Conchas (Pan Dulce)

Dough

            3 tbsp warm water (110-115°)

            1½ tsp active dry yeast

            ½ cup butter, melted

            1 tbsp vegetable oil

            1/3 cup sugar

            ¾ cup evaporated milk (see notes)

            2 tsp kosher salt

            2 tsp GF vanilla

            2 large eggs, at room temperature, slightly beaten 

            3 cups America’s Test Kitchen GF flour blend + 2 tsp xanthan gum or 3 cups of your favorite gluten free flour blend + 2 tsp xanthan gum (omit if your flour already contains this)

            ½ cup GF oat flour

            1/3 cup powdered milk

Topping

            ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

            2/3 cup sugar

            1 cup America’s Test Kitchen GF flour blend + ½ tsp xanthan gum or 1 cup of your favorite gluten free flour blend + ½ tsp xanthan gum (omit if your flour already contains this)

1 tsp GF vanilla

2 tbsp cocoa powder (for half of topping), optional

Food coloring, optional

Whisk together GF flour blend, oat flour, xanthan gum, powdered milk, salt & cinnamon (if using). Set aside.

In mixing bowl (see notes) add warm water, yeast & about 1 tbsp of the 1/3 cup sugar. Let stand for about 5 minutes until foamy. (if it doesn’t get foamy, start again – the yeast did not activate).

Add vegetable oil, melted butter, remainder of 1/3 cup sugar, milk, vanilla, & eggs.

Mix on electric mixer with dough hook or paddle attachment or by hand with large wooden spoon, until ingredients are blended.

Add flour mixture all at once & mix for about 5 minutes on medium speed on electric mixer or until dough starts to form. If mixing with spoon, once dough comes together, turn out on floured board & knead for about 10 minutes. With either method, the dough should be smooth, a little stretchy & hold together well.

Lightly coat a large bowl with vegetable oil or spray with GF baking spray. Place the dough in the bowl, cover loosely with plastic wrap (so dough doesn’t dry out) & let rise in warm place until double (about 1 hour, but may take up to 2 hours, depending on the temperature of your kitchen).

While the dough is rising, you can make the topping.

In mixing bowl, whisk together flour & xanthan gum. Using paddle on mixer (you can also mix by hand), add butter, sugar, & vanilla. Mix until smooth. (Be a little patient with this step, it takes a few minutes for it to come together.)

If using cocoa powder & food coloring, divide dough in half. Add cocoa powder to one half & a few drops of food coloring to the other half. Mix each until completely blended.

Once the dough has risen, divide it into 12 equal parts. (You can pull off pieces with your hands or use a sharp knife.) Shape each piece into a ball.

Take about 2 tbsp of topping & roll into ball, then flatten into a thin round (see notes). Place it on top of one of the dough balls. Lightly pat down. Continue until all of the conchas are covered.

Using a sharp knife, cut clam shell or other pattern into the topping on each of the conchas.

Place conchas on baking sheet covered with parchment paper.

Cover loosely with plastic wrap & let rise in warm place until almost doubled (about 30 minutes, but may take up to 1 hour, depending on the temperature of your kitchen.)

Before rising

After rising

Place baking sheet inside another baking sheet. This will keep the bottoms from getting too brown before the conchas are done.

Bake at 350° for 18-24 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly before serving.

Notes:

The mixing bowl you are putting the warm water & yeast in should be room temperature or warmer, otherwise the yeast may not activate. If your bowl is cold to the touch, just run some warm water in it, then empty the water & add the ingredients.

Evaporated milk comes in a 5oz can, which is just shy of ¾ cup. I just add enough regular milk to bring it to the ¾ cup. But you can also use regular milk for the entire ¾ cup.

If your kitchen is not very warm, like mine, just heat your oven to 300° & place the bowl on top of the stove to rise.

A couple little tricks when applying the topping. Flatten with a rolling pin, but if the topping is sticky, roll it out between 2 sheets of waxed or parchment paper. If you happen to have a tortilla press, that works really well too! When you lay the topping over the concha, try not to let it touch the pan. If it touches the pan, it will spread out & be a little messy around the concha. (Which doesn’t hurt anything, but it doesn’t look as pretty!)