Pan dulce is Mexican sweet bread, a panaderia case of conchas with their crackled shell-shaped topping, marranitos shaped like little pigs, empanadas, and bigote.

Pan dulce arrived with Mexican baking traditions and became a fixture of San Antonio's West Side panaderias and Market Square. Mi Tierra has baked it around the clock since 1941, and family bakeries across the city keep the conchas, marranitos, and seasonal pan de muerto coming. The self-serve tray-and-tongs ritual is a daily part of Mexican-American life in the city.

Where to eat Pan dulce in San Antonio

4 editor picks for Pan dulce in San Antonio, ranked by editorial score. All San Antonio signature dishes · Pan dulce across every city.

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Make it at home

Serves 83 hrIntermediate

Ingredients

  • 500g bread flour
  • 7g instant yeast
  • 80g sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 120ml warm milk
  • 80g soft butter
  • Half teaspoon salt
  • For the topping: 100g icing sugar, 100g butter, 100g flour, with cocoa or cinnamon to flavour

Method

  1. Mix the flour, yeast, sugar, salt, eggs, and warm milk into a dough, then knead in the soft butter until smooth.
  2. Cover and prove until doubled, about 90 minutes.
  3. Make the topping by creaming the butter and icing sugar, then working in the flour and flavouring into a soft paste.
  4. Divide the dough into 8 balls. Flatten a disc of topping over each, then score the shell pattern with a knife.
  5. Prove 45 minutes, then bake at 180C for 18 to 20 minutes until the bread is golden and the topping is set.

Editor tip. Score the topping deeply so the cracks open into the classic shell shape as the conchas rise and bake.

Common allergens: Gluten, Dairy, Egg.