The best recipe for White Chocolate Chunk Macadamia Nut Cookies is right here! They are thick with a chewy interior and crispy exterior, just like those bakery-style cookies that we all love so much! Plus, there is no-chill time!
There are only a few other flavor combos that work just so well together like white chocolate and macadamia nuts do. The macadamia nut is so pleasantly buttery and has an amazing crunchy but smooth texture. Combined with white chocolate chunks, and the chewy texture of the cookie dough, these cookies are bound to become one of your favorites.
Bakery-Style Cookies
You know those thick cookies with a very chewy, soft center and pleasant crispiness around and on the outside that you get in a bakery?
That’s what we are after here and that’s what you will get if you follow this recipe.
These white chocolate macadamia cookies are actually a copy-cat recipe of Ben’s Cookies which is a bakery shop that sells amazing, thick, delicious cookies. Their recipe is of course a secret but I think I successfully recreated their cookie and came close enough.
Their cookies are actually even bigger than mine are, but if you want, you can make the cookie dough balls even bigger. If you do, be sure to adjust the baking time, bigger cookies need more time!
White Chocolate Chunks or White Chocolate Chips?
Just like Ben’s Cookies do, I used white chocolate chunks in these cookies which are just pieces of a coarsely chopped white chocolate bar.
Could you use white chocolate chips instead of chunks? Of course! You can also use both if you want.
What is the difference?
White chocolate is the most sensitive of all the chocolates (ok, maybe ruby chocolate is even more). So, when we use the chunks from a chocolate bar, the chocolate on top of the cookie will burn a little bit, especially because we are baking these cookies at a higher temperature to get that specific texture.
On the other hand, the white chocolate chips will retain the shape and color as they are more termo-stabilized and specially made for this.
So it really depends on what you want and what you like, I used the chunks as I wanted to recreate Ben’s cookies. Feel free to substitute the white chocolate chunks with chips.
I usually put some toppings on the top of the cookies to make them look super nice, like in these maple pecan pretzel chocolate chip cookies.
But in this case, I intentionally didn’t put any chocolate on top, so it doesn’t burn too much. If you wish to have melted white chocolate pools on top, just place a few chopped white chocolate pieces on top of the cookies at the last minute of the baking time.
How to make No-Chill White Chocolate Macadamia Cookies from scratch
These cookies are so easy and quick to make! Unlike many other cookies, like my ruby chocolate chip cookies, that really need the chill time to then get baked to the right texture, these white chocolate chunk macadamia cookies don’t require any chill time! That means you can have them on your table, nice and warm, ready to be eaten in 30 minutes.
The ingredients you need for this recipe:
- butter – at room temperature (a must for proper emulsion),
- brown sugar – for the chewiness and the additional flavor from molasses,
- white sugar – for additional crispiness,
- egg – to bind everything,
- flour – for volume and texture,
- baking soda – to lift the cookie and for texture,
- vanilla extract – for amazing flavor,
- salt – for amazing flavor,
- white chocolate – for flavor and texture,
- macadamia nuts – for delicious taste and crunch.
How to make the white chocolate macadamia cookies:
The process coulnd’t be any easier.
- Cream the butter and both sugar – until they are lighter in color and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
2. Add the egg and vanilla extract – mix until well combined.
3. Combine and add the dry ingredients – for the best distribution of the baking soda, whisk the flour with the baking soda and salt in a separate bowl, then add to the butter mixture. Mix just until combined. This is the step where you don’t want to over-mix.
4. Coarsely chop the chocolate and the macadamia nuts – then add to the cookie dough until everything is well distributed.
5. Shape the cookie dough into balls – do this by hand or use a medium-sized ice cream scoop. I used around 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons of cookie dough for one ball. Place them on a baking tray around 7 cm (3 inches) apart.
6. Bake for around 12 minutes – the cookies will not develop much color and still be soft when they come out.
All about Macadamia Nuts for Macadamia Cookies
You can use salted and roasted macadamia nuts or you can use the unsalted and raw ones. The choice is yours.
The salted and roasted macadamia will give you a lot of additional flavor. If you do use the salty ones, adjust the salt that we add into the cookies to not go overboard.
If you prefer a more subtle cookie, more buttery flavor and not as salty, use the raw macadamia. (Not the one in the shell of course)
If you have raw macadamia and wish to roast them yourself, bake the nuts in a preheated oven at 180°C (350 F) for about 10-15 minutes, depending on how roasted you want them. Keep an eye on them while in the oven as they can quickly go from not roasted to roasted too much.
A coarse chop will be more than enough. I like big chunks of nuts in the cookies, so cutting the whole macadamia nuts into halves and quarters would be more than enough. I even leave some whole for that extra crunch, yum!
Sure, swap the macadamia with hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds, any other nut really!
Tips for baking THE BEST White Chocolate Chunk Macadamia Nut COOKIES every time
- Follow the recipe to ensure they come out the best possible.
- Measure the ingredients correctly. I always weigh my ingredients on a kitchen scale, because that’s the most accurate way to bake. I always provide the ingredient amounts also in cups, but I can’t guarantee perfect results. Read this post to learn how to correctly measure ingredients if you are using cups.
- Have the ingredients at room temperature before you use them. VERY IMPORTANT. Having the butter at room temperature is a must for this recipe so we can cream it with sugar and obtain a smooth and fluffy texture. Also, having the eggs at room temperature will ensure the best emulsion with the butter.
- Don’t over-mix the cookies. After adding the flour, over-mixing can result in a tough and dry cookie, because the gluten in the flour develops too much.
- Make sure that your oven is properly preheated. Many baking fails would be prevented if you make sure your oven is at the temperature it needs to be before baking the cookies. As home ovens are very unreliable, it’s best to use an oven thermometer. In addition, make sure your oven is at the right temperature.
- Don’t over bake the cookies. This tip is included in probably every recipe I have because it’s so important. It makes or breaks the recipe. Over-baking results in a dry and crumbly cookie which is the exact opposite of what we want here. The cookies are done when the tops are not shiny anymore, a few small cracks appear and the color on the edges is just starting to get golden. They will look under-baked when they are baked enough.
- Space the cookies on a baking tray properly. Ensure that each cookie has enough space to spread and bake evenly.
- The size of the cookie balls will impact the baking time. I do not recommend making smaller cookie balls because it will be harder to achieve the texture we are looking for. If you make them bigger, the baking time will be longer.
Can I freeze these cookies?
Yes, they are freezer-friendly! You can freeze them either baked or unbaked.
Unbaked: After you make the cookie dough, shape it into balls, place them on a tray (lined with parchment paper for easier removal) next to each other, and freeze. When they are frozen, you can put all the cookie balls together in a zip-lock bag and save them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Bake the frozen cookies for about 2 minutes longer or wait for them to thaw and bake as normal. If you bake them frozen, they will spread less and remain smaller and thicker.
Baked: Leave the baked cookies to cool completely on the baking tray and then freeze them for up to 3 months in a ziplock bag or an air-tight container.
This recipe makes about 24 medium-sized cookies, you can halve the recipe to get a small batch of 12 cookies.
Find more amazing cookie recipes here:
- Chewy almond cookies – Soft Amaretti
- Ruby Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chocolate Walnut Cookies
- White Chocolate and Cranberry Cookies
- Black Cocoa Shortbread Cookies
When you make these bakery-style white chocolate chunk macadamia nut cookies, take a photo and tag me on Instagram @freakyblond, send it to my email, or attach the photo to the pin. In any case, I’d love to see it, it makes my day! I’d also love it if you rate the recipe and tell me your experience in the comments so I can possibly make them even better for you 🙂.
White Chocolate Chunk Macadamia Nut Cookies
Ingredients
- 230 g butter at room temperature
- 100 g sugar
- 200 g brown sugar
- 1 egg at room temperature
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 350 g flour
- 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 150 g macadamia nuts
- 200 g chopped white chocolate/choc chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- In a bowl combine flour, salt and baking soda.
- In another bowl mix together butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Add the egg and vanilla extract, beat for 1 min until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture and mix just until everything is incorporated and you can’t see any dry flour bits.
- Coarsly chop the macadamia nuts (to halves and quarters) and white chocolate. Add to the cookies dough and mix until everything is nicely distributed.
- Take 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons of the cookie dough and form balls with your palms or use an ice-cream scoop to make the balls. Place them on a baking sheet about 7 cm (3 inches) apart.
- Bake for about 12 min. The cookies will look under-baked, pretty pale and just starting to get golden color around the edges. If you want really soft cookies, bake them for 10-11 min (they will hardly have any color on them and will seem too soft, but when they cool down they will be just right).
- Enjoy 🙂
Notes
- Be sure to measure the ingredients correctly.
- Have all the ingredients at room temperature before mixing them together.
- You can use white chocolate chips instead of cholate chunks or use both.
- Use the white chocolate you love to eat and like the taste.
- You can use either roasted and salted macadamia nuts or raw macadamia. Roasted and salted macadamia will enhance the flavor. Reduce the added salt if you use salted macadamia.
- To freeze unbaked cookie dough: make cookie dough balls, place them on a tray lined with parchment paper and freeze. When frozen, you can move them all to a zip-lock bag and return them to the freezer. When baking them frozen, increase the baking time by 1-2 minutes but know that the cookies will spread less.
- To freeze them baked: just cool down the baked cookies, move them to a zip-lock bag and freeze.
- Frozen cookies are good for up to 3 months.
- Save the baked cookies in an air-tight container. They are best eaten fresh but will last up to 3 days.
Does the butter need to be unsalted
Yes I always use unsalted butter and add salt myself 🙂