Traditional Greek Honey Cookies (Melomakarona)
Indulge in the delightful taste of Traditional Greek Honey Cookies (Melomakarona), a sweet treat that embodies the essence of festive celebrations. These soft and crumbly cookies are generously soaked in a fragrant syrup infused with orange zest, cinnamon, and cloves, making them a perfect dessert for any occasion. Their irresistible flavor profile combines warm spices and natural sweetness, creating a comforting experience that will delight your family and friends. Easy to make and ideal for sharing, these cookies are sure to become a cherished addition to your holiday baking tradition.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Approximately 30 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients
Scale
- 125 ml fresh orange juice
- 250 grams olive oil (or half olive oil and half sunflower oil)
- 50 grams honey
- 80 ml water
- 100 grams sugar
- 1 + ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground clove
- ⅓ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon vanillin powder or ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 orange zested
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 125 grams fine semolina
- 550 grams all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 400 grams sugar for syrup
- 100 grams honey for syrup
- 325 ml water for syrup
- 1 stick of cinnamon for syrup
- 4–5 dried cloves for syrup
- 1 orange peel for syrup
Instructions
- Prepare the syrup by heating sugar, honey, water, cinnamon stick, cloves, and orange peel in a saucepan until dissolved. Simmer for 10 minutes, then cool.
- For the cookie dough, whisk together olive oil, orange juice, honey, water, sugar, spices, baking soda, semolina, flour, and baking powder until combined. Knead lightly until smooth.
- Shape the dough into oval-shaped cookies approximately 2 inches long and place them on lined baking sheets.
- Bake at 180°C (350°F) for about 20 minutes or until lightly golden.
- Soak each warm cookie in the cooled syrup for 30 seconds before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
- Serve garnished with extra honey and ground walnuts.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 123
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 12mg
- Fat: 4g
- Saturated Fat: 0.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 21g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 0mg