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Conchas

Tasty Mexican Conchas are a staple in Mexican markets and special gatherings, and these are so good.
Choosing recipes to include in each book is one of my favorite parts of writing the Bread Shop Mysteries. In Kneaded to Death, I knew I wanted to include a traditional Mexican treat in honor of Olaya Solis and her bread-making heritage. These conchas fit the bill.
Excerpt:
We spent the next hour measuring and mixing the ingredients for conchas. “Mexican sweet bread is an easy way to start the bread-making process,” Olaya had said.  We went through the lesson by mixing the yeast and warm water, adding the milk, sugar, butter, eggs, and flour, finally kneading the mixture until a soft, pliable dough formed. “Much of the bread I make here is to be long-cultured,” she continued. “Forty-eight hours or more, to get the best rise and flavor possible. But the sweet bread, the conchas, can rise much more quickly.”
We left the dough in our greased bowls covered with a thin dishcloth and went to the front of the shop where Olaya walked us through the different breads still remaining in the display cases, telling us the history of her experiences making sourdough loaves, French baguettes, boules, brioche, tartine country bread, Challah, festive breads, and so much more. Partway through the bread tour, Jackie’s cell phone rang, sounding like the harsh ring of an old-fashioned phone from twenty years ago. Jackie answered, avoiding Olaya’s disapproving glare. “I can’t,” she whispered into the smartphone. “I’m in the middle of a class.”
Whoever was on the other end of the line said something that caused the color to drain from Jackie’s face. She turned a ghostly white and glanced around the kitchen, her spooked gaze skittering over each of us. Turning her back to us again, she cupped her hand over the phone and lowered her voice even more. “No. She’s not. It was my decision. My life, not yours.”
Keep Reading Kneaded to Death.
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Servings 12

Ingredients
  

Conchas

  • 3 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1/2 cup lukewarm milk
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup butter softened
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • 3 1/2-4 cups all-purpose flour

Cinnamon and Vanilla Topping

  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
 

Conchas

  • Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl.
  • Add milk, sugar, butter, salt, and egg.
  • Stir in 2 cups of the flour and beat until smooth.
  • Add enough flour until dough easy to handle and forms a ball.
  • Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic. This should take about 5 minutes.
  • Place dough in a large greased bowl, then turn greased side up.
  • Cover, place in a warm place, and let rise until double, about 1 1/2 hours. You’ll know the dough is ready if an indentation remains after you press into it.
  • While the dough is rising, prepare the topping. See below.
  • Punch conchas dough down and divide into 12 equal pieces. Shape them into balls and place on greased cookie sheet.

Cinnamon and Vanilla Topping

  • Beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy.
  • Stir in the flour and mix until the dough is the consistency of thick paste.
  • Divide into 2 equal parts.
  • Stir cinnamon into one part and vanilla extract the second portion.
  • Divide each part of dough into 6 equal pieces then pat each piece into a 3-inch circle.
  • Lay one piece or circle of the topping onto each ball of dough. Shape it to fit over the ball.
  • Make about 5 cuts across the topping in a shell pattern.
  • At this point, heat oven to 375 degrees.
  • One again, cover and let rise until doubled, or about 40 minutes.
  • Bake conchas for 20 minutes. They should be lightly browned.

Notes