These small, delicious morsels is a traditional Greek sweet that is essential in every Greek home especially during the Christmas season.
So it's time to try making these delicious melomakarona at home with your family, surprising everyone with their deliciousness!
Let's start!
Recipe:
Ingredients for the dough:
° 240 gr. sunflower or corn oil
° 240 gr. olive oil
° 50 gr. cognac
° 160 gr. fresh orange juice
° 1 teaspoon sharp baking soda
° 200 gr. fine granulated sugar
° 1 teaspoon of ground cloves
° 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
° 900 gr. flour for all uses
° 2 teaspoons coarse baking powder
Ingredients for the syrup:
° 400 gr. sugar
° 400 gr. water
° 400 gr. thyme honey
° 1/2 lemon (waxed)
° Ground peanut and walnut (for sprinkling)
Implementation:
° First sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl.
° Put the olive oil, sunflower oil, cognac, sugar, cinnamon and cloves in another bowl.
° With a wire, mix them well until the sugar dissolves and melts.
° Pour the baking soda into the orange juice. Mix until it starts to react and pour it into the mixture with the sugar and mix with the wire.
° Finally, gradually pour the mixture into the bowl with the flour and mix with the whisk. As soon as the dough starts to tighten, knead it by hand gently.
° We do not knead the mixture for a long time because we want the melomakarona to come out fluffy so they can absorb the syrup.
° The dough should be fluffy, soft and oily.
° Turn the oven up to 160°C and let it preheat.
° On a large baking pan, lay a sheet of parchment paper.
° Cut the dough to the size of a walnut and start shaping them.
° We put them in the large baking pan at a thin distance from each other and with a fork we prick them on top so that they can then absorb the syrup.
° Bake on the middle grill in the air for about 25' at 160 ºC.
° They are ready when they are well browned and crispy.
° As soon as they are cooked, pour them slowly with a spoon into the syrup that we will prepare 5 minutes before taking out the first pan.
For the syrup:
° Put the honey and the rest of the ingredients in a small pot and from the time they come to a boil, boil for 3 minutes (I also add two very thin slices of lemon to give the syrup extra flavor).
° Skim off the foam that forms on the surface of the syrup.
° After boiling the syrup, let it simmer on low heat (just enough to simmer).
° Take out the melomakarona and drop them with a spoon little by little into the pot for about 3 minutes (until we make sure that they have absorbed the syrup). If necessary, add water to the syrup so that it is liquid for the rest of the melomakarona.
° With a spoon, take them out of the pot and place them on a large plate. As soon as we take them out, while they are still warm, sprinkle them with the ground peanut and walnut.
With this recipe, your home will smell good, everyone will want to try your dessert and everyone will surely ask you for the recipe!
Enjoy! And Merry Christmas!
