Melomakarona

This is a traditional Greek Christmas Cookie. It is also sometimes spelled Melomacarona.

Makes about 36

For the cookies:
1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) butter
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons whiskey
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3 1/2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon orange zest

For the syrup:
2 cups honey
1/2 cup ground walnuts or almonds

Preheat oven to 350 F. Melt butter; let cool slightly. Place egg yolk, orange juice, whiskey, sugar and baking soda in a blender; mix at medium speed until combined. With the motor still running, slowly drizzle in the melted butter through the hole in the top of the blender cover. Mix at high speed until mixture has thickened and resembles mayonnaise, about 2 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder, cloves, and cinnamon. Add orange zest. Mix in the egg yolk-butter mixture and knead dough until smooth, about 5 minutes. (Dough will be stiff.) Shape dough by the tablespoonful in the palm of your hand, squeezing slightly to form an oblong egg shape. Place cookies on ungreased cookie sheets and press the tops lightly with a fork, making a crisscross pattern. Bake about 20 minutes or until golden brown. To prepare syrup: Bring 1 cup of water to a boil over high heat. Stir in honey, reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Dip cookies in warm syrup for a few seconds. Place on cookie sheets until syrup soaks into cookies. Sprinkle with nuts and let cool. These cookies taste best the next day and keep well when stored in an airtight container.

Reviews of Melomakarona:

1-5 of 6 reviews   Next >>

  Nefeli in Greece  Dec 6, 2008
Would make this again.
Im a student in Sweden and pretty much useless when it comes to cooking! I was very impressed that i actually made this and it was tasty too! This is excellent! five stars

  sam in cali  Dec 14, 2007
Would make this again.
the most DELICIOUS cookie you could ever make. theyre all gone within 15 minutes when i bring them to holiday parties! five stars

  Lena and Yannis in Greece  Dec 16, 2006
Would make this again.
Hello, we are a young Greek couple leaving in the UK and every Christmas we make melomakarona. Usually there's something missing or the recipe is not sucessful. We tried your recipe for the first time tonight (15/12/06) and it is perfect. It didn't take a lot of time, we did not make a mess, nor did we have to "experiment" with the amount of flour, something which usually happens to us because the dough gets sticky.
The taste is excellent and we are really pleased! We'll surely make it again. five stars

  A cookie baker in Vienna, VA  Jan 4, 2005
Would make this again.
My husband is Greek and after 12 years of marriage and 5 different recipes, he proclaimed this one "perfect". The search is over, this is now a permanent addition to my Christmas repetoire.

I used brandy instead of whiskey, and soaked the cookies a little longer (about 30 seconds or until they seemed to have absorbed a little syrup). Also, I drizzled a little extra syrup on top of the cookies after sprinkling the walnuts on -- this helps them adhere to the cookie, then dusted with cinnamon. five stars

  Tina Anastasakis in Kefalonia, Greece  Dec 23, 2003
Would make this again.
This is an excellent recipe and easy to prepare. They were a big hit at my last party. I would definetely make them again. five stars

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