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Mary's Kouzina Melomakarona (Honey Cookies)
Ingredients:
For the Syrup:
2 cups sugar
3 cups water
½ cup honey
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp whole cloves
Lemon rind
A squeeze of lemon juice
For the Cookies:
3 cups of plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bi carb soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground All spice
½ cup walnuts, chopped
The zest of one orange
½ cup sugar
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup fresh orange juice
1 shot of cognac
To Garnish:
½ cup of walnuts, chopped
Directions:
Preheat oven to 170°C.
To prepare the syrup, place the sugar, water, honey, cinnamon stick, cloves, lemon rind and lemon juice into a sauce pan and place over medium heat. Once the syrup starts to boil, and the sugar has dissolved, turn off the heat and set the syrup to the side.
In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, bi carb soda, ground cinnamon, All spice, walnuts and orange zest.
In another bowl, combine sugar, olive oil, orange juice and cognac.
In a third bowl, add chopped walnuts for sprinkling.
Slowly stream the wet ingredients into the dry stirring gently with your hands, forming a dough.The dough should not be sticky. If it is, add little flour. Do not over work the dough as the oil can begin so seep out.
Using your hands, roll out a heaped tablespoon of dough into an oval then pinch to point each end. Place the melomakarona onto a lined baking tray and press a fork gently down onto them.
Transfer to the tray to the oven and bake for approximately 20–25 minutes and until golden brown. Note: Do not overcook as they will not absorb enough syrup.
Once they are ready remove from the oven & allow them to sit for approximately 10 minutes. Place the now warm melomakarona into the cooled syrup and allow it to soak for a minute or two. Arrange onto a platter, drizzle with extra honey if you wish and sprinkle generously with chopped walnuts.