These delightful Orange Sesame Cookies are baked with olive oil which makes them moist on the inside and slightly crispy on the outside. Are they a Mediterranean Diet breakfast recipe or a dessert? Well, they are both. Perfect when you are on the run in the morning, grab a few cookies and a cup of coffee on your way to work, or enjoy them after dinner with some herbal tea.
It is best to make these with an electric mixer (although I have used a hand egg beater) as they require 12 minutes of mixing. These cookies are great fresh, but also freeze well and don’t take long to defrost (yes, I have eaten them right out of the freezer as I couldn’t even wait a couple of minutes for them to defrost).
Check out more delicious Mediterranean Diet breakfast recipes here!

Orange Sesame Cookies Baked with Olive Oil (Crete)
Ingredients
- 2 cups extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups brown sugar
- 1 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 lemon
- 1 shot brandy
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 7 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 cup sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Mix olive oil and brown sugar with a hand mixer for 10 minutes.
- Add orange juice and beat for another 2 minutes.
- Add lemon juice, brandy, cinnamon, cloves, and baking soda.
- Mix until well blended.
- Slowly stir in flour.
- Mix with your hands until a consistent dough is created.
- Roll dough in your hands to make round cookies. Roll in sesame seeds until completely covered.
- Bake for 25 minutes until browned. Let cool. Cookies will become crispy as they cool.