Known as pan de elote or pastel de elote, this sweet Mexican cornbread-some might even say corn cake-is a staple on the dessert menu at Komal in LA, one of our Best New Restaurants of 2025. Chef Fátima Juárez has built a menu around heirloom corn nixtamalized and ground in-house. Her pan de elote recipe combines white heirloom corn and house-made rice flour, paying homage to her Jacona, Michoacán-born grandmother and the long, storied tradition of pan dulce in Mexico.