Pan de Bocaditos, Pan Dulce - Pan Suave Options

[foodiesleuth]

Yuyi, here is a recipe that I have made several times and it has worked for me. This recipe makes 12- 5" sized rolls, but you can have the baker make the panes in the size you want. This is a posting from the Cocina Cubana Yahoo Cooking Group

FROM: Cocina Cubana
POST: #25
DATE: 4/10/01
BY: Sonia

PAN SUAVE - PAN DULCE

The Portuguese make a sweet bread they call Pao Duce. The Mexicans make
their version, and call it Pan Dulce.

We Cubans also make Pan Dulce, except it is usually called Pan Suave.
You can find it in most Cuban Bakeries and its' the bread roll used for
the Cuban Medianoche Sandwich.

I live in Hawaii, where there is a large concentration of Portuguese who
came to the Islands about a 100 years ago to work in the sugar cane fields.
Sometimes their Pao Duce (pronounced deuce) is called Hawaiian Bread here.

This recipe appears in the Steven Raichlen "Miami Spice" cookbook:

PAN SUAVE (Cuban Sweet Rolls)
Makes 12/ 5-inch rolls

2 envelopes active dry yeast (2-1/4 tsp each)
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup warm water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tsp salt, plus a little bit more for egg glaze
4 to 5 cups bread or all-purpose flour, or more, as needed
2 Tbsp sesame seeds (**)
1 Tbsp melted butter

Dissolve yeast and 1 tabespoon sugar in 3 tablespoons warm water in a large
mixing bowl. When mixture foams (about 5-10 minutes), stir in remaining water,
sugar, the oil and all but 1 tablespoon of the beaten eggs.

Beat the remaining egg with a pinch of salt to make egg glaze and store in
refrigerator until needed.

Stir the 2 tablespoons salt and the flour, 1 cup at a time, into the liquid
ingredients, to obtain a dough that is stiff enough to pull away from the sides
of the bowl, but soft enough to knead. The dough can also be keanded in a mixer
fitted with a dough hook or in a food processor with the dough blade.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, 6 to 8
minutes, adding flour as necessary to obtain a soft dough that is pliable but
not sticky. It will be a little moister than regular bread dough.

Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let rise in warm, draft-free
spot until doubled in bulk- 1 to 1-1/2 hours. Punch down.

Form the rolls, dividing into 12 equal pieces. Roll each on the work surface
with the palm of your hand to form a tube 5 inches long with tapered ends.
Transfer the rolls to a lightly greased baking sheet leaving 3 inches between
each.

Cover with a dampened cotton dish towel and let rise in warm, draft-free spot
until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. You can let them rise in the refrigerator
if you want, but it will take 3 to 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 350oF

Brush the rolls with the reserved egg glaze and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Bake until golden brown and hollow sounding when lightly tapped, 20 to 30
minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes. Brush tops with melted
butter. Serve warm or cool to room temperature on a wire rack.

(**) I don't remember ever using sesame seeds on ours.
Happy Baking!!!!!!!!