Melomakarona

Melomakarona are soft, oval-shaped Greek cookies scented with orange and cinnamon, drenched in honey syrup and covered with crushed walnuts. Yes, they are irresistible! This recipe makes 60 cookies; they keep well for a couple weeks, making them the perfect holiday treat or gift for family and friends.

Prep – 30minutes mins
Cook – 20minutes mins
Serves – 60 cookies

Ingredients

For the Syrup

• ▢1 orange, zested and halved
• ▢1 1/2 cups water
• ▢1 cup sugar
• ▢1 cinnamon stick
• ▢1 cup honey

For the Cookies

• ▢2 cups extra virgin olive oil (or 1 cup extra virgin olive oil and 1 cup grapeseed oil)
• ▢1/2 cup brandy
• ▢1 large orange, zested and juiced (to make 1/2 cup orange juice; juice another orange if necessary)
• ▢1 cup sugar
• ▢1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ▢1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• ▢7 1/2 cups (900 g) all purpose flour
• ▢2 teaspoons baking powder
• ▢1 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢3/4 to 1 cup (about 3 ounces) walnuts, finely chopped (chop the walnuts after measuring)

Instructions 

• Make the syrup. To a medium saucepan, add the orange zest, orange halves, water, sugar, and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves completely, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the honey. Set aside to cool completely (do not remove the cinnamon or orange until you are ready to use the syrup).
• While the syrup cools, get ready to bake. Heat the oven to 350°F. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Make the Melomakarona dough. Into a large mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil, brandy, orange juice, orange zest, sugar, ground cinnamon, and nutmeg. In another bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Slowly add the dry flour mixture to the wet olive oil mixture (I added 1/3 of the flour at a time), while mixing with a wooden spoon.
• Lightly knead the dough. Once all the flour has been added, use your hands to knead the dough until smooth (do not overwork the dough).
• Shape the dough. Take about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the cookie dough and shape it between your palms into an oval shape (like a small egg). Lightly flatten and set on the prepared sheet pan. Repeat, forming the cookies until you have used up all the dough. Line the cookies in the sheet pan, making sure to leave about 1/2-inch between them (use two pans if necessary).
• Make the signature pattern on top. In the center of each cookie, lightly press the tines of a fork to make a crosshatch pattern. The cookies should flatten a tiny bit in the center (but you should not push so hard the cookies become too flat).
• Bake the cookies. Bake on the center rack of your heated oven until golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Soak the cookies. Remove the orange and cinnamon stick from the syrup. As soon as you take the cookies out of the oven, put them in the cold syrup, flipping them around for about 20 to 30 seconds or so (you will need to do this in batches, making sure that all the cookies are able to absorb enough syrup).
• Finish and enjoy! Remove the cookies from the syrup and arrange on a tray or directly on your serving dish. Sprinkle each cookie with a generous pinch of the chopped walnuts, pressing into the cookies so they stick.

Notes

• Storage: Store melomakarona in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks (or even longer!). It helps to place sheets of wax paper in between the layers of cookies to prevent them from sticking together.

Nutrition

Calories: 179.9kcalCarbohydrates: 24gProtein: 1.9gFat: 8.3gSaturated Fat: 1.1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1.5gMonounsaturated Fat: 5.4gSodium: 33.5mgPotassium: 34.7mgFiber: 0.7gSugar: 11.8gVitamin A: 10.7IUVitamin C: 2.4mgCalcium: 14.9mgIron: 0.9mg