Greeks Inside

Traditional Greek melomakarona

• Greeks Inside
• December 20, 2022December 20, 2022
• 2

What are these small, honey cakes?

Melomakarona are traditional Greek moist cookies. The are essential in every Greek home during the Christmas period.  Their origins can be traced to the Greek populations in the Asia Minor before the 19^th century.

Traditionally they are made of flour and semolina. It may be difficult though, for those who live away from the mediterranean basin to find some ingredients, like semolina. In this post we have a simpler but equally delicious recipe, using only all-purpose flour.

This recipe is very easy and will make your home smell like Christmas! In the main photo of this post, you can see my version of it. If I did it, everybody can! So, let’s do this!

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 1 kg all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• Half tablespoon cloves
• Zest from a medium orange
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 cup orange juice
• ½ kg olive oil (or half and half, olive and sunflower oil)
• 1 shot of cognac  
• 200 gr walnuts (or almonds) to sprinkle at the end

For the syrup:

• 400 gr sugar
• 400 gr honey
• 400 gr water
• Peel of an orange
• 1 cinnamon stick

Preparing traditional Greek melomakarona:

Add in a bowl the flour along with the baking powder, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and orange zest. Mix well.

Dissolve the baking soda in orange juice, by stirring well. Add it in the bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Add the oil and the cognac and mix.

When the dough is blended well, shape the melomakarona to the desired size. There is no right or wrong about it! Just do as you please!

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 170^o C (340^o F) for about 20 minutes. As soon as they turn golden, they are ready. Set aside to cool down and move on to the syrup.

The syrup is also very easy. Add all the ingredients in a saucepan. Bring it to a boil for about five minutes while skimming off the foam. By the time the syrup thickens, it is ready.

Dip the cooled melomakarona in the syrup.  Then it is a matter of taste! If you like it soft and moist, let them dipped for a longer time. Just make sure they won’t disintegrate! If not, and you prefer them to be crispier, like cookies, after a short dip they should be ready.

Finally, sprinkle with crushed walnuts or almonds and cinnamon. If you are a sweet-tooth and want them extra moist, pour over them the remaining syrup! This final touch will also glaze them and make them more festive!