This article is part of our feature to celebrate Pan Dulce. Find all things pan dulce here.
When Agueda Ulloa recently opened her mobile bakery, Coffee cup, after several years of selling mostly pans from her home, she knew she wanted to bake something festive to commemorate the occasion. The answer, of course, was shells; Sweet buns, with their crispy tops, are the perfect canvas for innovation. In the spirit of the holiday, Agueda collected a pile of Funfetti shellsrainbow speckled cookie surface splash.
“I wanted something playful and lively,” recalls Agueda, who brews in Alameda, California. What better solution than to transform her popular conches into a cake-inspired dessert?
Agueda is not the only baker to embrace the possibilities of conca. Across the country, Mexican and Central American bakers are using the beloved pan as a jumping off point for experimentation.
Teresa Finney of Atlanta In the oven of the Heart renews its shells with taste repetitions like strawberry sumac and pink peppercorns, coloring them using “lots of freeze-dried fruit.” She also tells of bakers experimenting with the result: “I've seen spiral notes and even some notes using cookie cutters like hearts and stars.”
Such a baker is Mayra Sibrian e Selva Central Goods in Seattlewhose pastel palette of concas all feature a rustic spiral design, rather than the shell-like pattern of the Dulce pan, to “separate my concas,” she says. Like Tereza, Mayra also brightens up her conchs with seasonal flavors and colors, like her latest purple passion fruit and blackberry conch.
There they are hot pink conch shellslike the ones Roxanne Sanchez makes at Delicias Bakery & Some in Highland Park, California; Hello Kitty conchasby Gloria Ruiz (@yoiesweets) in Los Angeles; AND tie-dyed shells, as Esteban Castillo of Chicano Eats points out. And that just scratches the surface.
These bakers are taking the traditional concha—an old panadería standby that's usually only relegated to vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry flavors—and transforming it into new expressions of flavor and color. Concha doesn't have to be classic. For today's bakers, it can be anything they want it to be.
How to make colorful shells
Start with a strong recipe, like ours shellsthen follow the tips below from expert bakers to color the topping and make your own creative iterations.
Color the top of the cone with fruit and freeze-dried powders
Many bakers recommend using freeze-dried ground fruit to color the topping, which adds subtle flavor and pastel color, and won't change the consistency of the cookie dough topping. “I usually stick to strawberries, raspberries and blueberries,” recommends Teresa. “If you add freeze-dried fruit, make sure to pulverize it,” recommends Mayra. “A spice or coffee grinder works best.” If you are baking our recipe for shellsrecommends our Test Kitchen 1/4 cup (10 grams) of freeze-dried fruit powder mixed into the top.
“Powdered Hibiscus petals are another fun treat because they don't lose their purple color during baking, which can happen with freeze-dried fruit,” notes Teresa. She prefers fruit powders and other natural inclusions because of the flavor they give the cones, unlike tasteless food coloring. She adds, “I really go heavy on the powder inclusions because I want the color to hold up to the heat of the bake.”
Roxanne likes to add a little beet juice to her electric pink cones, which she also colors with freeze-dried strawberries to give them an extra pop of color. Her other favorite coloring options include matcha powder, turmeric, moringa powder and ground lavender petals.
If you are using natural food colors or ingredients, “I recommend aiming for pastels or lighter colors because once you bake the concasas, the color darkens and fades a little,” says Agueda.
Color the top of the cone with food coloring
Mayra admits that freeze-dried fruit doesn't always get the job done: “As a last resort, I'll use natural food coloring found in most natural health stores.” Supernatural food colors are our favorite brand at King Arthur for their rich color that remains even after baking.
If you want vibrant, electric color, Esteban recommends gel food coloring instead. “I've tried using natural materials in the past, but they don't give the vibrant payoff I'm looking for, and some materials tend to fade after baking,” he says. An added bonus is that concentrated gel coloring won't mess with the hydration of the tip, unlike liquid food coloring.
If you're using natural food coloring or gel coloring, mix a little food coloring into the top batter to start, then keep adding a little at a time until you reach your desired color.
Photography by Rick Holbrook; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne
Most importantly: Have fun
“Maya is a great place to let your imagination run wild and play with colors,” says Mayra. Don't limit yourself to just one color. “You can make pastes with different pigmentations and incorporate them into a cone for a beautiful color bomb.” Coloring or ombre effects or designs like flowers and polka dots are a fun way to match any colored cone.
Or take a cue from Roxanne and go beyond coloring the top: “I'm working on a bougainvillea cone with flowers printed on the top.”
After all, “the possibilities are endless,” Agueda encourages.
Watch pastry chef Fany Gerson show you how to make conchas, including a black and white version, in our video:
Cover photo by Rick Holbrook; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne.
