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Take a bite of these White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies, where the buttery, rich dough meets chunks of premium white chocolate and crunchy macadamia nuts. These cookies strike the perfect balance between sweet and salty, with crispy edges and a perfectly soft center that’ll have you reaching for just one more!
I’ve been testing cookie recipes for years, and this combination has earned its spot at the top of my favorites list. The secret lies in the details—cornstarch for that tender crumb, an extra egg yolk for richness, and a generous splash of vanilla that ties all the flavors together. And not to mention the perfect combination of salty and sweet flavors!
Not only are they packed with white chocolate chips and crunchy macadamia nuts in every bite, but they also nail the perfect cookie texture – crispy on the edges and chewy in the middle! The salted macadamias balance the sweet, creamy white chocolate, creating an irresistible combination that is quintessential to white chocolate macadamia nut cookies.
Nikki’s Recipe Rundown
- Taste: Sweet white chocolate paired with buttery, salted macadamia nuts create an irresistible flavor combination.
- Texture: These cookies have crispy edges with soft, chewy centers studded with melty chocolate and crunchy nuts throughout!
- Ease: This is a basic cookie recipe that is easy for anyone to make at home! The only special equipment you need is an electric hand mixer or stand mixer.
- Pros: These cookies are easy to make, stay fresh for days, and can be made ahead of time and frozen dough for future occasions!
- Considerations: Quality ingredients matter here – especially the macadamia nuts, which can be pricey.
- Recipe Repeatability: These cookies turn out consistently perfect every time and are perfect for any time of the year! You’ll find yourself reaching for this recipe quite often.
Ingredients Needed For White Chocolate Macadamia Nut cookies
- Flour: All-purpose flour works great here.
- Cornstarch: This is the key to tender, soft-centered cookies!
- Baking Soda & Baking Powder: The combination of both baking soda and baking powder creates the ideal rise and texture.
- Salt: To balance out the flavors!
- Butter: I used salted butter here. If you are using unsalted butter, add an additional 1/2 teaspoon of salt to the dough.
- Brown Sugar & White Sugar: The combination of both brown sugar and white sugar adds the perfect amount of sweetness and deep flavor!
- Eggs: Eggs provide structure in this cookie recipe. I added an extra egg yolk for extra richness!
- Vanilla Extract: For a depth of flavor.
- White Chocolate Chips: Choose high-quality chips for superior melt and taste.
- Macadamia Nuts: You can use salted or unsalted macadamia nuts depending on your preference!
How To Make The Best White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
✱ Be sure to see the recipe card below for exact ingredients and full recipe instructions!
Step 1 | Prep Dry Ingredients
Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
Step 2 | Cream the Butter & Sugar
In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together till light and creamy, at least 3 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl at least 2 times during this time.
Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and cream together for another 2 minutes.
Step 3 | Add Dry Ingredients & Chill
Add the dry ingredients and mix till just combined. Add the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts and mix till just combined.
Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
Step 4 | Preheat & Bake
About 20 minutes before ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Scoop the dough into about 1 ½ -2 tablespoon-sized balls and bake for about 12-14 minutes. The edges should be browning, but the center will still look soft and a little underbaked.
Let cool on the cookie sheets for 5-7 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
Recipe Tips
- Make sure to use room-temperature ingredients! This will allow the ingredients to integrate more evenly, resulting in the perfect cookies.
- Cream the butter and sugars until truly light and fluffy! Don’t worry, you can over mix the butter and sugar, so make sure it is light and fluffy before adding the rest of the ingredients.
- Chill the dough thoroughly! This will ensure the cookies don’t spread too much when baking, resulting in the best texture.
- Don’t overbake your white chocolate macadamia nut cookies —remove them while the centers still look slightly underdone, and they will set up while cooling.
Variations and Substitutions
- Gluten-Free: To make gluten-free white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, simply swap the flour for a gluten-free all-purpose flour that has a 1 to 1 ratio to regular flour.
- Chocolate: While white chocolate chips pair perfectly with macadamia nut cookies, you can swap out the white chocolate chips for dark or milk chocolate if you prefer.
- Add-ins: Mix in some toasted coconut for a tropical flavor, or toss in some butterscotch chips for added flavor dimension.
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Recipe FAQs
Since macadamia nuts are quite large, it is a good idea to chop them up before adding them to the batter. You can roughly chop them using a sharp knife on a cutting board. It doesn’t have to be perfect!
If your cookies turn out flat, it could result from not chilling the dough long enough or not adding enough flour to the cookie dough! Be sure to measure your flour correctly by fluffing the flour in the container and then spooning the flour into the measuring cup. Then, level it off with the back of the spoon or a knife.
Storage
Storage: Store any leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days.
Freeze: You can store the cookie dough balls in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Bake directly from frozen and add 1-2 minutes to the bake time. Alternatively, you can freeze already-baked cookies for up to 3 months. Allow them to thaw before enjoying them!
What to Serve with White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut Cookies
These chocolate macadamia nut cookies can be served on their own or with some different options depending on the occasion! Enjoy them with a cold glass of milk for classic dunking, or pair with a drink like my whipped dalgona coffee or gingerbread hot chocolate for an afternoon treat.
For a more indulgent dessert, sandwich softened vanilla ice cream (or my chocolate chip ice cream) between two cookies to make ice cream sandwiches, or warm them slightly and top with a drizzle of caramel sauce. A sprinkle of flaky sea salt just before serving brings out their sweet-salty flavors!
Other Recipes to Try
- Easy Twix Cookies
- Lucky Charms Cookies
- Pecan Butter Cookies
- Brownie Mix Cookies
- Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies
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White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups (315 g) flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, room temperature, see note
- 1 cup (225 g) packed brown sugar
- ½ cup (104 g) white sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups (210 g) white chocolate chips
- 1 cup (120 g) macadamia nuts, salted, roughly chopped
Instructions
- Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium mixing bowl.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment cream the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together till light and creamy, at least 3 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl at least 2 times during this time.
- Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla and cream together another 2 minutes. Add the dry ingredients and mix till just combined. Add the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts and mix till just combined.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
- About 20 minutes before ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 Fahrenheit and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Scoop the dough into about 1 ½ -2 tablespoon-sized balls and bake for about 12-14 minutes.
- The edges should be browning but the center will look soft and underbaked still. Let cool on the cookie sheets for 5-7 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling.
Want to Save this Recipe?
Enter your email below & we’ll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you’ll get great new recipes from us every week!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Soulfully Made.
Notes
- If you use unsalted butter, increase the salt to ½ teaspoon.
- Keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days.
- If you refrigerate the dough for more than 3 hours, you may need to let the dough rest at room temperature for 20 minutes to soften enough to scoop.
- You can freeze the cookies in dough balls before baking or freeze the cookies after they are baked. Both will stay good in the freezer for about 3 months. Cook the cookie dough balls for an additional 1-2 minutes; no need to thaw.
- If you want these to be extra pretty, press a few nut pieces and white chocolate chips on the top of each dough ball before baking.
- There are lots of types of macadamia nuts. Using salted nuts will give a saltier, sweet taste to the cookie. While using unsalted, it will be a sweeter cookie. Both taste great, it just depends on your preference.
Nutrition Information
Nutritional Disclaimer
Soulfully Made is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is only an estimate. We recommend running the ingredients through an online nutritional calculator if you need to verify any information.
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