Local Recipes

Melomakarona – A Greek Treat

The best part of the festive season is getting together with friends and family. So why not prepare a special treat of Greek Melomakarona, you will all love the result.

For the syrup

  • 7 cups sugar
  • 8 cups water
  • 2 cups honey
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 2 wide strips of orange peel

For the Dough:

  • 5 cups pastry flour
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 cup coarsely ground walnuts
  • zest of 1 orange
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground clove

Wet Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
  • 3/4 cups sugar

Beat until melted

  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 Tbsp. honey

Add baking soda into a glass with orange juice

  • 1/2 cup orange juice
  • 3/4 tsp. baking soda

Ground walnut topping

  • 6 Tbsp. sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups of ground walnuts
  • 1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. ground clove

Pre-heated 350F oven

  1. For the syrup, add all ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil and lower to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, take off the heat and allow to cool.
  2.  Into a large bowl, add your wet ingredients (except for baking soda and orange juice). Mix for 5 minutes or until sugar is dissolved.
  3. Combine the flour with the other dry ingredients. Once sugar is dissolved, add the baking soda/orange juice mixture then add dry to wet ingredients. Use you hands to mix the dough.
  4. Using your hands, roll the dough into small balls (about the size of apricots), then form them into quenelle shapes.
  5. Take your box grater (the side used to zest) and place a cookie on top of it. Press the cookie down a bit to form a grid pattern on the top of the cookie. Repeat this process for all the cookies.
  6. Place your cookies on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake in a pre-heated oven (middle rack) for 30 minutes.
  7. Using a large slotted spoon or Spider, drop the hot cookies in batches into the cool syrup for 10 minutes to absorb the syrup then flip for 3 minutes on the other side. Reserve on a cooling rack and repeat until all the cookies are dunked in syrup.
  8. For the topping, add the above ingredients in a bowl mix well with a spoon. Brush each cookie with the remaining syrup and then sprinkle each cookie top with the walnut topping. Allow to cool.
  9. Store in a cool, dry container for up to a month.
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