Having just returned from a trip to Crete for a celebration I was keen to bring a little bit of Greece back with me. The weather here, unbelievably, was already the same so I turned to baking! This recipe for Ladokouloura (Greek olive oil cookies) is naturally vegan so no adapting was required. Also we have the most amazing Greek olive oil in the shop available in 500ml bottles and as a refill so it was a no-brainer. I found they were very easy to make and were absolutely delicious with all of the flavours of Greece that I was looking for: sesame, orange, olive oil and cinnamon.
Thank you to the following website for the recipe which I adapted only slightly: Ladokouloura - Vegan Koulourakia with Olive Oil - Provocolate
INGREDIENTS
700 g plain flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
200 g caster sugar
zest of 2 oranges
3 ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ ground cloves
240 ml extra virgin olive oil
200 ml freshly squeezed orange juice
200 g sesame seeds
METHOD
1- Preheat oven to 180° C
2- Blend orange zest and sugar in a large bowl, mixing with the fingers or a spatula.
3- Stir in the flour and the other dry ingredients.
4- Add the olive oil and mix it in with the fingers or a spatula.
5- Add the orange juice and mix into the rest of the ingredients with your hands until it forms a dough.
6- Put the sesame seeds on a plate, and fill a small bowl with water.
7- Divide the dough into 12 portions. Weigh out to ensure all of the cookies are a similar size.
8- Shape each portion into a log, cut into 8 equal pieces.
9- Dampen each in the water, and roll in the sesame seeds to coat.
10- Place on a baking sheet with a little space between them as they puff up a little. The recipe will likely fill 2 baking sheets.
11- Bake for 25 - 30 minutes. They are ready when they look completely dry. The colour remains very similar, the sesame seeds will darken a little. They may feel a little soft initially. Wait for them to cool before digging in!
These were shared out between many households as the recipe makes such a big batch but they keep well in a sealed container. Some of mine were eaten a week later and they were just as good as day 1! I'll be sure to be making another batch very soon.
I hope you enjoyed this recipe and if you make them, I would love to hear your feedback when you're in the shop!
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