Greek Christmas cookies with olive oil, honey and walnuts

Greek Christmas cookies in the style of melomakarona, made with spelt flour, olive oil and orange juice, dipped in honey syrup and topped with walnuts. Family-friendly snacks, 287 kcal per two cookies.

At a glance

• Serves 12
• Prep time: 40 min
• Cooking time: 25 min
• Total time: 65 min
• Calories: 287 kcal per serving
• Protein: 5 g
• Fat: 14 g
• Carbs: 34 g

Ingredients

• 180g honey
• 100ml water
• 1 unwaxed orange
• 80g walnuts
• 120ml olive oil
• 100ml orange juice
• 40g coconut sugar
• 350g spelt flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 0.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 pinch of ground cloves
• 1 pinch of salt

Method

You’ll need: oven · saucepan · baking tray · chopping board · knife · grater

1. Bring the honey and water to the boil with a strip of orange zest, simmer the syrup for 5 minutes and chill it. Finely chop the walnuts.
2. Grate the rest of the orange zest. Mix the olive oil, orange juice, orange zest and coconut sugar until the coconut sugar has dissolved.
3. Mix the spelt flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, half the cinnamon, the cloves and salt and briefly knead them in until you have a soft dough.
4. Preheat the oven to 180 °C (160 °C fan). Shape 24 oval cookies of 5 cm, place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper and press a pattern into them with a fork.
5. Bake the cookies at 180 °C for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.
6. Put the hot cookies into the cold syrup for 1 minute, place them on a wire rack and sprinkle with the walnuts and the remaining cinnamon.

Good to know

In Greece, melomakarona are on the table at Christmas: cookies with olive oil and orange that take a quick bath in honey syrup. You don't need butter or egg for them. The longer they sit, the moister they get.

Swaps

Walnuts → pistachios. Spelt flour → plain flour. Honey → maple syrup (then vegan). Orange juice → mandarin juice.

Cooking tips

Dip the cookies in the cold syrup while they're hot, so they soak it up without falling apart. Only knead the dough briefly, otherwise the oil seeps out.

Storage

Keeps for 2 weeks in a tin; they're at their moistest after two days.

Allergens

Contains gluten (spelt) and walnuts; free from milk and egg. Because of the honey, not suitable for children under 1 year.

Dairy-free recipes