The Best Paleo Day of the Dead Bread Skulls
Look no further, this is the best paleo day of the dead bread recipe you will find. I say this with complete confidence because, at the time of writing this post, it is also the only paleo recipe I could find anywhere! LOL.
I would also say it is the best because I have spent ridiculous amounts of time and flour trying to perfect this recipe. Baking with commonly used ingredients is finicky already. I found out that Paleo baking is even harder, but not impossible.
Day of the Dead, or Dia de Muertos in Spanish, is a very important tradition that I like to share with my family. Each year I set up a small altar, and we have a small family gathering on November 2nd. We share stories of our loved ones while we eat Day of the Dead bread and sip on Mexican hot chocolate.
The paleo diet has brought many benefits to my health. While I have to say RIP to the traditional bread, I don’t have to say goodbye to the tradition. This bread is special to me and that is why I got to work and made this paleo Day of the Dead bread skulls. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.
Do’s and don’ts
- Do make sure your almond milk is lukewarm. If it is cold, your yeast won’t rise. If it is too hot, you will kill the yeast. The same goes for all your wet ingredients.
- Do Make sure to sift the flour. You should do this step with any kind of flour anyway.
- Don’t try to omit the sugar. The yeast needs to feed on it to rise. I used maple sugar, but you can use coconut sugar instead.
- Don’t skip on the fresh orange juice. The acid of the citrus is crucial for the dough to rise.
Also, if you are unable to find Bob’s red mill’s paleo baking flour. You can make your own flour. I found a lot of recipes online; here is one that is very detailed from Dr. Axe.
Paleo baking powder is also easy to make. Here is an excellent recipe that I have been using from delightfulmomfood.com.
The Best Paleo Day of the Dead Bread Skulls
Equipment
- Skulled shaped baking tray
- Hand mixer
Ingredients
- 2 cups paleo baking flour Sifted
- 1/4 cup maple sugar or coconut sugar
- 3/4 tsp rapid rise instant yeast fast acting
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp paleo baking powder
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 1/4 cup dairy-free butter melted but not hot (I use Miyoko's)
- 1 egg or 1 flax egg subtitute room temperature
- 2 tsp fresh orange juice
- 1 cup almond milk
Maple sugar and cinnamon mixture (optional)
- 1/4 cup maple sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cover each skull in the pan with a thin layer of vegan butter.
- Make a mixture of maple sugar and cinnamon and set it aside. (optional)
- Place sifted paleo flour, maple sugar, yeast, salt, baking powder, and orange zest in a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate bowl, mix butter, egg, orange juice, and milk. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a hand mixer. Use a silicone spatula to scrape the sides.
- Fill each skull with the batter about 3/4 of the way full. Place in the oven and bake for 15 - 20 minutes. Remove when the edges are golden or insert a toothpick to test.
- Once you remove them from the oven, wait 5 minutes to flip the skulls into a cooling rack. Sprinkle with the sugar and cinnamon mixture while they are still hot.
Here are some of my favorite items to decorate for the Day of the Dead.
