Conchas are most commonly referred to as Mexican sweet bread or pan dulce. I looked online for the greatest conchas recipe but came up empty-handed. So I decided to combine bits and parts from three separate recipes—of course—with a few changes! The dough in many of the recipes you see is made entirely of butter, but this one is traditional and calls for lard. You’ll be left with soft pillows of sweetness that will fill your dreams while you sleep.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 15 mins |
| Additional Time: | 2 hrs 15 mins |
| Total Time: | 3 hrs |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 8 conchas |
Ingredients
- 3 teaspoons active dry yeast
- ½ cup warm water (110 to 115 degrees F/43 to 46 degrees C)
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup white sugar
- ½ cup lukewarm evaporated milk
- ⅓ cup lard
- 1 egg
- 1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup white sugar
- ½ cup salted butter
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Dissolve yeast in water in a large bowl. Stir in 2 cups flour, sugar, evaporated milk, lard, egg, cinnamon, and salt. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to make dough easy to handle.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in a large greased bowl, then turn so greased side faces up. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
- Meanwhile, make topping dough. Beat sugar and butter together until light and fluffy. Stir in flour until mixture is the consistency of coarse crumbs. Divide into 2 equal parts. Stir cocoa powder into 1 part and vanilla extract into the other.
- Divide chocolate topping into 4 small balls; roll each piece into a flat circle. Repeat for the vanilla topping.
- Punch down concha dough and divide into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball; placed on a greased baking sheet. Place a vanilla or chocolate circle on each ball of dough, smoothing it over the top. Make 5 or 6 shallow cuts across the circle to form a shell pattern. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
- Bake conchas until lightly browned around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Do not substitute vegetable shortening for the lard.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 639 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 98 g |
| Cholesterol | 66 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 3 g |
| Protein | 11 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Sodium | 401 mg |
| Sugars | 37 g |
| Fat | 23 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Great concha recipe. I’ll be making these again.