Pan de mallorca or Puerto Rican sweet bread is a popular breakfast food on the island. Paired with cafe con leche, this sweet, fluffy bread is the perfect early morning pick-me-up. You can find pan de mallorca at most bakeries (reposterias) in Puerto Rico along with quesitos and pastelillos de guayaba. This sweet bread has a soft, fluffy texture and is dusted with powdered sugar on top. It’s so delicious. ¡Que rico!
What is mallorca bread made of?
Pan de mallorca is made of flour, milk, eggs, butter, sugar, yeast, and salt. You can use all-purpose flour but bread flour works best because it makes the softest bread. Bread flour contains added gluten which gives bread an airy, lighter texture. But if you only have all-purpose flour, that’s okay.
How to make bread flour?
If you don’t want to buy a large package of bread flour, you can easily make it at home in smaller quantities. In a mixing bowl, combine all-purpose flour with vital wheat gluten, an isolated form of the flour protein. Measure out a cup of flour, remove one teaspoon of flour, and replace it with a teaspoon of vital wheat gluten. Then you’ll have bread flour!
Ingredients for making mallorca bread:
- Bread flour
- Milk
- Butter
- Egg yolks
- Yeast
- Sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Salt
How to make Puerto Rican sweet bread?
Prepare the sponge
Place a small saucepan over medium low heat. Add the water and 1 tsp of sugar. Stir to combine. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Once cooled but still a little warm, (110 degrees F) add the packet of dry yeast. Make sure the mixture is a little warm but not hot. Otherwise, the yeast will not work.
Stir to combine, cover and let it sit for about 15 minutes. You should see some bubbles and foam on top which means your yeast is alive. If it doesn’t foam, that means the yeast is not active and you should start a new batch.
Prepare the dough
To a stand mixer, add flour, sugar and salt. Stir to combine. The sponge mixture should have doubled in size and it will look foamy with lots of bubbles on top. Add the sponge, milk, melted butter, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and food coloring, if using. Mix together until a dough forms, 5-10 minutes on low speed. Scrape down the bowl as necessary to make sure everything is incorporated into the dough. Place the dough onto the counter. Rub a few drops of oil onto your hands. Knead the dough for 1 to 2 minutes until it’s shiny and smooth.
Form rolls
Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a thin rectangular sheet, about 1/4 inch thick. Cut the rectangle into about 8 strips, 1 1/2 inches wide. Roll the strips to create cylinder-shaped strips, about 24 inches long. Then roll each strip into a spiral bun. Tuck the ends underneath so the rolls can keep their shape while baking.
Proof the dough
Use an 11″ x 14″ baking sheet. Line the sheet with parchment paper and spray with cooking oil or brush with melted butter. Place the rolls on the baking sheet, about 2 inches apart so that they have enough space to rise. It’s important to use parchment paper so that the bottoms of the mallorca don’t brown too much. Cover the baking tray loosely with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let the rolls rise for 2 hours. They should double in size. Pre-heat oven to 350℉.
Bake mallorca
Brush the rolls very lightly with egg wash and place them in the oven. Bake for 15-17 minutes, until they are just beginning to brown. Be careful not to overbake. Brush the mallorcas with melted butter and allow to cool. Once cooled, dust generously with powdered sugar. Serve with café con leche or tea. Enjoy! ¡Buen provecho!
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Pan de Mallorca (Puerto Rican Sweet Bread)
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer
- 1 sheet pan
- 1 cooling rack
- parchment paper
Ingredients
Mallorca sponge
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast 1 packet
Mallorca dough
- 4 1/4 cups bread flour can use all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 tsp salt
- mallorca sponge
- 1/2 cup warm milk 110℉
- 1/2 stick salted butter, melted plus 2 tbsp for topping
- 4 egg yolks room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 5 drops yellow food coloring optional
Egg wash
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp water
Topping
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
Prepare the sponge
- Place a small saucepan over medium low heat. Add the water and 1 tsp of sugar. Stir to combine. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Once cooled but still a little warm (110℉), add the packet of dry yeast. Make sure the mixture is a little warm but not hot. Otherwise, the yeast will not work.
- Stir to combine, cover and let it sit for about 15 minutes. You should see some bubbles and foam which means your yeast is alive. If it doesn't foam, that means the yeast is not active and you should start a new batch.
Prepare the dough
- To a stand mixer, add flour, sugar and salt. Stir to combine.
- The sponge mixture should have doubled in size and it will look foamy with lots of bubbles on top.
- Add the sponge, milk, melted butter, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and food coloring, if using.
- Mix together until a dough forms, about 8-10 minutes on low speed. Scrape down the bowl as necessary to make sure everything is incorporated into the dough.
- Place the dough onto the counter. Rub a few drops of oil onto your hands. Knead the dough for 1 to 2 minutes until it's shiny and smooth.
Form rolls
- Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a thin rectangular sheet, about 1/4 inch thick.
- Cut the rectangle into about 8 strips, 1 1/2 inches wide.
- Roll the strips to create cylinder-shaped strips, about 24 inches long. Then roll each strip into a spiral bun. Tuck the ends underneath so the rolls can keep their shape while baking.
Proof the dough
- Use an 11" x 14" baking sheet. Line the sheet with parchment paper and spray with cooking oil or brush with melted butter. Place the rolls on the baking sheet, about 2 inches apart so that they have enough space to rise. It's important to use parchment paper so that the bottoms of the mallorca don't brown too much.
- Cover the baking tray loosely with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let the rolls rise for 2 hours. They should double in size.
- Pre-heat oven to 350℉.
Bake mallorca
- Brush the rolls very lightly with egg wash and place them in the oven. Bake for 15-17 minutes, until they are just beginning to brown. Be careful not to overbake.
- Brush the mallorcas with melted butter and allow to cool. Once cooled, dust generously with powdered sugar.
- Serve with café con leche or tea. Enjoy! ¡Buen provecho!
Video
Notes
Tips:
If refrigerating the dough overnight, form the buns first before placing in the refrigerator. It’s important to line your baking sheet with parchment paper so that the bottoms of the mallorca don’t brown too much. Be careful not to over bake the mallorca, or else they will be crunchy on the outside. They should be lightly golden brown on top. The texture of this Puerto Rican sweet bread is soft and fluffy.Shop my kitchen faves on Amazon:
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