Pan de Feria San Marcos

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large mixing bowl or stand mixer with dough hook
• •Kitchen scale for dividing the dough evenly
• •Charola lechera or heavy rimmed baking sheet
• •Soft pastry brush for butter and sugar glaze
• •Clean cotton servilleta for covering the proofing dough

Instructions

1. 1

   Start the esponja

   Stir the yeast, 1 tablespoon of the sugar, 1/2 cup of the warm milk, and 1/2 cup of the flour in a bowl. It should look like thick batter. Cover and let it stand 25 to 35 minutes, until swollen and bubbly. This is the push that gives the feria bread its panaderia crumb. Chemical leavener has no business here.

2. 2

   Mix the dough

   In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the remaining flour, remaining sugar, salt, canela, orange zest, vanilla, eggs, egg yolk, remaining 1/4 cup milk, and the risen esponja. Mix until no dry flour remains. The dough will be firm and a little rough at first. Let it rest 10 minutes so the wheat can drink the liquid.

3. 3

   Work in butter

   Knead on medium-low speed, or by hand on the table, for 5 minutes. Add the softened butter one tablespoon at a time, kneading until each piece disappears before adding the next. Do not dump it all in at once. The dough should turn smooth, elastic, and slightly tacky, not greasy. If you add too much flour now, you will get dry fair bread, and the senora who taught you would notice.

4. 4

   Let it rise

   Place the dough in a lightly buttered bowl, cover, and let it rise in a warm place for 75 to 90 minutes, until nearly doubled. Press a floured finger into the dough. If the mark fills slowly, it is ready. If it springs back fast, give it more time. Bread has its own clock. No me vengas con atajos.

5. 5

   Shape the pieces

   Turn the dough onto a lightly floured table and divide it into 12 equal pieces, about 80 grams each. Roll each piece into a tight oval, then press very lightly with your palm so the top is rounded and the base is stable. Set them on a buttered charola or parchment-lined sheet pan, leaving space between them. They should look hand-shaped, not machine-perfect.

6. 6

   Proof and varnish

   Cover the shaped breads with a clean towel and let them rise 45 to 55 minutes, until puffed and light. Heat the oven to 375F. Brush the tops gently with the egg wash. Use a soft hand. If you press too hard, you knock out the work the yeast just did.

7. 7

   Bake the bread

   Bake 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan once, until the tops are deep golden and the edges are darker amber. In a horno de boveda, the back pieces color faster, so the panadero turns the charola by instinct. At home, use your eyes. Pale bread is underbaked bread.

8. 8

   Make the glaze

   While the bread bakes, simmer the 1/2 cup sugar, water, and canela stick for 4 to 5 minutes, until the sugar dissolves and the syrup lightly coats a spoon. Remove the canela. Keep the glaze warm enough to brush. This is a thin sugar barniz, not frosting. Do not turn feria bread into a cupcake.

9. 9

   Butter and glaze

   As soon as the breads come out, brush the tops with melted butter, then brush with the warm sugar glaze. Sprinkle with the finishing sugar while the surface is still tacky. Let them rest 20 minutes before serving so the glaze settles into a light shine and the crumb finishes setting.

10. 10

    Serve for merienda

    Serve on a wooden tray or charola lechera with cafe de olla, or set them beside the Hidrocalido bolillo con crema if you are building the fair table properly. This bread is tender the first day and still good the next morning warmed briefly. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Chef Tips

• •Use Mexican canela if you can find it. The brittle Ceylon-style sticks used in Mexican kitchens are warmer and cleaner than hard cassia. A small difference in the jar becomes a clear difference in the bread.
• •Do not replace the butter with oil. Oil makes the crumb dull and heavy. Some panaderos use manteca vegetal for softness, but this version is built on butter because the feria bread needs that clean dairy perfume.
• •The glaze is a thin barniz de azucar. Powdered sugar icing is wrong here. If the bread looks like a doughnut, you lost the thread.
• •A home oven will not taste exactly like a horno de boveda. Preheat fully, bake until the edges turn amber, and do not pull the bread while it is pale. The fair bread should have color.

Advance Preparation

• •The dough can be mixed and given its first rise, then refrigerated overnight in a covered bowl. Shape it cold the next morning and allow 75 to 90 minutes for the final proof.
• •The sugar glaze can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Warm it gently before brushing so it spreads thinly.
• •The breads are best the day they are baked. For make-ahead service, bake them without glaze, freeze once cool, rewarm at 300F for 8 to 10 minutes, then butter and glaze.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 95g)