Greek Honey-Walnut Christmas Cookies (Melomakarona)

Illustration generated by AI. The recipe is hand-curated and checked by MealPrep's allergen, diet and nutrition rules.

Greek · 85 min · vegetarian, dairy-free

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Ingredients

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup fine semolina
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 oranges
• 1/4 cup brandy
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup walnuts

Method (tap to check — screen stays awake)

1. Make the spiced honey bath first so it can cool: peel 3 wide strips from one orange, then simmer the honey with 1/2 cup of the sugar, 3/4 cup water, and the orange peel for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool completely — the soak only works when cold syrup meets hot cookies.
2. Toast the walnuts in a dry skillet 4 minutes until fragrant, then pulse them with 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon and the cardamom into a coarse, spiced rubble. This walnut-cinnamon-cardamom dust is the house finish.
3. Heat the oven to 350F. Whisk the olive oil with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the zest of both oranges, remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and the cloves.
4. Juice the oranges, stir the baking soda into 3/4 cup of the juice (it will fizz), and whisk it into the oil with the brandy.
5. Fold in the flour and semolina and mix just until a soft, oily dough comes together — kneading develops gluten and toughens them, so stop early.
6. Shape into 32 small ovals, place on two parchment-lined sheets, and press the tops lightly with a fork's tines to help the syrup soak in.
7. Bake 22 to 25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway, until deep golden and dry to the touch.
8. Dunk the hot cookies straight into the cold syrup, 30 seconds per side, and move to a rack set over a tray.
9. Shower the still-sticky cookies with the spiced walnut dust and let them sit 10 minutes to drink in the syrup before anyone (officially) starts eating them.

Nutrition figures are estimates. Verify allergens on every ingredient label before cooking.

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