Molletes are a Well Known Guatemalan Bread

I lived in Guatemala for 12 years, in the 1970s and earliest '80s. I understand a lot has changed in the years since then, but my memories of that time are clear. The bread in Guatemala was unlike anything I had ever seen in my 20 years prior to moving there. They had "French Bread" or "Pan Frances". this was the main, unsweetened bread. Aside from this, and the ubiquitous corn tortillas, there were what were called either Pan Dulce ("sweet bread") or Pan de Manteca (a bread made with shortening or butter or lard) These sweet/shortening type breads were so many and so varied that it is hard to even describe them. I do not recall the names of all of them. I wrote a little of this in a recent blog of December 8, 2014.

Molletes

What is a Mollete?

Mollete is pronounced "moh-YET-tay". The double "LL" in the middle is pronounced as "Y". Molletes, one of the "Panes de Manteca", or sweet/enriched breads, are small, individual sized rounded breads, vaguely sweet, and most often seen with a little mound of some sort of sugary substance stuck on the top. These little breads are excellent with beans and coffee for breakfast, or at any time of day. Great in the afternoon with coffee (or tea) as a snack, also. The bread is rich, soft inside, but with some substance. Aside from just eating them on the day they are made, once leftover, they become dry and crumbly. Guatemalans rarely waste foods, so once the bread becomes dried out, it becomes the basis for other things. 

Molletes with egg and beans for breakfast

Molletes are also used to create a dessert called "Molletes". Confusing? I suppose. Sometimes this dessert is distinguished by calling it Molletes en Dulce, meaning they are made into a "sweet". This dessert is a specialty around Holy Week before Easter, but it can be made at any time. To make the dessert, the top is cut off the breads, a little of the bread is scooped out and filled in with cream, or cornstarch custard. The little "lid" is placed back on top, and the whole bread is coated in very well beaten eggs, fluffy and light. They are then fried, so no raw egg remains and they are sealed shut, and then slipped into a large pot of simmering sugar syrup, flavored with cinnamon and raisins and allowed to absorb this liquid. These were a most delectable treat, and one fantastic way to use leftover bread. On occasion, something similar is done with other types of bread. I have made them with French bread, cut into 2-inch cubes. 

Molletes, served

Recently I made another of the Guatemalan sweet breads, called Champurradas (recipe in the same blog as noted above), which are like a large, not very sweet cookie. Since most of these breads are made only at the bakeries found everywhere, no one makes them at home. Hence, no recipes. It is very hard to replicate a bread I ate over 40 years ago, with no recipe to at least give some approximation of what is used. One of the breads I most wish I had some kind of recipe for is one my ex-husband said are called Shecas. These, at least in Guatemala City where I lived, were not a totally white variety of bread, but I don't know if whole wheat was used or the color comes from another source. The bread was denser than the molletes. Anise seeds were in the bread, but not in abundance, so when you took a bite, it was hit or miss to actually taste a seed. When the anise seed did make its presence known, it was sort of a joyous feeling of satisfaction; triumph. And, these Shecas were wonderful when eating black beans. I so wish I had some idea of the ingredients.

I have been trying to make as many Guatemalan foods as possible, in order to get the photos to use in the cookbook/memoir I am still working on. I made the molletes just after Christmas, and have a bunch of them frozen. Eating them brings back a flood of taste memories, so I must have hit close to how the recipe should be made. Here is what I did:

Molletes

 Makes 2 dozen

BREAD: In a bowl, whisk together 2 cups of the flour with the sugar, yeast, baking powder and salt. Separately, combine the milk, eggs and vanilla. If the eggs do not make at least ½ cup, you may need a little more milk to mix the dough properly. Mix the lard or shortening into the dry ingredients briefly, then pour in the liquid mixture. Stir well, then add int he remaining flour and knead for about 15 or more minutes, or until the dough passes the windowpane test. For the windowpane test: take a small piece of the dough and stretch between the fingers until it will stretch thin enough to see light through (a "windowpane") without tearing. Grease a large bowl and scrape the dough into the bowl, turning once to grease both sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise until nearly doubled in bulk, about 1 to ½ hours.

Turn the dough out onto a greased surface. Cut the dough into 24 equal balls, approximately 1½ ounces apiece. Form each portion of the dough into a nice, tight little ball and set well apart (about 3-inches between) on greased baking sheets. 

Size of the dough balls; placement on baking sheet, and baked Molletes

TOPPING: Mix together the three ingredients as for a streusel, though this will be far stickier. Moisten the top of each little bread ball with water, then place a scant ½ teaspoon of the topping mixture on each, spreading and flattening the mixture with moist fingers. Set the breads aside to rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size, about 45 minutes to an hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake the breads for about 12 minutes, to an internal temperature of 105 to 200 degrees, until golden, rotating the sheets once halfway through baking time for even browning.

My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.