Honey Jumbles are chewy, spiced honey cookies topped with crunchy icing. These beloved Australian packaged biscuits were discontinued, but luckily they're easy to make at home.
Why you'll love this recipe
- This recipe is adapted straight from Arnott's, the company that made Honey Jumbles in Australia for decades.
- The spiced honey flavor develops and improves with age.
- This adapted recipe includes American ingredient substitutions as well as the original Australian ingredients.
Honey Jumbles are an iconic Australian packaged biscuit that's been around for decades, but was suddenly discontinued in 2021. Australian fans of the cookie were shocked.
Honey Jumbles are the kind of cookie that adults fondly reminisce about as part of their childhood memories. I often hear that kind of reaction from American readers when they try our Golden Raisin Biscuit recipe.
The flavor is a cross between gingerbread and a graham cracker. The texture is soft and chewy. The royal icing on top adds a bit of a crunch when you take a bite.
Whether you call these honey sweetened treats "biscuits" (Australia) or "cookies" (United States), we can all call them delicious.
Ingredients
- The original Australian recipe calls for treacle which is not readily available in the United States. Treacle can be substituted with Lyle's golden syrup (available online, at World Market, and at some US grocery stores), light molasses, or additional honey.
- The egg white in the royal icing is not cooked. For food safety, the egg white should either come from pasteurized eggs or from a container of pasteurized egg whites.
Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. The full instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Stir butter, honey, and golden syrup in a small saucepan until melted and smooth.
- Combine the ingredients to form the dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 1-2 hours.
- Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a log. Cut each log into 4 equal segments.
- Place the segments on a parchment lined baking sheet. Use finger tips to round the ends and slightly flatten the top surface of each segment. Bake.
- Whisk egg white until frothy.
- Stir in remaining ingredient until smooth. Dip biscuits in the icing.
Storage
Allow the icing to dry and harden completely (several hours-overnight) before storing or packaging.
Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, Honey Jumbles stay fresh for at least 2 weeks.
Tips and variations
- The original Australian recipe uses ½ cup of treacle. Treacle isn't easy to find in the United States and can be substituted with golden syrup, light molasses or additional honey.
- Using molasses produces a darker colored biscuit with bolder flavor.
- Egg whites should be pasteurized for this recipe. Either use pasteurized eggs or packaged pasteurized egg whites.
- Though not traditional, corn syrup icing can be used instead of royal icing. Corn syrup icing dries firm but has less crunch than royal icing, is easy to make, and doesn't use egg whites. Use a half recipe of the icing used on these Decorated Leaves Sugar Cookies.
- Arnott's Honey Jumbles were always iced in white and pink. Change the colors for holidays, baby showers, and school events.
Frequently asked questions
Molasses (even light molasses) is thicker and darker than treacle. Though their sugar content is similar, molasses can have a slightly more bitter taste.
Golden syrup is sometimes called light treacle. It's an amber colored inverted sugar syrup with a flavor similar to brown sugar.
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**UPDATED RECIPE** This recipe has been updated to the recipe provided by Arnott's after they discontinued packaged Honey Jumbles. The previous recipe was a slightly different copycat recipe.
Honey Jumbles
Ingredients
Cookies
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter
- ¼ cup honey
- ¼ cup golden syrup treacle, mild molasses, or additional honey
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour plain flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 ½ tablespoons milk
Icing
- 1 ½ cups confectioners' sugar icing sugar
- 1 egg white pasteurized
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2-3 drops pink food coloring gel
Instructions
- Combine butter, honey, and golden syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until melted and smooth. Set aside to cool.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and ginger.
- Add the melted butter mixture and milk to the dry ingredients. Stir to form dough.
- Scrape the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form the dough into a disk.
- Chill 1-2 hours, until workable and no longer sticky. (If the dough is sticky it is not cold enough.)
- WHEN READY TO BAKE: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Divide the dough into 4 equal wedges and roll each wedge into a 12" long log.
- Cut each log into 4 equal segments, 3” each.
- Place the segments onto the prepared baking sheet about 1” apart. Use finger tips to slightly flatten the top surface of each segment and round the ends.
- Bake for about 10 minutes and just firm to the touch.
- Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to cool completely on wire racks.
- To make the icing, whisk the egg white in a medium mixing bowl until frothy.
- Sift in the icing sugar. Add the lemon juice. Stir gently until smooth.
- Place a sheet of wax paper under a wire cooling rack to catch drips.
- Dip the top side of a biscuits into the white icing. Place it on the wire rack to dry. Repeat with 8 total bisuits.
- Add 2-3 drops of pink food coloring gel to the icing and stir until the color is even. Dip the remaining 8 biscuits in the pink icing and place on the wire rack to dry.
- Allow the icing to dry and harden completely (several hours-overnight) before storing or packaging.
- Stored in an airtight container at room temperature, Honey Jumbles stay fresh for at least 2 weeks.
Notes
- The original Australian recipe uses ½ cup of treacle. Treacle isn't easy to find in the United States and can be substituted with golden syrup, light molasses or additional honey.
- Using molasses produces a darker colored biscuit with bolder flavor.
- Egg whites should be pasteurized for this recipe. Either use pasteurized eggs or packaged pasteurized egg whites.
- Double wrap pairs of cookies (with bottoms together) in plastic wrap.
- Place in an airtight container or stack in a freezer weight zip lock bag.
Nutrition
First Published: September 7, 2013. Last Updated: October 24, 2023. Updated for additional information, improved photos, and better reader experience.
Anna (Morsels & Musings)
These look exactly as Honey Jumbles should. Perfect recreation.
These were my little sister's favourite cookies growing up. Might have to try your recipe for her birthday.
themondaybox
Thanks, Anna! If you try these Honey Jumbles, I hope you will let me know how they compare to the "real thing". I have never had "real" Australian Honey Jumbles, but I used an Australian recipe and we think they are great! 🙂
Susan
The original Honey Jumble pre-dates the commercial version. The recipe I use from my mothers 1953 Coronation Cookbook calls for 1lb of flour and 1lb of honey. My family love them!
themondaybox
Susan, thanks so much for sharing your Honey Jumble knowledge! I love learning about foods and snacks from around the world. Honey jumbles caught my eye (and later my sweet tooth!) so I had to give them a try. Sadly, I have never had "the real thing" whether commercial or homemade. I only had the recommendations of Australian recipe developers to go by. 🙂 I would love to try your family's Coronation Cookbook honey jumble recipe! If you have time to email the recipe to me, wendysmondaybox {at} gmail {dot} com, I would stock up on honey and give it a go! 🙂
Reeni
These are so pretty! They remind me of Easter. I love the flavor of honey - it has such warm notes to it that sound perfect with the brown sugar and spices you used. These wouldn't last long near me!
themondaybox
Thanks, Reeni! I agree about the flavors, warm and delicious. These really were some of the best cookies I have ever baked.Tasty(mildly addicting, even), easy to make, and long shelf life......what more could you want from a cookie. 🙂
BruCrew Life
What gorgeous cookies!! Love the swirled icing!
themondaybox
Thanks, Jocelyn! The icing was fun to do and are the perfect minimal finishing touch on these cinnamon ginger cookies
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert
These are so pretty - you did a beautiful job! And I'm not with the pre-holiday event planning party either - always the last one!
themondaybox
Thanks, Tricia! I am so glad that I learned about these from Claire when she did a guest post on Cafe Sucre Farine! They have been on my to-do list ever since. 🙂
noyomoco
I've never heard of a honey jumble, but they sound delish! 🙂
themondaybox
Thanks, Jennifer! One of the coolest things about the internet, is that it makes the world a smaller place. I hope Honey Jumbles weren't an Australian secret because the secret is now out! 🙂
Ashley
Oooo I love baking with honey. I've never heard of Honey Jumbles before! I studied abroad in Australia in college and the only cookie I remember is Tim Tams (which we loved). But maybe that's because we were so obsessed with those that I didn't give any others a try : ) I'm going to have to give these a go!
themondaybox
They are so simple but so addictive, Ashley. 🙂 Just looking at the recipe I couldn't understand why so many Australian bloggers would want to bake these. Now I know! 🙂 Let me know what you think! I am off to google Tim Tams..........
shannon
you did such a beautiful job with these! a honey cookie was on my list of things to do for the blog prior to Rosh Hashanah also, but as you can see, we both need to work on our "plan ahead" skills. 🙂 I've seen a few things in some of my UK-based cookbooks which have "honey" in the title but use Lyle's golden syrup in the ingredients...i wonder if it's an ease of use thing?
if there was a way to sign up for this particular care package, i would: it sounds wonderful. and i'm definitely trying this mock royal icing recipe; i have a regular royal recipe that's my go-to, but i like options.
themondaybox
Thanks, Shannon! I am so glad I tried these. My son NEVER snacks on cookies (I have no idea where he picked up this annoying trait), but he keeps going back to the cookie jar for these saying how glad he is that I kept working on them until we got them right. Right involved way less time baking than the original recipe said and using golden syrup vs honey. I don't know why, but the cookies taste the same as the honey ones but the dough is less sticky and the finished cookie is a wee bit lighter in texture. Can I say they are honey cookies for Rosh Hashanah if the honey is only in the name? 🙂
This icing is just so easy to make and to use that I never took the time to learn how to make real royal icing. Maybe not for the blog but for myself, I really need to do that. Have you posted your go-to royal recipe?
And care package sign up.....you have my email, sign up is available.:) I take my son back to college this weekend which marks the official start to Monday Box season. 🙂
Laurel Heard
hi Wendy.... I always learn something new from your blog.... never heard of golden syrup. Once again you out did yourself in creating a beautiful looking cookie and the description sounds delicious. I hope this means we'll be able to taste some at Break Fast....looking forward to it.
themondaybox
Thanks, Laurel! Golden syrup is lovely and is in the syrup section at Dierbergs and World Market. It has a light caramel-like flavor which I like better than honey or corn syrup in baking. It can be substituted for honey or corn syrup in baking but not in candy making. The burn temp. is too low.
I had thought of serving them at Break Fast but they are disappearing unusually fast. The only way I will be able to serve them is if I make another batch! 🙂
Jess @ On Sugar Mountain
I've never had one either (or heard of them actually!) but yours are so adorable, how can I resist? Cookies are fabulous, and honey is perfectionnnn in the Autumn. 😀
themondaybox
The icing makes this cookie, Jess. It keeps the texture chewy, adds just a touch of sweetness and a bit of crunch. The ginger-cinnamon is like a very mild gingerbread. They are the kind of cookie where you feel inclined to grab one (they are so little and innocent looking) every time you walk past the cookie jar!
Jeanne // NanaBread
I love these! They're so pretty. The feather texture of the icing is perfection. I'll have to try these. And thanks for sharing your 'faux royal' icing. I've been looking for one that will work well and dry hard. Can't wait to give it a go!
themondaybox
Thanks, Jeanne! I am going back to edit right now and credit the icing to bakingdom.com. I started using it because I was chicken of the real stuff, then liked it so much I never switched. On sugar cookies it ususally stays shiny. On these it lost its shine but shipped and stored well! The jumbles are great with any kind of icing. 🙂 If you have access to Lyles Golden Syrup, give it a try. I do think that version were the best.