Christmas Countdown Recipes: Melomakarona

Kathy Tsaples

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! And what better way to celebrate than with our first Christmas Recipe Advent Countdown! 8 days to go…

Our third Christmas countdown recipe – Melomakarona!

Melomakarona are a traditional sweet, baked at Easter and Christmas time.

However, they can be baked all year round and enjoyed with a cup of coffee. No feast is complete without them. As they are dairy-free they can be enjoyed during any period when we are fasting.

Today I present on GCT, how to make the most delicious Melomakarona.

Ingredients

Biscuit

• 6-9 cups of plain flour (you need to form a soft dough that doesn’t stick to your hands)
• 2 tsp baking powder
• rind of 1 orange
• 2 cups of grapeseed oil
• juice of 1 orange
• ½ cup beer
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• ½ tsp nutmeg, ground
• ½ tsp cloves, ground
• 5 cups of caster sugar

Syrup:

• 2 cups of honey
• 4 cups of water
• 11⁄2 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of walnuts, finely crushed (for sprinkling on top)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 ̊C.
2. In a big bowl, combine the oil, caster sugar, juice, rind and beer. I prefer to use my hands, as the warmth of my hands dissolves the sugar.
3. Sift the flour and combine it with the baking powder and spices. Add these to the wet mixture.
4. Mix until you have a soft, pliable dough. If your dough is too soft, add more flour. It should not stick to your hands.
5. Take small pieces about the size of a walnut (or slightly bigger, if you prefer) and shape these into rounded logs about 7 centimetres long.
6. Using a fork, press down on the logs to form a pattern. Bake your biscuits for about 25 minutes.
7. While the biscuits are baking, create the syrup by simmering the honey, sugar and water for 5 minutes. Remove any scum that appears on the surface.
8. Cool the biscuits after they have finished baking. Dip each one into the hot syrup and then sprinkle with crushed walnuts. Break one Melomakarona open to ensure that the syrup has been absorbed.

Kathy Tsaples, living her ‘Sweet Greek’ dream

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Christmas Countdown Recipes:

• Galaktoboureko
• Almond Pears