Melomakarona Recipe (Greek Christmas Honey Cookies)
Try this easy, authentic Melomakarona recipe! These Greek Christmas cookies with honey, walnuts, and orange are the perfect festive treat.
Ingredients
Dough Ingredients
- 250 grams Unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup Olive oil
- 1 cup Orange juice
- 50 ml Ouzo
- 50 ml Cognac
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla sugar
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Ground cloves
- 1 cup Sugar
- 6 cups Self raising flour may need up to 7
Syrup Ingredients
- 3 cups Water
- 1½ cups Sugar
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 5 Whole cloves
- ½ Lemon juiced
- 1 cup Honey Add after finished boiling
Nut Mixture
- 3 cups Walnuts
- 1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Ground cloves
Instructions
- Add the butter, olive oil, orange juice, ouzo, and cognac to your mixing bowl and mix together until well combined. If your butter isn’t at room temperature, you may need to slightly heat it for smoother mixing.
- Add the salt, vanilla sugar, baking powder, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, and white sugar to your mixing bowl. Mix again to incorporate.
- Gradually sift in the self-raising flour, starting with 2 cups. Mix, and continue adding flour cup by cup until a doughy consistency is reached. The dough should be soft, pliable, and not sticky. It should easily come together without crumbling but should also hold its shape without sticking to your hands.
- Once the dough is ready, preheat the oven to 170°C fan forced. Start shaping the dough into biscuits, around 40 grams each. Roll them, and press them down gently to make small oval shapes.
- Place the shaped biscuits onto a lined baking tray and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.
- While the biscuits are baking, toast the whole walnuts in a pan. Set them aside to cool.
- Prepare the syrup by adding the water, sugar, cinnamon stick, cloves, and lemon juice to a pot. Bring it to a boil, then remove from heat and stir in the honey. Set the syrup aside.
- Once the walnuts are cooled, crush them to a fine consistency and mix with the ground cinnamon and ground cloves.
- When the biscuits are ready, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool.
- Reheat the syrup slightly, ensuring it is warm but not too hot.
- Submerge the cooled biscuits into the warm syrup for a few seconds, then place them on a rack to drain off any excess syrup.
- Roll the syrup-coated biscuits in the walnut mixture, lightly coating them.
- Once coated, place the cookies on a nice serving platter.
Video
Notes
- Dough Consistency: The dough should be soft, pliable, and not sticky. It should easily come together without crumbling but hold its shape without sticking to your hands.
- Syrup Temperature: For the best results, ensure that the biscuits are fully cooled before dipping them in the warm syrup. This helps the biscuits absorb the syrup evenly without becoming soggy.
- Adjusting Sweetness: If you prefer less sweetness, you can reduce the honey in the syrup slightly or soak the biscuits for a shorter amount of time to control the syrup absorption.
Nutrition
Calories: 268kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 3gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 12mgSodium: 30mgPotassium: 71mgFiber: 1gSugar: 18gVitamin A: 153IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 21mgIron: 0.5mg
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