Melomakarona


In Greece, a traditional Christmas dinner always finishes with a selection of biscuits. Part of this selection are melomakaronas which are small honey, orange and cinnamon flavoured biscuits which are made in this way:

Recipe for 10-20 biscuits:
  • 1 cup of butter
  • 1 cup olive oil
  • 1 kg self raising flour
  • 1 cup caster sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon clove, crushed
  • zests of 2 oranges
  • 1 teaspoon bread soda
  • 1 Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup walnut, chopped
For the syrup:
  • 2 cups caster sugar
  • 3 cups water
  • 3 cups honey
  • 1 lemon juice
  • few chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cinnamon stick
Cream the butter. Add the olive oil, spices, sugar, soda bread, yogurt and orange zest. Bind all these ingredients and add the flour and walnuts. Knead this dough well and form some small croquette shape biscuit with dough.
Place them on a greased and floured oven tray and bake them at 190 degrees Celsius (375F) for 30-35 minutes.
Meanwhile put all the ingredients for the syrup in a sauce pan. Bring them to the boil and allow to cook for 10 minutes at a gentle simmer. Allow to cool for a while.
When the melomakarona are cooked and have been allowed to cool down for a while and soak them in the syrup once. Then add 1 1/2 cup of water to the syrup left over and plunge them a second time in this lighter syrup.
Place them on a pastry rack and sprinkle your biscuits with some ground cinnamon and chopped walnuts.


Suitable for pregnant women, vegetarian.

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