Mexican Sweet Bread

Mexican sweet bread, or, conchas are sweet bread rolls with a sweet but crunchy topping. This mouthwatering sweet bread recipe is easy to make and will have you making perfectly soft, and decadent Mexican sweet breads in no time! Great for sharing at parties, brunches, and picnics.

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Why You Should Try This Recipe

• Sweet breads are light and fluffy, perfect for breakfast, snacking or dessert.
• This recipe is easy to follow and will show you how to make this bread from scratch.
• Drawing designs on pan dulce is a fun activity the whole family will love.
• A traditional Mexican recipe for authentic concha.

What is Mexican Sweet Bread?

Conchas, sometimes called pan dulce, are a traditional Mexican style sweetbread with a crunchy, yet sweet topping that is added before baking and is decorated with elegant designs that often resemble seashells. This yeasted bread is fluffy and fragrant, the sweet topping takes them to the next level.

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What is in Pan Dulce Sweet Bread?

This bread recipe uses only simple, easy-to-find ingredients. There are many different versions of sweet bread out there, to make this easy recipe you’ll need the following ingredients:

• Dry Yeast
• Whole Milk
• Unsalted Butter
• Granulated Sugar
• Large EggsSalt
• Vanilla Extract
• All Purpose Flour
• Oil (for greasing)
• Powdered Sugar
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

Sweet Bread Variations

Like any bread recipe, there are endless ways to add variety to this recipe.

• Flavor the topping – This recipe uses a simple chocolate and vanilla topping. Try adding some of your favorite flavors to the topping such as caramel, cinnamon, white chocolate, or almond!

• Flavor the bread – Adding spices, extracts, or additional ingredients like chocolate chips, caramel, crushed nuts, or cinnamon is a great way to add variety to this concha recipe.

Mexican Sweet Bread Pro Tips

Rising the dough: Make sure you are rising the dough somewhere near room temperature. Too cold and the dough won’t rise in time, too hot and it may rise too fast and soften.

If your house is on the cold side, try placing your dough in the oven with the oven light turned on. This should be the perfect environment to rise dough.

Preparing the topping: The topping mixture should be firm enough to form into shapes without falling apart.

To help form the disk that will cover the dough balls, press the mixture into a clean, non-stick surface and form the disk. Use a sharp knife or bench scraper to slide under the disk and remove it from the surface before topping.

Baking tips: Always pre-heat the oven properly before adding bread dough. Keep an eye on this bread while it is baking but avoid opening the oven too much. Once the bottom has started to turn golden brown and the topping is crunchy these are done!

Storage Tips

Allow the bread to cool completely on a cooling rack before storage. Store in a resealable bag or container on the counter for use within 5 days. For longer-term storage place in the fridge for up to 1 week.

Freezer tips: This Mexican sweet bread is freezer-friendly! Once the bread has cooled completely, place in a resealable freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.

Allow the sweet bread to thaw completely before serving.

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FAQs

Mexican Sweet Bread

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 35 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 35 minutes minutes

Servings: 12

Mexican sweet bread, or, conchas are sweet bread rolls with a sweet but crunchy topping. This mouthwatering sweet bread recipe is easy to make and will have you making perfectly soft, and decadent Mexican sweet breads in no time!

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Ingredients 

For the Bread:

• 1 package Dry Yeast ¼ oz
• 3/4 cup Whole Milk
• 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter melted
• 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar divided
• 3 Large Eggs room temperature, beaten
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 4 cups All Purpose Flour
• 1 teaspoon Oil for greasing

Sweet Topping:

• 1/2 cup Unsalted Butter softened
• 1 cup All Purpose Flour
• 3/4 cup Powdered Sugar
• 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• 1 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

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Instructions

• Add the milk to a microwave safe bowl and heat on HIGH in 40 second intervals until the milk is warm but not hot or boiling. Aim for approximately 110-115F. Stir in the yeast and half of the sugar. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for at least 5 minutes until the mixture expands and begins to bubble. If it does not bubble you may need to start again.
  
• Add the flour, remaining sugar, and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attached. Combine well.
  
• Add in the melted butter, eggs, and activated yeast mixture. Mix at medium speed for 5-7 minutes until the dough has formed and is tacky to the touch. If the dough remains sticky add a small amount of flour to the mixture and mix until desired texture is reached.
  
• Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise at room temperature for around 2 hours until the dough has doubled in size.
  
• Prepare the sweet topping by creaming the flour, butter, and sugar together with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
  
• Divide evenly into 2 bowls, add the cocoa powder to one bowl and the vanilla extract to the other. Mix to combine.
  
• Roll each topping into 6 small balls and flatten each ball into a disk. Divide the risen dough in 12 even pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and space them evenly on baking sheets. Place the disks over top of each of the risen dough balls. Use a knife to make slits into the topping in a shell pattern. Cover loosely with a clean towel and allow them to rise for 40-60 minutes.
  
• Once risen, bake at 350F for 18-20 minutes until the bottom is golden brown. Allow the bread to cool completely in a cooling rack before serving.
  

Nutrition

Calories: 391kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 83mg | Sodium: 88mg | Potassium: 108mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 557IU | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 3mg