Melomakarona – Greek Honey Christmas Cookies

Melomakarona are traditional Greek Christmas cookies are made with olive oil, spices and soaked in honey syrup. Deliciously sticky and perfectly irresistible! Why not try a my melomakarona recipe for your cookie exchange this year?

Christmas wouldn’t be well, Christmas, without the ubiquitous mince pie and a big batch of Gingerbread cookies. You’d probably be very hard pressed to find a single solitary mince pie in Greece where I grew up however.

Instead of mince pies we have kourabiethes and melomakarona – two traditional Greek recipes that are completely inescapable during the festive season.

Most households have a recipe passed down the generations and every year large batches of these cookies get baked, exchanged, gifted and nibbled round the clock for a few weeks come December.

I have to tell you, one bite of these babies and I was completely transported back to the Christmases of my childhood. I guess Proust was on to something.

Greek Honey Christmas Cookies – Meet Melomakarona!

Melomakarona – my favourite – translates as ‘honey macaroons’ but in reality they are hard little cookies made with olive oil, flour and warming festive spices.

These unassuming biscuits are then soaked in honey syrup and and topped with chopped walnuts – HELLO, HEAVEN!

They keep very well for a couple of weeks, their taste actually improving over time. I think they must be one of the very first recipes I helped my yiayia make – I have distinct memories of rolling the dough in my hands and pressing it against a box grater to create a little pattern on the top.

I hadn’t made any in a very long time so I asked my mum to email her recipe – which arrived complete with little drawings of what shape you should roll the cookies!

Making the cookies was a lot easier than I remember – the only tricky bit being how to make sure the melomakarona absorb enough of the honey syrup without becoming completely saturated and soggy.

HOW TO MAKE MELOMAKARONA

Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!

Put all the honey syrup ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, stirring, for 5-10 minutes until slightly thickened. Discard any foam that forms on top of the syrup, the cinnamon stick and orange peel. Lower the heat to lowest setting and keep the syrup warm until cookies are ready.

Preheat the oven to 170C (340F). Line two large baking trays with paper.
Put the oil, butter, sugar and all the spices in the bowl of your stand mixer and beat together with the paddle attachment for about 5 minutes.
Mix the orange juice, alcohol, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda – the mixture will fizz and froth.

Add it to the mixing bowl together with the salt and orange zest and beat together on medium. Gradually add the flour until a pliable dough forms.
Roll the cookies into small balls (size of a walnut) and place on the trays, slightly spaced apart. Bake for 25-30 minutes until evenly coloured and firm.

Remove from the oven and drop them, a few at a time, into the simmering syrup for 1-2 minutes, flipping them over to soak evenly. Continue until all the cookies are soaked in the syrup.

Layer the cookies on a platter, spoon any remaining syrup over them and sprinkle with the chopped nuts and cinnamon (if using). Keep at room temperature, loosely covered with foil.

MELOMAKARONA VARIATIONS

If you like, you can stuff your honey cookies with dates and walnuts although I much prefer the plain version.

HAVE YOU MADE MY MELOMAKARONA RECIPE? Please leave a rating, post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #supergoldenbakes and make my day!

Melomakarona – Greek Christmas Honey Cookies

Lucy Parissi | Supergolden Bakes

Melomakarona – these Greek Christmas Honey Cookies soaked in honey syrup and topped with chopped nuts are sticky and totally irresisitble!

4.67 from 6 votes

Print Rate

Course: Christmas cookies

Cuisine: Greek

Keyword: Greek Christmas Honey Cookies, Melomakarona Recipe, Traditional Greek Melomakaroona

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: 40

Calories: 197kcal

Ingredients

For the syrup

• ▢ 250 ml (1 cup) water
• ▢ 225 g (1 cup) sugar granulated
• ▢ 300 g (1 cup) runny honey mild tasting honey
• ▢ 1 cinnamon stick
• ▢ 1 piece of orange peel

For the melomakarona

• ▢ 125 ml (½ cup) light olive oil
• ▢ 115 g (1 stick) unsalted butter softened
• ▢ 115 g ( ½ cup) sugar caster or granulated
• ▢ 60 ml (¼ cup) freshly squeezed orange juice
• ▢ 60 ml | 1/4 cup cognac rum or brandy
• ▢ zest of 1 orange
• ▢ 1 tsp baking powder
• ▢ 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ▢ 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• ▢ pinch nutmeg
• ▢ 1/2 tsp salt
• ▢ 500 g (4 cups) plain flour you may need to use a little more or a little less

Topping

• ▢ 150 g (1 cup) walnuts finely chopped
• ▢ 125 g (1 cup) pistachio nuts finely chopped
• ▢ 1 tbsp cinnamon optional
• ▢ 1 tbsp rose petals completely optional – they just look pretty

Instructions

Make the syrup

• The honey syrup needs to be made while the cookies are baking as it must be ready when they come out of the oven. Put all the ingredients in a large saucepan, stir together then bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring, for 5-10 minutes until slightly thickened. Discard any foam that forms on top of the syrup.
• Remove the cinnamon stick and orange peel. Lower the heat to lowest setting and keep the syrup warm until cookies are ready.

Prepare the cookies

• Preheat the oven to 170C (340F). Line two large baking trays with paper.
• Put the oil, butter, sugar and all the spices in the bowl of your stand mixer and beat together with the paddle attachment for about 5 minutes.
• Mix the orange juice, alcohol, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda – the mixture will fizz and froth.
• Add it to the mixing bowl together with the salt and orange zest and beat together on medium. Gradually add the flour until the dough forms a ball – you can also fold it in by hand. Once the cookies hold their shape you can stop adding flour. Only use as much as you need.
• Roll the cookies into small balls (size of a walnut) and place on the trays, slightly spaced apart.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes until evenly coloured and firm.

Add the syrup

• Remove from the oven and drop them, a few at a time, into the simmering syrup for 1-2 minutes, flipping them over to soak evenly. Continue until all the cookies are used up.
• Layer the cookies on a platter, spoon any remaining syrup over them and sprinkle with the chopped nuts and cinnamon (if using). Keep at room temperature, loosely covered with foil.

Nutritional Info

Calories: 197kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 46mg | Potassium: 81mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 88IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 20mg | Iron: 1mg

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