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Vegan conchas, tender enriched yeast rolls topped with a crunchy cookie topping, and one of the most iconic varieties of pan dulce. Concha translates into seashell, which is exactly what this sweet bread resembles. Let me tell you, trying to make an amazing vegan concha recipe had me almost pulling my hair out!
The problem was substituting the eggs. First I tried just omitting the eggs, which worked, but resulted in a dry concha. Then I tried almost every egg substitute so could think of aquafaba, flax, chia, you name it, I tried it. None of them worked like I wanted them too.
My kids absolutely loved this whole process. Eating one concha after another, giving me their honest opinion with sugar crumbs all over their tiny hands.
I almost gave up. “ I guess you can’t have everything in life,” I thought to myself. Until I tried something completely unexpected, sweet potato. Sweet potato provided just the right amount of binding and moisture my concha needed!!!
After this I had a little trial and error with the topping, testing out versions made with powdered sugar and shortening, and others made with granulated sugar and vegan butter. Until the most authentic Mexican vegan concha you’ve ever had came to fruition.
I had a friend on Instagram tell me that her grandma had said, that the only thing keeping her from going vegan was there thought of never having a good concha again. So hopefully this is the concha recipe that is going to convince all our abuelitas to go vegan!
The Recipe: Vegan Conchas
- You can still make this even if you don't have a standing mixer with a hook, you're just going to get a good arm workout.
- Bread flour is the best flour for this recipe. If you use another type of flour the amount of liquid you need will change.
- You can use a knife to make the concha design if you don’t have a concha cutter
. - You can make the topping any color you like by adding 3-5 drops of food coloring.
- You can use the plant-milk of your choice as long as it’s unsweetened, but I found that soy milk works best.
The Best Vegan Concha Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tsp. (7 g.) Active Dry yeast
- ½ + 1/8 cup (130 ml) Soy milk, room temp
- 2 cups + 2 tbsp. (298 g.) Bread flour
- ½ cup (78 g.) Sugar, granulated
- ½ tsp. (2.8 g.) Salt
- 1/3 cup (85 g.) Cooked, mashed, sweet potato
- ½ cup (113 g.) Vegan butter (earth balance), cut into cubes, softened
Topping:
- 1/3 cup Sugar granulated
- 1/3 cup Vegan butter, earth balance, softened
- ½ cup All-purpose flour
- ½ tsp. Vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. Ground cinnamon (optional)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, dissolve the yeast in the soy milk. Let sit 5 minutes.
- In the bowl of a mixer, with the dough hook, combine the dry ingredients: the flour, salt, and sugar. Mix.
- Add the mashed sweet potato to the yeast-milk mixture, and whisk to combine.
- Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and mix on low until the dough begins to incorporate, about 3 minutes.
- Add the softened butter little by little and increase speed to medium. Mix for 15 min. until the dough has come off the sides of the bowl and is smooth and stretchy, but not sticky. (If the dough is too sticky add a little more flour.)
- Place the dough in a large oiled bowl, cover with a towel and let rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. Punch down the dough and fold the side over unto each other and flip. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- The next day take the dough from the fridge, remove the plastic wrap and cover with a towel. Let rise in a warm place (70-75F) until the dough comes to room temperature, about an hour.
- Divide the dough into 10 pieces weighing about 2.5 oz (70 g.), and set aside, roll them tightly into rounds and place on a sheet tray lined with parchment. Press down on the rounds to form a dome shape.
- Make topping: Cream butter and sugar with a whisk or hand mixer. Add vanilla, flour, and cinnamon and mix well. Knead lightly to fully incorporate. It should have the consistency of a soft play-dough. If it’s too sticky or wet add flour in small amounts until you’ve reached the right consistency.
- Divide topping into 10 balls the size of a large gum-ball. Take two sheet of plastic wrap, and one at a time place a ball of the topping between the two plastic sheets and press down with hand until it is large enough to cover the top of concha.
- Peel one side of the plastic wrap off, then take the piece of plastic wrap with the topping on it and place it down on the concha. Slowly peel of the plastic wrap. Repeat this process until all 10 conchas are done.
- Using a concha cutter, dusted with flour, press down on the topping and the concha to make the design. (Don’t be afraid to press down hard and flatten the concha a little.)
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Let conchas rise for 40 min. in a warm place (70- 75F) or until doubled in size.
- Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20 -25 min. or until the sides and bottoms of your conchas are golden brown.
- Let bread cool completely before eating.
Notes
. Bread flour is the best flour for this recipe, if you use any other kind of flour you will have to modify the amount of soymilk. You can make the topping any color you like by adding 3-5 drops of food coloring. You can use the plant-milk of your choice as long as it’s unsweetened, but I found that soy milk works best. Recipe adapted from Fanny Gerson’s My Sweet Mexico
Nutrition
If you're looking for more vegan pan dulce you can try this pan de muerto, marranitos, and hojarascas.
would u provide metric conversion?
Hi, I have updated it and you should be able to see the metric conversion.
I made these today and they came out so good! My initial rise took waaaay longer than an hour, but otherwise everything was spot-on. I've actually never had a concha before so I can't judge it against a traditional recipe, but these came out light, fluffy, and delicious!
I'm so glad you liked it! It's definitely a recipe that takes some time, but it's worth the effort.
I've made them a few more times now and they always come out great! The first rise takes so long that I've gotten into the habit of making the dough at night, letting it rise overnight, then punching it down and putting it in the fridge when I leave for work in the morning. If anyone else is making this recipe and is scared their yeast has died because the dough isn't rising, don't worry! Just ignore it and let it do its thing.
Thanks for the tip Julia!!
Absolutely love this recipe, I honestly don't think I've ever had any better than this! I did a slight change to your recipe and I thought I would let you know. I happen to have a roasted yam in the freezer that needed to be used so I substituted that and it worked just fine. Love these recipes!!!!
I would love to make GF conchas for my sister who is visiting, we both are vegan, any tips would be highly appreciated!
This is a hard one! I don't have enough experience with gluten-free baking, but the challenge is substituting the egg. I don't think potato would work like it did in the vegan version.
do you think that using coconut sugar instead of granulated sugar will give me the same results? Looking to try this recipe out later this week ?
I'm not sure. I've never tried to make this recipe with coconut sugar.
Do you recommend using Earth Balance only or do you think another vegan butter would work ok too? Maybe Miyokos?
I've only tried it with earth balance but I don't see why Miyokos won't work.
I made these! They are amazingly soft with the sweet potato. Just dreamy! I used water instead of milk and vegan margarine, it worked just perfect...
So glad you liked them!!
Hey Dora I’m trying my hand at these right now and I finished the first rise right now and put it in the fridge @1pm should I still leave it overnight ?
Yes, you can leave it overnight without a problem
Does the sweet potato make it taste less than an original concha? Asking bc I’m afraid it will ?
No, you won't even tell the difference!
WOW. My partner and I just made these and they came out BEAUTIFULLY! Our dough didn’t rise much and we extended all the rises much longer than your recipe said, and yet, the conchas came out super fluffy and absolutely delicious. Valió la pena - We LOVE them! Thank you, Dora!
So glad you liked them!!
Hi!
Would I be able to use canned pumpkin instead of sweet potatoes on this recipe?
Canned pumpkin has a higher water content so I would use less liquid in the recipe.
This recipe is amazing! Conchas came out great
I'm so glad!!
The yeast-milk and sweet potato mixture isn’t supposed to be watery, right?
No. it's supposed to be a bit thick
Dora, I have made this recipe almost four times now throughout this coronavirus lockdown - it is an absolute keeper. I have it written down and hung on my fridge now! ? I shared it my family and they also had great results with it. My mom added it was the best concha she’s ever had!
I have a few slight variations that I thought could be useful for anyone who is looking to make these conchas: I use AP flour for the dough and have never encountered problems. I typically add 1-2 more tbsp of soymilk judging by the feel of the dough. Like some others have pointed out the initial rise time was a lot longer for me (your yeast hasn’t died I promise!), so I tend to leave it out for 4-5 hours to proof before forming it into balls. Lastly, the recent yeast shortage has made it hard to get anything, so the only thing left at the store was “pizza yeast” packets! It’s the same yeast we know and love but with some additional dough softeners - and I’m happy to report that it works here beautifully in a pinch.
The concha cutter you have linked on Amazon is out of stock, but I’m hoping it comes back soon! Thanks again for a wonderful recipe!
Thank you for the tips! I know may people have been trying to make this with all-purpose flour. I'm so happy that your family likes them and that at least they have sweetened your quarantine.
Was wondering what you did to prevent pieces of sweet potato from showing in the bread? I usually microwave the sweet potato for five minutes but I’m thinking baking it fully in the oven would prevent that??
I usually cook the potato in the microwave, but I use a ricer to mash them. When I don't have a ricer I blend the sweet potato first to get a really smooth puree.
How long can I leave the dough in the fridge? I accidentally did the first rise a day before I meant to
24 hours
Do you peel the sweet potato before the microwave?
No, I microwave it with the peel on
Thanks for the recipe! What is the purpose of letting the dough rest in the fridge overnight? Can this step be skipped? Also, have you tried applesauce as an egg replacement? If not, do you think it would work?? I appreciate the advice :)
I have not tried applesauce as a replacement for eggs. Leaving it in the fridge overnight helps the dough ferment slowly and get a better rise. That being said you can skip this step and let the dough rise in the bowl until doubled in size and then shape and let rise again, then bake.
Just made the dough and I can tell it's not right. I think the butter was a little too soft. I added more flour but it never got smooth, even after kneading for several minutes. It wasn't sticky but the surface was crackly. I'll have to buy more butter tomorrow and try again.
I'm sorry it didn't work out.
I had a dream about El Nopal Bakery in my hometown and have been obsessed with the idea of making vegan conchas since. Thank you for doing the hard work to nail this recipe. It was perfection! My only regret is that I didn't triple the recipe.
How long do these last after they're made? And should I store them in the fridge or outside?
They last 2 days. You can keep them outside in a paper or plastic bag.
Absolutely incredible! So soft and buttery. They were a little flat, but I think that was my fault. My family said it was one of the best things I have ever made!!
So happy they worked out!!
can i not over night proof and make them the same day.
Yes they can be made the same day
Can I make this with a regular hand mixer?
My other question is do we use the dough hook the whole time? During Steps 4 and 5?
I just made this with a hand mixer and it came out great. It is absolutely delicious! Bravo Dora!
For the yeast should I warm up the the milk or does it have to be room temp?
The milk should be warm
I have a question about the yeast should the milk be heated or just left at room temp ?
The milk should be warm
I decided on a whim to make these after seeing a picture on Instagram. I prepped last night, then finished the process this morning and enjoyed these for brunch! The recipe may look overwhelming but it was actually easy to get through! Even though I didn’t mash the sweet potato totally, and there were tiny orange flecks in the dough, in the end there was no sweet potato flavor at all (thankfully!).
I’m excited to make these again and drop some off with family for the holidays :)
Hi, just wondering what you use to proof your dough. Do you have a proofing drawer? I'm currently proofing my dough in the oven with the Bread Proof function on and it's about 2 hours in and a very slow rise. I'm used to my dough taking a long time to proof. I'm just wondering what you use to proof in a shorter time frame. My dough seems a bit on the oily side right now, I hope the butter wasn't too soft!
I proof in my turned-off oven. It doesn't get too cold here, but if it's cold where you live it will take a while to rise.
If I make the recipe in advance, how long can I keep the dough in the fridge before baking them? Thanks!
24 hrs
Hi! So I tried this out and my sweet potato mixture was watery :( What does that mean & what should I do to help it thicken?
It's ok. Add it to the flour that way.
Do you have any tips for making the roping chocolate? I’ve heard of people using abuelita chocolate but I’m not sure if it’s vegan. Any thought are much appreciated!
Love your recipes... made the Rosca de Reyes last week and honestly best rosca I’ve had in years!!
I would just add cocoa powder to the topping recipe.
My topping seemed to be too thin & actually ran out to not be able to cover one, should I double the recipe?
That's weird, I usually always have some leftover. You can double it, and freeze the leftovers.
Thank you! Another question, my topping color comes out more tan/light brown and not white. I use the ingredients listed, is there a reason why I can't get it white you think?
Hi Mayra, the vegan butter makes it tan. If you want it white you can use vegetable shortening, which is what they use in Mexico most of the time.