Melomakarona

Ingredients

• 300 g wheat flour
• 80 g semolina, fine
• 1¾ dl olive oil
• 1 dl orange juice
• 2 tsp orange zest
• 220 g white sugar
• 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground cloves
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 250 g honey
• 2½ dl water
• 100 g walnuts, finely chopped

Method

1. 1.

   Make and cool the syrup — Make the syrup first. Bring the water, 160 g of the sugar and the honey to the boil in a saucepan, skim off any foam and simmer for 5 minutes. Take it off the heat and leave it to cool completely — cold syrup and hot cookies is what makes them drink.

2. 2.

   Whisk the oil and orange — Heat the oven to 180°C. Whisk the olive oil, orange juice, orange zest and the remaining 60 g sugar in a large bowl for a good minute, until the mixture turns pale and slightly thickened rather than separating into oil and juice.

3. 3.

   Fold in flour and semolina — Sift the flour, semolina, baking powder, cinnamon and cloves together, then stir the baking soda into the wet mixture. Fold the dry into the wet with a spatula, stopping the moment a soft, oily dough comes together — kneading it makes the cookies tough. Rest for 10 minutes.

4. 4.

   Shape and ridge the cookies — Shape the dough into 16 ovals about 6 cm long, flattening each one slightly, and space them well apart on two lined baking trays. Press the back of a fork lengthways along each top to make the traditional ridges.

5. 5.

   Bake until dry through — Bake for 28 minutes, until the cookies are deep brown, firm to the touch and completely dry — an underbaked one turns to sludge in the syrup instead of soaking it up cleanly.

6. 6.

   Soak hot in cold syrup — Working with four at a time, drop the cookies straight from the oven into the cold syrup and hold them under for a minute on each side. They will hiss and sink slightly as they drink.

7. 7.

   Press on the walnuts — Lift them out with a slotted spoon onto a rack set over a tray and, while they are still tacky, press the chopped walnuts and a little extra cinnamon onto the tops so they stick.

8. 8.

   Let them drink overnight — Leave them at least 2 hours before eating, ideally overnight. The syrup keeps travelling inward, and they are only right when the middle is as sweet and damp as the edges. They keep for a week in a covered dish.