No Bake Christmas Honey Balls (Czech Medovníkové koule)

Honey Balls (Medovníkové koule), traditional Czech no-bake Christmas cookies, beautifully arranged on a cookie platter.

No Bake Christmas Honey Balls (Czech Medovníkové koule)

Are you a fan of the delightful aroma and taste of honey? Give these honey balls a try! They are a classic Czech Christmas treat—a simple yet delicious recipe that anyone can whip up.

Course cookies

Cuisine Czech

Keyword Czech Christmas, Honey recipes

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 12

Total Time 52

Servings balls

Calories 89kcal

Author Petra Kupská

Ingredients

Honey dough:

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 Tablespoons honey liquid
⅓ stick unsalted butter softened at room temperature

To finish:

1 stick unsalted butter softened at room temperature
⅔ cup caramelized sweet condensed milk (or Dulce de Leche)

Cups - Metric

Instructions

Mix 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour with 1 teaspoon baking soda and put the floury mixture in a bowl. Add 1 egg, ⅓ stick unsalted butter (softened), 2 Tablespoons honey (liquid), and ½ cup powdered sugar. First, mix the wet ingredients with the flour using a fork, then work into a soft dough with your hands.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge to rest for an hour.
Roll the rested honey dough into sheets about ½ inch (1 cm) thick. The shape doesn't matter too much, as the dough will be crushed into crumbs after beeing baked. When rolling out the dough, I recommend dusting the work surface lightly with flour to prevent the dough from sticking.
Line a baking tray with parchment paper and place the honey dough sheets on it. Preheat the oven to 320 °F. Place the baking tray in the oven and bake for 12 minutes.
Once baked, take off the parchment paper with the honey dough sheets and put them on a wire rack to cool. If you let the baked dough cool on the tray, it's fine, but in that case, I recommend placing the tray in a cool spot.
Once the sheets of dough have cooled, break them into crumbs. You can do this by hand or by placing the pieces of dough in a food processor and pulsing them a few times until they turn into small crumbs. Alternatively, you can grate the dough using a hand grater.
Set aside about half a cup of the crumbs to coat the balls. Combine the remaining crumbs with ⅔ cup caramelized sweet condensed milk and 1 stick unsalted butter (softened). Start by mashing them together with a fork, then use your hands to form a soft dough.
Cover the soft dough with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge for about an hour to firm up.
Scoop equal-sized portions of the dough, roll each into a ball using your hands, and coat them by rolling in the reserved crumbs.

Notes

The basic recipe makes 24-30 honey balls depending on their size.
SERVING: On Christmas Eve, Czechs place a platter of Cukroví cookies on the table. Arrange the honey balls alongside other Christmas cookies to be enjoyed on the day. Since these no-bake cookies aren't suited for long exposure to heat, make sure to add more whenever they are consumed. For a fancier presentation, place the cookies in paper liners.
When to make Christmas honey balls? Honey balls are ready to serve right after you make them. They're last-minute, no-bake treats—get started on them a few days before Christmas. However, you can bake the dough sheets used for the balls up to a month in advance.
How to store? Store the finished honey balls in an airtight container in a cool place. An ideal option is a metal box with a lid. If you were to store the cookies in a breathable paper box, the balls might dry out on the surface and lose their moisture.
How long do they keep? The honey balls should be consumed within 2–3 weeks, provided you have stored them in a cool place. The balls are preserved with sugar, but as no-bake cookies, they tend to have a shorter shelf life than baked ones.

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