Recipe - Greek Walnut Cookies (Melomakarona)

HONEY SYRUP
One half cup Honey
One half cup Sugar
2 cup Water

PASTRIES
1 tablespoon Grated orange peel
1 tablespoon Grated lemon peel
One fourth cup Cognac
1 One fourth cup Oil
1 One fourth cup Vegetable shortening or
margarine, at room
temperature
1 cup Sugar
1 One half Egg yolks, beaten
2 tablespoon Baking powder
Three fourths cup Strained freshly squeezed
orange juice
1 One half tablespoon Honey
Three fourths tablespoon Cinnamon
Three fourths tablespoon Cloves
1 One half tablespoon Rose water, optional
8 cup Cake flour
Oil
1 cup Coarsely ground walnuts

HONEY SYRUP: Combine honey, sugar and water in saucepan. Bring to boil,
reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

PASTRIES: Combine orange and lemon peels with Cognac and set aside to
marinate few minutes. Place oil and shortening in large bowl. Add sugar and
egg yolks and blend thoroughly. Blend baking powder with orange juice and
add to bowl. Add honey, cinnamon, cloves, rose water and reserved
Cognacpeels mixture. Work in flour gradually, mixing with hands, to make
fairly stiff but flexible dough. Let dough rest 15 minutes.

Oil 2 or 3 baking sheets. Take piece of dough size of golf ball and shape
into cylinder about 3 inches long and 3/4inch thick. Place edge of
teaspoon against bottom to form slight indentation, which will help pastry
absorb syrup evenly. Bake sample pastry first to test dough. Bake at 350
degrees 30 to 40 minutes on oiled baking sheet. Pastry should rise, not
spread. If it spreads, add more flour to dough. Adjust dough if necessary
and bake all pastries as before. To serve immediately, soak in heated Honey
Syrup 5 minutes and drain. Sprinkle lightly with walnuts. If planning to
store cookies, do not add syrup.

Posted to EATL Digest 10 Feb 97 by "Ted D. Conley"
tedconley@EARTHLINK.NET on Feb 11, 1997.