of the ingredients and create an airy batter that’ll produce a nice fluffy muffin top, if you don’t let the batter rest enough, the muffins will bake up flat.
These are extreeeemely easy to make, and if you happen to have extra time while the batter is sitting in the fridge, whip up some café con leche, or some chocolatito caliente to accompany your mantecadas, nos vemos pronto!
Mantecadas (Sweet Mexican Muffins)
Ingredients
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 1/4 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 cup Buttermilk
- 2 Eggs
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1/2 cup Butter (or substitute with 1/2 cup of lard or 1/2 cup of shortening)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.
- Beat the butter with the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium speed until light and fluffy and pale in color, this should take about 2 minutes.
- Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients, followed by 1/3 of the wet ingredients. Repeat until you've added all of the dry and wet ingredients.
- Cover your batter with plastic and let it rest in the fridge for 2 hours.
- After the batter has rested in the fridge, preheat your oven to 425 degrees and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
- Add 3 tablespoons (or two 1 1/2 tbsp cookie scoops) of the batter to each of the cupcake liners. Bake your muffins at 425 for 8 minutes, then lower the temperature to 400 degrees and bake for 8 more minutes. Let your muffins cool completely before serving.*Store in a ziploc bag overnight to prevent the muffins from drying out.
17 Comments
10 Recipes To Try | ¡HOLA! JALAPEÑO¡HOLA! JALAPEÑO
May 5, 2019 at 8:32 am[…] Mantecadas (Sweet Mexican Muffins) from Chicano Eats […]
Wanda
March 14, 2020 at 8:53 pmThank you, this recipe is exactly what I was looking for!
Mayra
April 9, 2020 at 12:02 pmcan it be regular milk?
Esteban
April 9, 2020 at 1:56 pmHi Mayra, unfortunately the buttermilk is important because it adds extra fat to keep the mantecadas moist! You can use milk, but they will be much more dry!
Lilian
July 3, 2021 at 3:19 pmHello! Thank you Estaban for providing such a wonderful recipe. This has been the best recipe that I have tried so far (I have tried several). I make the buttermilk by using regular milk + one tbsp of white vinegar and letting it rest for 10 minutes. I have done this for years with perfect results. I did find that I wanted my mantecadas a bit sweeter, so as I final ingredient before letting the batter rest (like after step three, before refrigerating) I added 1/4c of white sugar. Other than that I followed the instructions to the letter and my husband’s office has been very pleased with my mantecadas. I think they are amazing next day with a coffee, nom noms! Thank you!!!
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August 27, 2021 at 11:04 am[…] of breads, pastries and cakes, with specialties such as pan de Manteca, a type of Cuban bread, and mantecadas, a sweet muffin popular in […]
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August 30, 2021 at 4:10 am[…] pastries and cakes, with specialties such as pan de Manteca, a type of Cuban bread, and mantecadas, a sweet muffin popular in […]
Diane Martins
September 26, 2021 at 3:53 pmMy oven works real hot. Would I be able to bake them at 350 for the 16 minutes??
Valerya
March 31, 2022 at 7:14 pmThis looks really good… can’t wait to try. Out of curiosity, why the resting time for the batter?
Jazzlynn
April 28, 2022 at 4:03 pmcan you use it with 2% milk
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February 22, 2025 at 12:00 pm[…] to Parade, Costco’s spongey, sweet mantecada muffins — which are also known as “sweet Mexican muffins” — are available at select locations in 8-packs for […]
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February 22, 2025 at 12:01 pm[…] to Parade, Costco’s spongey, sweet mantecada muffins — which are also known as “sweet Mexican muffins” — are available at select locations in 8-packs for […]
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February 22, 2025 at 12:09 pm[…] to Parade, Costco’s spongey, sweet mantecada muffins — which are also known as “sweet Mexican muffins” — are available at select locations in 8-packs for […]
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February 22, 2025 at 12:14 pm[…] ParadaCostco Sponge, Mantecada Sweet Muffin – que é conhecido como “Doce mexicano mexicano“-Audável no local selecionado em 8 pacotes por US $ […]
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February 22, 2025 at 12:24 pm[…] with Parade, Costco’s spongey, candy mantecada desserts — that are often referred to as “sweet Mexican muffins” — are to be had at make a selection places in 8-packs for […]
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February 22, 2025 at 12:54 pm[…] acuerdo a DesfileMuffins esponjes y dulces de Mantecada de Costco, que también se conocen como «dulces magos mexicanos«-están disponibles en ubicaciones seleccionadas en 8 paquetes por $ […]