Melomakarona – festive Greek cookies

Even though the holidays are nearly here, there is still time to create something for yourself or your loved ones. These festive Greek cookies (known as melomakarona) are very easy to make, don’t require too many ingredients and make a perfect gift when you want to spread happiness. The amazing thing about them is that they keep for weeks at room temperature simply covered with cling film. Perhaps the only drawback you might find in them is that the initial recipe makes a gigantic batch. But then Greeks love to eat and they enjoy abundance while doing it, as previously seen here. So if the danger of overflowing in cookies is stopping you, then luckily the recipe can be easily halved.

I first tried melomakarona about 20 years ago. They were made by my then boyfriend’s Greek mother. In paying tribute to the family’s years in Iran during the revolution, she would make two different batches: flour and semolina. Apparently semolina was difficult to source at the time so she had to substitute it with flour. Admittedly, I liked the flour variant more at the time but the classic recipe calls for semolina. The two are interchangeable so go with what you personally prefer. I’ve been using whole wheat semolina and everyone is happy with it.

Don’t be deterred by how many steps there are. Melomakarona dough is prepared quickly by hand without any special equipment. They are then shaped, baked, cooled, bathed in syrup and topped with nuts and cinnamon sugar. Each step is easy and not fussy.

Melomakarona ingredients:

For the cookies:

• 2c canola oil
• 1c sugar
• 2/3c fresh orange juice
• 1/3c fresh lemon juice
• 60ml cognac
• 6c semolina (flour)
• 4tsp baking powder

For the syrup:

• 1/2c sugar
• 1/2c honey
• 1c water

For the toppings:

• 1-2c walnuts
• 1/4c fine sugar
• 1tsp cinnamon

 Directions:

1. Preheat an oven to 175C (345F). Combine 2c canola oil and 1c sugar in a big bowl.
2. Add 2/3c freshly squeezed orange juice, 1/3c freshly squeezed lemon juice and 60ml cognac.
3. Stir in 6c semolina and 4tsp baking powder.
4. Scoop slightly more than a tablespoon of dough at a time and form into a ball, then roll back and forth between your palms to give it an oblong shape. Place on a lined baking sheet.
5. Once all the dough is used up, push all the melomakarona down in the center with a fork to flatten them out. (This will also help the toppings to stay in place.)
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes before setting the baking sheet on a wire rack to cool.
7. While the cookies are baking, lightly toast and then finely chop 1-2c of walnuts (the exact quantity depends on the size of your cookies and how generous you want to be with toppings). Combine 1/4c sugar and 1tsp cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
8. Mix 1/2c honey, 1/2c sugar and 1c water in a saucepan, set on low heat, stirring occasionally until all the sugar has dissolved.
9. Keeping the saucepan with the syrup on the lowest heat, dip few cookies at a time for about 10 seconds.
10. Lift the dipped cookies out with a spatula and arrange on a serving platter in a single layer.
11. Sprinkle each cookie with chopped walnuts, followed by cinnamon sugar.
12. Continue the dipping and topping process with more layers or prepare multiple platters.

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