Conchas (Mexican Sweet Bread) + VIDEO

I used to bake conchas allllll the time, but then my busy life took over. This is one of my favorite things to bake.

Soft and sweet. Oh, and WARM from the oven!!! There is simply nothing better in the world than fresh Mexican sweet bread.

I wanted to ensure you success in making this bread at home. That’s why I am sharing with you step-by-step pictures. Or watch the video.

More Authentic Mexican Desserts:
Flan, Pastel de Tres Leches, Carlota de Limón

This is an authentic Mexican Conchas recipe made several times in Mexico next to my Mexican grandmother. A recipe passed down many Mexican generations.

• Add warm water to the yeast.
• Mix slightly. Set is aside.

Don’t use hot water to the yeast, or you will kill the beast. Yeast is also used when making Rosca de Reyes and other Mexican breads.

Take out these ingredients to start:
Evaporated milk
Sugar
Salt
Egg
Room temperature butter

The butter has to be either room temperature or melted. Cold gets old, and it won’t fold when mixing.

These are all ingredients you’ll find in many traditional Mexican desserts like Arroz con Leche, Pan de Elote, and Pineapple Empanadas .

• Add all of the ingredients to a mixer EXCEPT for the flour.
• Mix.
• Slowly add a little bit of the flour and mix.

You can use a regular mixer too.

Add the cinnamon powder.. because a stick won’t do the trick.

Stop every so often and scrape the sides of the bowl. Take the opportunity to add more flour until there is none left to add.

Be sure not to turn on the Kitchen Aid mixer or the hand mixer on high. Flour will go everywhere!

• Turn over your dough on a floured surface.
• Roll up your sleeves. It’s time to knead.

This dough is needy. Wink. Wink. You don’t need to knead a lot if you use a Kitchen Aid mixer.

Word to the Wise: You can also do this in the machine itself, but you will constantly have to stop and move the dough back down as it likes to move up the sides of the bowl.

Place the dough in a greased bowl. Turn it around so you can grease the bottom side too.

Cover with plastic or a kitchen towel. If you don’t cover the dough, it will form a crust.

It will take roughly 1 hour for the dough to rise. It will double in size. In this case, size does matter. 😉

How to make the sugar topping

In the meantime, work on the topping. Any good authentic Mexican conchas recipe starts with the vanilla topping.

From there you can change it to whatever you like: strawberry, chocolate, purple, etc.

Here, we are doing two types of toppings – chocolate and vanilla.

How to Change the Color of the Toppings:

• For yellow conchas, add a few drops of yellow food coloring to the sugar topping.
• For pink conchas, add a few drops of red food coloring.

It all starts with butter.

• Add softened butter to the mixer.
• Mix for 1 minute.

Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl. You want to mix everything well, and the mixer paddle will not reach the sides.

• Add powdered sugar to the mixer.
• Blend in the mixer until smooth.

Ah sugar… NOT honey, honey!

After you add the flour, the topping mixture will look like wet sand. This is exactly what you want.

By itself, this conchas topping tastes really, really good.

• Divide the sugar topping into two balls.
• Set one aside in a bowl, and the other in another bowl.

If you are only making white conchas (or as some people know them “Conchas de Novia”), then skip this step.

To one of the topping balls, add the cocoa powder. Mix well. That’s a pretty ballsy move. lol.

• You want the chocolate to be fully mixed in.
• Set the chocolate bowl aside until ready to use.

If you are making the topping using food coloring, my advice is to use gloves. It tends to stain your hands.

Time to play ball! Return to the dough for the conchas recipe.

Remove the plastic wrap, and place on a wooden surface. Cut a tennis-ball size piece of dough.

Roll out until smooth. You will end up with roughly 12 pieces.

Make sure they are the same size or they will not cook evenly. Place each of the dough balls on a greased sheet pan.

Separate them about 3 inches apart. They will expand when they are baking in the oven.

Pat them down with the back of your hand to flatten them out slightly.

Take the sugar topping and roll out 6 chocolate balls and 6 vanilla balls.

Place one of the balls between two pieces of wax papers.

Using a rolling pin, roll out the topping wide enough to cover the dough balls.

Use your judgement here. Eyeball the size you need.

See how thick this is? Do not roll this out too thin or it will crumble before you are able to place it on the dough.

Take the rolled out topping and gently place it on top of the dough balls.

I am using a serrated knife to create the pattern. If you use a knife, dip it in flour after each use.

That way the knife will not stick to the topping.

You can also buy a conchas cutter online. Same thing, dip the cutter in flour after each use. It will make things easier.

Cover the conchas and proof for an additional 45 minutes.

I am not a fan of double proofing, but it has to be done. Then bake for 20 minutes. The smell of the oven… LOVE IT!

How Long Do they Last?

Do NOT store conchas (or Mexican Sweet Bread) in the refrigerator. They will go stale faster.

Best way to store pan dulce (or conchas) is at room temperature for 1-2 days in a plastic, sealable bag.

You can freeze them for longer storage, but they won’t be the same. If you are making conchas bread pudding, you can use frozen conchas.

Pro Tip: Freeze the dough. Thaw and bake later.

Pan Dulce, or Mexican Sweet Bread, can make strong men weep and children smile. Conchas is one of those childhood favorites.

It’s a lot of work, but totally worth it. You can taste the love baked into every bite. Hope you enjoy!

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