Melomakarona: Orange and Spice Cookies Soaked in Honey Syrup
Inspired by techniques from Serious Eats.
Soft olive oil and orange cookies spiced with cinnamon and cloves, dunked hot into cool honey syrup and topped with walnuts.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Make the syrup first. Put the sugar, water, orange wedges, cinnamon stick and cloves in the small saucepan, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 min. Take it off the heat, stir in the honey and leave it to cool completely, then lift out the orange and whole spices. The syrup must be cool when the cookies are hot, or they turn soggy.
- 2
Heat the oven. Set the oven to 190 °C (170 °C fan) and line the two trays with baking paper.
- 3
Whisk the wet mix. In a large bowl whisk the olive oil, orange juice, grated zest and 35 g sugar for about 1 min until the mixture looks cloudy and slightly thickened.
- 4
Stir the dry mix. In the second bowl stir together the flour, semolina, cinnamon, ground cloves, bicarbonate and salt so the raising agent is evenly spread.
- 5
Fold gently. Tip the dry mix into the wet and fold with the spatula just until a soft, slightly oily dough forms. Stop as soon as there is no dry flour left; working it longer develops the gluten and makes the cookies tough.
- 6
Shape the ovals. Scoop level tablespoons of dough, about 30 g each, and roll them into 5 cm ovals. Set them 3 cm apart on the trays and press the tops lightly with a fork for texture.
- 7
Bake. Bake for 22-25 min, swapping the trays halfway, until the bases are deep golden and the cookies feel firm.
- 8
Dunk in syrup. While they are still hot, lower 4 or 5 at a time into the cool syrup for 10-15 s, turning them so they soak evenly, then lift onto the rack with the slotted spoon.
- 9
Top with walnuts. Sprinkle the chopped walnuts over each cookie while the surface is still sticky, then leave for 15 min so the syrup sets.
Storage
Keep in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to 1 week; they become softer and more honeyed after a day.
Equipment
- small saucepan
- 2 large bowls
- whisk
- silicone spatula
- 2 baking trays lined with baking paper
- fork
- slotted spoon
- wire rack
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 183 kcal |
| Protein | 2.6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 23.5 g |
| of which sugars | 8.1 g |
| of which free sugars | 7.9 g |
| Fat | 9 g |
| of which saturates | 1.2 g |
| Fibre | 0.9 g |
| Salt | 0.13 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
1.4 g High Protein needs ≥ 10 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
