Chocolate Filled Melomakarona Recipe (Covered With Nutella)
This chocolate filled melomakarona recipe transforms traditional Greek honey cookies into an irresistible delight, with Nutella and hazelnuts!
Ingredients
Filling and Dough
- 20 teaspoon Nutella frozen into individual portions
- 125 grams Unsalted butter (very soft at room temperature) not melted
- 125 ml Olive oil
- 125 ml Orange juice freshly squeezed
- 25 ml Ouzo
- 25 ml Cognac
- ⅛ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Ground cloves
- 110 grams Sugar
- 600 grams Self raising flour (sifted) added gradually
Syrup
- 375 ml water
- 165 grams Sugar
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 3 Whole cloves
- ½ Lemon juiced small lemon
- 125 ml Honey added after finished boiling
Topping
- 4 tablespoon Nutella for melting
- 60 grams Roasted hazelnuts chopped, a mix of fine and textured pieces
Instructions
Prepare the filing
- Line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Scoop teaspoons of Nutella onto the tray, forming small blobs.
- Place the tray in the freezer immediately to firm up the blobs.
- Before using the Nutella blobs, remove the tray from the freezer and cut the parchment paper into strips, separating the blobs into manageable portions.
- Keep the unused blobs in the freezer while you work, as they defrost and soften quickly.
Prepare and Bake the Dough
- Preheat the oven to 170°C fan-forced.
- Ensure your butter is soft and at room temperature. This is important for smooth mixing.
- Add the butter, olive oil, orange juice, ouzo, cognac, salt, vanilla extract, baking powder, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, and white sugar to a mixing bowl. Mix until well combined.
- Before adding the flour, ensure your mixer is fitted with a beating head. If you don’t have the appropriate attachment, you can mix by hand when incorporating the flour.
- Gradually add the self-raising flour, a little at a time, and mix until a soft, pliable dough forms. The dough should not be sticky and should hold its shape easily.
- Weigh out 45g dough portions and roll into balls. Flatten each ball slightly in your palm.
- Place a frozen Nutella blob in the centre of the dough, then wrap the dough around it, ensuring the Nutella is fully enclosed.
- Roll the dough into a smooth ball, then shape it into a cylinder or oval shape and place it onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 20–30 minutes or until golden brown, then remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool completely.
Syrup and Topping
- Prepare the syrup by combining the water, sugar, cinnamon stick, cloves, and lemon juice in a pot. Bring to a boil for 3-4 minutes, then remove from heat and stir in the honey. Set aside to cool slightly. (see syrup quantity notes at bottom)
- Allow the baked melomakarona to cool completely. For the best results, the syrup should be warm, not hot, to work effectively with the cooled cookies.
- Using a small sieve or fork, hold a melomakarona and use a ladle to scoop syrup from the saucepan. Lower the bottom of the melomakarona into the ladle to wet it, then tip the syrup over the top of the biscuit, allowing the excess to drip back into the saucepan.
- Place the cookies onto a wire rack to continue absorbing the syrup and get ready for the topping stage.
- Add Nutella to a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, ensuring the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Stir until the Nutella is melted and smooth. Transfer the melted Nutella to a piping bag.
- Pipe the melted Nutella over the top of each melomakarona in a zigzag pattern, then immediately sprinkle the chopped hazelnuts over the Nutella while it’s still wet to ensure they stick.
- Allow the Nutella to cool slightly, then serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Nutella Filling: This recipe makes approximately 20-23 melomakarona, but you may yield more. If you’d like to prepare additional Nutella-filled cookies, freeze extra Nutella portions. Otherwise, make a few without filling.
- Butter Temperature: Use room temperature butter for smooth mixing, but ensure it’s not melted.
- Hazelnuts: Toast the hazelnuts for a richer flavour before chopping.
- Syrup Quantity: You can make less syrup if you prefer, but I like having enough to easily ladle the syrup into the saucepan for smooth handling when coating the cookies.
- Preventing Softness: Unlike traditional melomakarona, the filling in this recipe holds more syrup, which can make the cookies overly soft if fully submerged. By carefully ladling the syrup over the top and bottom instead of submerging them, you maintain the perfect texture while still infusing the melomakarona with flavour.
Nutrition
Calories: 360kcalCarbohydrates: 50gProtein: 5gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 13mgSodium: 32mgPotassium: 111mgFiber: 2gSugar: 27gVitamin A: 172IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Post it on Instagram and tag me @nikolopaa