Melomakarona
Spiced honey-soaked cookies with walnuts.
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Join HomecookedIngredients
- 400 g All-purpose flour
- 200 ml Extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Orange
- 250 g Honey
- 100 g Walnuts
- 100 g Sugar
- 1 tsp Ground cinnamon (optional)
Method
- Heat the oven to 180C (350F).
- Mix the olive oil, orange juice, and flour with a little ground cinnamon into a soft dough.
- Shape the dough into ovals and bake until firm and golden, about 25 minutes.
- While the cookies bake, simmer the honey and sugar with a splash of water in a pan over medium heat into a syrup.
- Dip the warm cookies in the syrup and top with the crushed walnuts.
Nutrition per serving
Estimated from ingredients; varies with exact portions and brands.
About Melomakarona
Melomakarona are the honey-soaked spiced cookies that appear on Greek tables every Christmas, one of the country's most beloved festive sweets. What sets them apart from most cookies is the fat: they're made with olive oil rather than butter, along with orange juice and warm cinnamon, giving a tender, slightly cakey crumb that's naturally dairy-free. Once baked, the still-warm ovals are dipped into a hot honey-sugar syrup, which they drink up so the inside stays moist and heavily perfumed.
The finished cookie is soft and syrup-drenched, fragrant with orange and cinnamon, and sweet from the honey without being cloying, with crushed walnuts pressed on top for a bit of crunch and a mildly bitter contrast. They keep well because the syrup preserves them, so a batch of a dozen sits happily on the counter through the holidays. Served with coffee or after a meal, they're the kind of thing you reach for repeatedly, and the whole tray is designed to be made ahead and shared.
Melomakarona: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Melomakarona?
One serving of Melomakarona has about 423 calories, with 5g of protein, 53g of carbs, 23g of fat and 1g of fiber. These are estimates based on the ingredient amounts in this recipe and will vary with your exact portions and brands.
Is Melomakarona gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains All-purpose flour. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for that ingredient to make it gluten-free.
How long does Melomakarona take to make?
About 50 minutes start to finish, but only around 20 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
Do I need every ingredient to make Melomakarona?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out ground cinnamon — it's optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Melomakarona make?
This recipe makes 12 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.