Melomakarona - Greek Honey Cookies

Immerse yourself in the captivating realm of Melomakarona, a delicacy that embodies a harmonious blend of flavors and textures. These delightful cookies, with their tender and luscious composition are skillfully handcrafted using squeezed orange juice, aromatic spices and the wholesome goodness of olive oil. Each cookie serves as a canvas adorned with the hues of honey and garnished with finely chopped walnuts delivering a satisfying crunch that beautifully complements its syrup-infused interior. Melomakarona is more, than a dessert; it symbolizes culinary heritage pays homage to the timeless art of baking and presents a heartwarming indulgence that transports you to the heart of Greek festivities right at your own table.

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Greek

Keyword: Melomakarona - Greek Honey Cookies

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 20

Servings: cookies

Ingredients

For The Cookie Dough:

125 ml orange juice fresh
250 g olive oil or half olive oil, half sunflower oil for a lighter flavor
50 g honey
80 ml water
100 g ½ c sugar
1 + ½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground clove
⅓ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp vanillin powder or ½ tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 orange
½ tsp baking soda
125 g ⅔ c + 1 tablespoon fine semolina
550 g 4 + ⅔ c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder

For The Syrup:

400 g 2 c sugar
100 g honey
325 ml 1⅓ c + 1 tablespoon water
1 stick of cinnamon
4-5 dried cloves
1 strip of orange peel

For Garnish:

Honey
Ground walnuts

Instructions

Let's start by preparing the dough:

In a bowl combine orange juice, olive oil, honey, water, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, vanillin or vanilla extract and orange zest.
Stir the mixture until the sugar completely dissolves.
Add baking soda, semolina flour, all-purpose flour and baking powder to the bowl. Mix everything together until you achieve an oily dough.
Cover the bowl with a tea towel. Let the dough rest.

Up is making the syrup:

Take a saucepan. Combine sugar, honey, water, cinnamon stick cloves and orange peel, in it.
Bring the mixture to a boil without stirring for 4 minutes.
Allow the syrup to cool down.

Moving on to baking the cookies:

Preheat your oven to 180°C (356°F).
Shape small oval cookies from the dough. Place them on a baking tray.
You can use a fork or grater to decorate them if you like.
Bake for 20 minutes. Until they turn lightly brown.

Now it's time to soak them in syrup:

While they are still hot, from baking; dip each cookie into the cooled syrup for a few seconds on each side.
Place them on a rack so that they can cool down and drain.

For garnishing and serving:

Drizzle some honey over each cookie. Sprinkle ground walnuts over them well.
Enjoy these Melomakarona cookies!

Notes

You can turn Melomakarona into a gluten-free treat and enjoy the adventure of baking! To start this gluten-free journey swap the flour with your preferred gluten-free flour blend. A 1:1 ratio of gluten-free baking flour usually works like magic. However keep in mind that different gluten-free flours have their characteristics so anticipate a slightly different texture. It's, like giving an old favorite a new twist!

Now when it comes to semolina look for an alternative. Gluten-free semolina is often made from corn or rice. Makes a substitute. Just remember that it might slightly change the texture and add a touch of character to the cookies.