These White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies are overloaded (in the best way!) with white chocolate chips and chopped macadamia nuts. The perfect balance of sweet and salty, and a must-have in your holiday cookie assortment!
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Why Make This Recipe
- Delicious and Decadent: Creamy white chocolate pairs beautifully with the rich, buttery flavor of the macadamia nuts.
- Perfect Chewy Texture: Not too crispy, not soft and cakey, but just right!
- So Easy: No mixer required.
- Make in Advance: You can freeze the cookie dough and then bake whenever you’re ready to serve.
🥗 Ingredients
- Sugar: We use a combination of granulated sugar and brown sugar in this recipe—switch to all granulated if you like, though we like the deeper flavor from the brown sugar addition.
- Butter: Unsalted butter is recommended, so you can control the salt content in your cookies. If you only have salted butter, add only ½ teaspoon of salt.
- White Chocolate Chips: Instead of chips, you could chop up a white chocolate bar. You could also add in butterscotch chips for extra flavor.
- Macadamia Nuts: Look for these in the baking section of your supermarket. You can also purchase macadamia nuts online. We like the salted version in these cookies.
🥣 Step-by-Step Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 1
Put 12 tablespoons butter into a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave it on 50% power for 30 seconds or so, until it is very soft but not totally melted.
Step 2
Whisk in ¾ cups granulated sugar and ½ cup packed brown sugar.
Let cool for a few minutes.
Step 3
Whisk in 2 large eggs and 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla.
Step 4
In a separate bowl, whisk together 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and ¾ teaspoon kosher salt.
Step 5
Stir dry ingredients into the wet mixture with a sturdy wooden spoon.
Stir in 2 cups white chocolate chips and 1 cup choppped macadamia nuts.
Step 6
Use a 1 ½ tablespoon cookie scoop to generously scoop out cookie dough, then place on lined baking sheet.
Step 7
Bake for 12-14 minutes, until just starting to brown around the bottom edges.
Remove baking sheet from oven, and bang it on the counter 2-3 times.
Let cookies sit for 2 minutes, then remove and let cool on a rack.
🧐 Recipe FAQs for White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
Just store on the counter in an airtight container at room temperature. They will last for 2-3 days, and can be heated in the microwave to soften them up a little if they get stale.
Yes, both freeze well, for up to 3 months. To freeze before baking, scoop into cookie dough balls, then place on a parchment-lined plate or pan to freeze. When they are frozen, you can move them into a ziptop freezer bag. You can bake directly from the freezer—just add a couple of minutes to the bake time. You can also freeze baked cookies in a freezer bag. Take them out and bring to room temperature before serving.
👩🍳 Expert Tips
We recommend using a cookie scoop to scoop the cookie dough—scoop generously, and roll the dough with your hands if you'd like. Makes the cookies come out even and perfectly shaped. Also, since the cookie balls will all be the same size, you can be sure they will all bake in the same amount of time.
You don’t need to bang the cookie tray on the counter, but we love how it flattens the cookies and makes them nice and chewy. Works for chocolate chip cookies too!
If the cookie dough is too warm to scoop into balls, wait for it to cool, or put it in the refrigerator for a few minutes. That said, note that chilling the dough for too long will make it a lot harder to scoop.
And really, one of the advantages of this recipe is that this white chocolate macadamia nut cookie dough does not need to be chilled before baking.
Want to play around with other flavors? These cookies would be delicious with dried cranberries added into the batter. You could also add lemon juice or zest or coconut flakes. Or try replacing the nuts with fresh raspberries, as in these White Chocolate Chip Raspberry Cookies.
Other Delicious Cookie Recipes
We love a cookie platter around holiday time. If you do too, you might want to check out some of our favorites. And, head to the Holiday archives for full menu ideas.
If you try this White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies recipe, we would love to hear from you! Please rate this recipe and leave a comment below—your feedback is invaluable to us.
And please follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook or subscribe to our newsletter. We'd love to inspire you with more delicious, healthy, and seasonal recipes!
📖 Recipe
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White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- ¾ cup unsalted butter (12 tablespoons)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (167 grams)
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed (104 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ¾ cups flour (330 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups white chocolate chips (11-ounce package)
- 1 cup roughly chopped macadamia nuts
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Put 12 tablespoons butter into a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave it on 50% power for 30 seconds or so, until it is very soft but not melted.
- Whisk in granulated and brown sugars.
- Let cool for a few minutes.
- Whisk in eggs and vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Stir dry ingredients into the wet mixture with a sturdy wooden spoon.
- Stir in white chocolate chips and nuts.
- Use a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to generously scoop out cookie dough and place onto lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 12-14 minutes, until just starting to brown around the bottom edges.
- Remove baking sheet from oven, and bang it on the counter 2-3 times.
- Let cookies sit for 2 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack.
Notes
Store on the counter in an airtight container at room temperature. They will last for 2-3 days, and can be heated in the microwave to soften them up a little if they get stale. You can also freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months in a freezer bag or airtight container. Bring to room temperature before serving. Expert Tips:
We recommend using a cookie scoop to scoop the cookie dough—scoop generously, then roll the dough with your hands if you want to. The cookies will come out even and perfectly shaped. Also, since the cookie balls will all be the same size, you can be sure they will all bake in the same amount of time. You don’t need to bang the cookie tray on the counter, but we love how it flattens the cookies and makes them nice and chewy. Works for chocolate chip cookies too! If the cookie dough is too warm to scoop into balls, wait for it to cool, or put it in the refrigerator for a few minutes. That said, note that chilling the dough for too long will make it a lot harder to scoop.
Nutrition
Instagram Users: Now that you've made these White Chocolate and Macadamia Nut Cookies, tag us @vanillabeancuisine or #vanillabeancuisine because we'd love to see your results!
More About Molly
Cooking healthy(ish) meals with seasonal ingredients is my passion. Trained as a French pastry chef, I spent over 10 years as a personal chef. Here you'll find well-tested recipes that you and your family will love!
jake says
Made these cookies yesterday and they came out so great! Loved the white chocolate and macadamia nut mixture. Will definitely be making these again for the holidays. Thanks for the great recipe!
Molly Pisula says
So glad you enjoyed them--thanks for commenting!