Turtle Conchas I Pan Dulce

Hey loves! I realized that this is the longest I’ve ever gone since I’ve posted, so I really hope that these turtle conchas make up for it.
Pan Dulce, which translates to “Sweet Bread” is comprised of a sweet, fluffy enriched almost brioche-like bread, topped with a crispy sugar topping. Traditionally, the ripe can be flavored with a variety of flavors including vanilla, cinnamon or chocolate. In this recipe, I added a hint of cinnamon in the dough for richer flavor and I flavored half of the topping with cocoa powder. I would eat these at any opportunity I get, but they pair beautifully with some milk, coffee or hot chocolate for breakfast or a snack.
As with all my videos, the full recipes are posted here in the description box below along with all the measurements and instructions. They can all also be found on my website at the following link: thehungryblogger.com
Turtle Conchas Recipe
Makes: 11-12 conchas
Oven temp: 350F degrees
Bake for approximately 15-20 minutes
For the dough
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
7 grams (one packet) active dry yeast
1/2 cup + a pinch of sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3 large room temperature eggs
1/2 cup softened unsalted butter , cubed
1/2 cup whole milk(105F-110F degrees → should not be hot!)
For the sugar topping:
1/2 cup vegetable shortening (or butter)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1 TBSP cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
2 tbsp milk, for assembling the turtles
Instructions:
In a medium bowl, add ½ cup of warm milk and one packet (7 grams) of yeast. Add a pinch of sugar and mix. Set aside for 2-3 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbly.
In a large bowl, add three eggs, yeast mixture, ½ cup of sugar and ¼ tsp of salt. Whisk to combine.
Add one cup of flour and 1 tsp of cinnamon and whisk to combine until the mixture forms a dough and the flour is incorporated.
Add one more cup of flour and combine. Since the mixture is too thick to work with a whisk, transition to a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a fork or hands to knead the dough.
Add ¼ cup of the softened butter in cubes and knead until fully incorporated in the dough.
Add the rest of the butter (¼ cup) and knead once again. Add ½ cup fo flour and knead. If the mixture is still sticky, add the remaining ¼ of cup flour until well incorporated. Don’t add additional flour if the dough is already cohesive and doesn’t stick to your fingers
If using hands, knead the dough on a clean flat surface for 4-5 minutes until there are no more dry patches on the dough and everything is well distributed.
Place the dough into a greased bowl and cover for at least one hour, or until doubled in size.
While the dough is proofing, prepare the sugar topping by adding ½ cup of vegetable shortening or softened butter and ½cup of sugar. Mix to combine.
Add ½ cup of flour and mix together, then add 1½ tsp vanilla extract followed by the remaining ½ cup of flour. Mix together until everything comes together to form a cohesive, dough like consistency. You may need to use your hands to bring everything together
Cut the sugar topping in half and place in separate bowls. In one of the bowls, add the cocoa powder and mix together until the cocoa powder has been completely distributed. The color should be uniform throughout (no white patches)
In the separate bowl with the remaining sugar topping, add green food coloring and knead with your fingers until the color has been well distributed. You can always add more color, but it’s harder to take off color so start with less of it and adjust based on your preference.
Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C)
Once the dough has proofed and doubled in size, divide it into 11-12 uniform pieces. You may use a kitchen scale to measure out the sizes of each piece.
To shape the dough into circles, cup your hand around the dough in the shape of a claw and press it against the clean surface in a circular motion until the shape resembles a circle.
Take one of the circles and break them off into smaller circles for the heads and the legs. You will need one head and 4 legs for each of the conchas. The heads should be bigger, and the legs should be smaller circles.
To assemble the turtles, place a circle and dip your finger in milk to stick the head and legs on the sides of the dough. Repeat which each of the pieces of dough
Break off small pieces of the sugar topping (both green and brown) and roll them into smaller circles. Place the two colors in a random configuration and roll them together into a large ball. Flatten down with hands/tortilla press
Brush milk on top of the dough, then place the sugar topping flat on top of the dough. Use a sharp knife to cut designs. Repeat with each of the conchas.
Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the sugar coating has hardened and the bread looks light golden brown.
Allow the conchas to cool and draw faces on the heads using a toothpick and black food coloring.
enjoy:)

[@AyushEKris]

Absolutely beautiful!

[@ashnakrishnamurthy8723]

THEY LOOK AMAZING

[@ashnakrishnamurthy8723]

THEYRE SO CUTE

[@AngieHart67]

Cutie pies 🥰

[@l3a3n31]

Hi! hope you are doing great! you seem passionate about cooking, dont get discouraged! persistance pays off :) i like your voice and thank you for the recipes!

[@pranavmish2896]

LOVE

[@ashnakrishnamurthy8723]

ITS A LIL BABY

[@sangitajoshi6525]

I am a turtle concha - ach