Weekend Baking Project: Red Masa Conchas

Masa concha using Masienda Red Masa Harina

Teresa Finney is a recipe writer, baker and owner of At Heart Panadería, a microbakery in Atlanta, GA that focuses on pan dulce and cake made with local, seasonal ingredients. She shares some of these recipes on her Patreon, and was kind enough to create a version of her delicious concha recipe using Masienda's Heirloom Red Corn Masa Harina just in time for the holiday.

Teresa Finney Recipe Concha with Heirloom Red Corn Masa Harina

Teresa says:

The arrival of Día de los Muertos nears and with it, the offerings. Food, framed pictures, mementos, anything that reminds the living of their dead will be laid out on ofrendas. Pan de Muerto (“bread of the dead”) is common as an offering, but anything can be placed on the ofrenda, including la concha. The enriched dough bun with a crunchy cookie topping scored to resemble a concha, or seashell, is a widely beloved pan dulce, and for good reason.

Panaderas everywhere bake up creative conchas with both classic and playful topping colors and flavoring. Think of the crunchy topping as a blank flavor canvas. This recipe uses Masienda’s masa harina made from red heirloom corn in the topping, which gives the concha a distinct and slightly sweet corn flavor, while the addition of ground cinnamon spices things up appropriately for a cozy fall baking project. Swap out the cinnamon for any of your favorite warming spices; allspice or freshly grated nutmeg would work beautifully.

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