Recipe: Honey Biscuits (Melomakarona)

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Description/Notes:

these delicious little biscuits, full of exotic flavors and coated with syrup, walnuts and ground cinnamon are a traditional Christmas treat in homes all over Greece and the Greek Islands

Ingredients:

Biscuit

2.75lbs (1200gms) all-purpose flour

2 tbsps. honey

half a cup of caster sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 cup of fine semolina

half a cup of coarsely ground walnuts

2 cups of fresh orange juice

1 tsp. grated orange rind

1 tbsp. cinnamon and clove powder

2 cups of olive oil

Coating

2 cups of water

1 cup of sugar

1 cup of honey

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 cup of ground walnuts

Cooking Instructions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350F, Gas Mark 4, 180C)
2. Put the sugar, olive oil and honey into a large bowl and beat together
3. Add the clove, cinnamon and orange rind and beat in with the other ingredients in the bowl
4. Dilute the baking powder and baking soda with the fruit juice then add to the mixture in the bowl along with the walnuts and semolina, beating all the time
5. Gradually add the flour to form a soft dough
6. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and allow the dough to stand for at least 30 minutes
7. Divide the dough into pieces that will form oblong rounds like small eggs and place on a lightly greased baking sheet
8. Cook the biscuits in the pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes or until they are a golden brown in color
9. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack
10. To make the syrup, blend together the water, honey and sugar in a saucepan and bring to the boil for about 10 minutes
11. Reduce the heat and dip the biscuits in the syrup for about a minute then remove with a perforated spoon and place on a serving plate
12. Before serving sprinkle the melomakararona with walnuts and ground cinnamon