Conchas (Mexican Shell Bread)

I am totally excited by these Conchas!

Conchas you ask? What are they? They are a brioche-like bread that is popular in Mexico as well as border states such as California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas.

The first time I tried conchas was in a bakery in East Los Angeles in the 1970's (yes, I'm that old). They came covered with sugar shell coatings of pink, brown, and yellow.

Since I started my bread obsession, I kind of forgot about Mexican bread until I made these Cemitas. I've since made several other Mexican breads, along with a Funfetti version of conchas. 

While wheat bread is not native to Mexico, it was introduced to the country during both the Spanish and French occupations. Kind of like the Vietnamese Banh Mi inspired from French bread, the indigenous people of Mexico created these wonderful pastries.

Lately, I've seen these sitting in bins my local Mexican market, but I've been avoiding them, because I remember conchas as being a bit dry. Enriched breads (breads with lots of eggs, sugar, and/or butter) can go stale pretty quickly. Time to make a fresh version!

Thank goodness the Bread Baking Babes' Kitchen of the Month, Heather of girlichef decided to propose this bread! After all, it is Mexican Independence Day!

....and the birthday of my favorite colleague at work who just happens to be Latina. I needed to make these for her and her family. Not intimidating at all, right?

Speaking of intimidation, after I brought these to work, our student assistant arrived...

Student assistant: You can make these in a home oven?
Me: Yes.
Student assistant: My grandparents own a bakery in Mexico.
Me: Do they make these in wood fired ovens?
Student assistant: Yes

Silence (me slinking back to my office).....

Student assistant: These are really good!!! I can't believe you baked these!
Me: Giiiirrrrlll! (but silently saying to myself "oh thank God")
My colleague: OMG, OMG, OMG! (Pointing and laughing at me)

The birthday girl's family loved them too. Can I just tell you? The pressure!!!

The dough for this bread is pretty sticky, and it can be difficult to incorporate the butter without it sloshing around in your mixer. I used my paddle attachment to get the dough to come together, and then switched to the dough hook.

For the sugar shell coating, I used a mixture of butter, powdered sugar, and either cinnamon or cocoa. At work, the cinnamon ones were the most popular. I loved them both. The bread is like a pastry or a brioche, and is a wonderful breakfast. I totally recommend making these. Your family will love you.

Conchas (Mexican Shell Bread) Recipe

Ingredients

Dough

392 grams bread flour, plus more by tablespoon, as needed

2 large eggs and 1 large egg yolk

1/4 tsp salt

7 grams instant yeast. I used SAF Gold

1/2 cup water

1 stick unsalted butter (8 tbsp) at room temperature

140 grams/5 ounces superfine sugar (I ran granulated sugar through a food processor to make superfine sugar)

Sugar Shell Topping

114 g all purpose flour

114 g powdered sugar

91 g unsalted room temperature butter

2 T cocoa

1 T cinnamon

Instructions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the flour, eggs, and salt. Mix with the paddle attachment until blended. 
2. Add the yeast and water, and continue to mix until you have a shaggy dough. 
3. Continuing with the paddle attachment, add the butter, one piece at a time, until you have a consolidated dough, about 4 minutes. 
4. Add the sugar, and mix for another 4 to 8 minutes, adding flour by tablespoon, until the dough comes together and is not greasy. The dough should be sticky and gooey, but smooth and manageable. 
5. Once everything is incorporated, switch to the dough hook, and knead for about 4 minutes on medium low. 
6. Form the dough into a ball and place it into an oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap.
7. Let the dough rise for about 3 to 4 hours, until doubled.
8. To make the sugar topping, mix the flour, sugar, and butter. Divide the mixture in half, and add the cocoa to one half, and the cinnamon to the other half. You will have to knead the two halves of the toppings with your hands to get all of the ingredients to combine. 
9. Line two baking sheets with parchment, and divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Form them into rolls and then slightly press them to slightly flatten. 
10. Cover the rolls with damp cloths or oiled plastic wrap.
11. Divide the sugar topping into 12 pieces. Form each piece into a ball, and roll each into a round disk between two pieces of wax paper. Press each piece over the rolls. It should cover the whole surface of the unrisen roll. 
12. Take a sharp knife and carve shell patterns into the sugar topping. The extra cuts in the sugar topping will happen naturally. Don't stress. 
13. Cover the sheet pans with damp cloths and let rise, about 2 hours. 
14. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
15. Bake the conchas for about 20 minutes. They should be lightly golden and puffy. 
16. Cool on a wire rack.