What may appear to some as just a piece of sugary bread is a symbol deeply rooted in Mexican tradition. A South Sacramento panaderia in the autumn season gears up to provide a seasonal specialty for Día de los Muertos celebrations on Nov. 1 and 2.
Día de los Muertos, a Mexican celebration intended to honor loved ones who have died, calls for pan de muerto, or “bread of the dead,” a variant of the subcategory of Mexican pastries called pan dulce. Not easily found at traditional grocery stores, pan de muerto is used to celebrate the Mexican holiday and is thought to be an aromatic guide to ancestors.
On the corner of Franklin Boulevard in South Sacramento, La Esperanza, a local Mexican panaderia, or “bakery” in English, upholds the tradition and artistry of crafting the specialty bread once a year. Pan de muerto embodies the essence of the sacred Mexican holiday, according to Moises Camacho, a La Esperanza panadero, or “baker” in English.
"In Mexico, we celebrate the day as an ancient belief that our dead return; that is why an offering is made with fruit and food," Camacho said in Spanish. "It’s something of our culture.”
While death can be a sad idea, pan de muerto symbolizes the holiday’s concept of celebrating the lives of loved ones who have departed and have left sweet memories behind. Camacho said pan de muerto and other treats are placed on an ofrenda, or “offering” altars, creating a bridge between the living and the dead.
Two large, freshly baked pan de muerto sit on a bakery sheet at La Esperanza bakery in Sacramento, Calif. on Oct. 25, 2023.Tony Rodriguez/CapRadio
The holiday coincides with Halloween, and the use of skeletons in celebrations is similar to the American holiday. But Día de los Muertos is different — there is an emphasis on celebrating ancestors, according to Camacho. By celebrating those who have died, their spirits and memories are kept alive.
La Esperanza Operational Supervisor Jorge Plasencia said pan dulce is something that can be enjoyed with other people. Plasencia has worked at La Esperanza since he was 12 years old and is the grandson of the panaderia’s founder.
He added that pan de muerto serves as an offering and guide to departed ancestors crossing over during the celebration of Día de los Muertos. The specialty pan dulce takes more butter — a lot, he said — and other secret ingredients to make.
"There's certain ingredients that we like to put in there that make it extra special,” he said. “It is a lot more labor-intensive,” Plasencia said.
The line often hangs out the door of the bakery during holiday season with families continuing the tradition of sharing pan dulce, he said.
“Sometimes, we see [family come in] where it's the grandmother, the mom, daughter, and granddaughter. It's pretty neat that we can carry that tradition for so many generations.”
The interest in Mexican pan dulce has grown since the release of the Disney film “Coco," Plasencia said, and so has the interest in pan de muertos. La Esperanza has seen an influx of new customers asking for it, he added.
Sacramento resident Linley Saunders has celebrated Día de los Muertos for the last five years, since the movie was released.
“I think that [the film] inspired a lot of Americans of Mexican descent,” Saunders said. “Our culture kind of got lost … [with] our ancestors coming over and wanting to be more American.”
Día de los Muertos provides Saunders and her family an opportunity to remember those who have come before them, she said. Meticulously placed treats on Saunders’ ofrenda range from moon pies, tequila, pan de muerto and other pan dulce, symbolizing an ode to some of her past loved ones' favorite snacks.
“It's not scary, and it's not sad. There's nothing sad about it. I can sit here and look at all my pictures [on my offering] and get teary-eyed, of course,” she said. “But it's more so through remembering them and letting them know we still think about them and love them and can't wait to see them again.”
Linley Saunders' Dia de los Muertos altar in her Sacramento home on Oct. 28, 2023.Tony Rodriguez/CapRadio
Sacramento guardians of tradition: Making ‘pan dulce’ memories
The craft of being a panadero takes practice and is a skill not often taught in culinary school, La Esperanza’s Camacho said. Panaderos at the south Sacramento panaderia range from those with decades of experience to young apprentices.
Camacho has been a panadero for over 25 years. Coming from a family of bakers, he said panaderias have always been part of his life. Working at La Esperanza, he carries on a family expertise.
“There are people who learn in school, but in reality, you learn better by working in the panaderia,” Camacho said. “My dad’s father was a baker. The only one who wasn’t [a baker] was my dad. But I have quite the baking family. My cousins, uncles, and the majority [of my family were panaderos].”
Packaged pan dulce made by machines can be purchased at some stores, Plasencia said, but a machine cannot replicate what a fresh panaderia can offer.
“We are grateful that we have great bakers willing to teach their knowledge to people that are coming up,” he said.
Panadero Moises Camacho crafts pan dulce for La Esperanza bakery in Sacramento, Calif. on Oct. 25, 2023.Tony Rodriguez/CapRadio
Salvador Plasencia — Jorge Plasencia’s grandfather — founded La Esperanza in 1969. Born in Jalisco, Mexico, Salvador Plasencia was orphaned and became a master panadero after being taught by a mentor.
After opening a bakery in Tijuana, Mexico, he wanted to bring his skills to the United States. Eventually settling in Sacramento, he began working at a Mexican market called the Jalisco Market, one of the first in the city, according to Jorge Plasencia. A few years later, Salvador Plasencia opened up La Esperanza on Franklin Boulevard, which still stands today.
Since its opening, the location remains, but the small bakery has now grown into a Mexican-owned supermarket, butchery, restaurant and tortilla shop.
“He was the master baker … he had the foresight that he wanted to grow this into a market and something bigger than a bakery,” Jorge Plasencia said about his grandfather.
Crafting pan de muerto is more labor intensive than the other pan dulce the panaderia makes. Camacho said the practice takes respect for tradition and demands skill and patience, and called it nothing short of an art form.
“With practice and more practice, you learn. Some people inherit the skill, and some learn quickly, but it all comes with practice,” he said.
La Esperanza Operational Supervisor Jorge Plasencia holding a sheet of pan de muerto ready to be baked on Oct. 25, 2023.Tony Rodriguez/CapRadio
La Esperanza’s panaderos agree: When you bite into pan de muerto, you're tasting not just the sweetness of the bread but are participating in a celebration of memories. During Día de los Muertos season in Mexico, Camacho said he would work for three days continuously to keep up with the demand for pan de muerto.
Pan dulce can be enjoyed any time of the day, according to La Esperanza panaderia employee Alondra Carranza. To best enjoy pan de muerto, one should eat it with hot coffee or Mexican-style hot chocolate made from chopped bittersweet chocolate and cinnamon.
“It’s even better that way since you can dip it,” she said. “One of my earliest memories of eating [pan dulce] ... is in the back of my grandmother's house. I remember early mornings … my grandmother would tell us, ‘Ya tengo tu puercito’ [I have your pig-shaped bread]. You can never go wrong with it.”
Panaderias like La Esperanza stand as guardians of a sacred tradition. Not only do they make the pan de muerto, but they preserve the identity of Mexican culture. For many, this bread is not just a seasonal delight — it's a ritual, a connection to heritage and a testament to the spirit of Día de los Muertos, Saunders said.
“As a kid, it was my link to Mexico. Pan dulce was my favorite treat growing up,” she said. “This is what we love to do and how we celebrate. If they didn't [make pan de muerto], I wouldn't be able to have it.”
While pan de muerto is a seasonal specialty, La Esperanza on Franklin Boulevard is open seven days a week, serving pan dulce from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
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