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Guaguas de Pan de Masa Madre

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Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

Sourdough Starter
  • 2 very ripe bananas
  • 2 cups flour
  • 3 cups water
Dough
  • 3 Tbsp panela or brown sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 6 cups flour
Decoration
  • Icing (optional)
  • Edible flower petals (optional)

Method
 

Sourdough Starter
  1. Add the bananas to a large mixing bowl. Mash them with the back of a wooden spoon.
  2. Stir in 2 cups of flour and 3 cups of water until well combined. Cover the bowl and let sit overnight. You can use a silicone bowl cover or a cheese cloth and an elastic, but make sure it’s tight enough to keep out the bugs.
  3. The next day, check your starter. It should be nice and bubbly. If not, let it sit covered for another few hours to a day until bubbly. 
Guaguas de Pan
  1. Stir in the panela and salt into the bubbly starter. Then add the flour, one cup at a time. Stir it until the dough is too thick, then knead in the rest. 
  2. Return the dough to the bowl and cover. Let it sit overnight.
  3. The next day, the dough should have doubled in size. If not, let it sit another few hours to a day until it has risen. 
  4. Divide the dough in thirds to make three smallish loaves or into six portions for smaller guaguas de pan. 
  5. Form the dough into shapes that look roughly like a swaddled baby. Then place them on a baking sheet. 
  6. Bake at 350°F for about 30 minutes (for the larger loaves), or until the bread turns golden brown and makes a distinct thunk sound when you tap it. 
  7. Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool. 
Decoration
  1. Once the bread has cooled, decorate your guaguas de pan as desired. We used honey to “glue” on rose petals and then mixed butterfly pea flower powder with honey to make a colored icing for the other details.