These white chocolate macadamia nut cookies are soft-baked style with extra chewy centers. Melted butter maintains a delicious buttery flavor while an extra egg yolk adds chewiness. They’re absolutely PACKED with white chocolate and salted macadamia nuts.
Everything Old is New Again!
My website’s archives are filled with over 1,000 recipes. Some of my earlier recipes are total hidden gems, but there are others that I’ve felt needed some work. I’ve been working behind the scenes updating older recipes as I find necessary. Most notable updates: peanut butter cupcakes, monkey bread, and yellow cupcakes.
Today’s white chocolate macadamia nut cookies are part of this project. I craved a thicker cookie with softer, chewier centers and a distinct buttery flavor. There wasn’t much in this recipe that really needed to change, so I just made a couple minor tweaks.
They’re now perfect.
Video Tutorial
These are the BEST White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
And here’s why:
- Major chunks—lots of nuts and white chocolate
- Classic comforting flavors
- Extra buttery
- Soft-baked style
- Chewy centers
- Slightly crisp edges
- Easy to freeze
Re-Testing This Recipe
This recipe is a cross between my coconut macadamia nut cookies and my chewy chocolate chip cookies. Like the original recipe first published in 2012, I use melted butter instead of softened butter. I love using melted butter in cookies because it produces an extra buttery flavor as well as a chewier texture. However, it’s not as simple as swapping melted butter for softened butter. (Of course it’s not. It’s BAKING! So particular!)
You see, melted butter—a liquid—creates spread. If there isn’t enough flour to absorb the added liquid, the cookies will spread all over the baking sheet. On the other hand, if there’s excess flour, the cookies will taste dry. Finding the balance between too wet and too dry is a total roll of the dice! Speaking of dry ingredients, I add 1 teaspoon of cornstarch here. This ingredient adds a little extra softness. I don’t add cornstarch when making the coconut macadamia nut cookies because the coconut acts as a really soft dry ingredient, so cornstarch just isn’t necessary there.
The original recipe also used an extra egg yolk. I love this addition! See my chewy chocolate chip cookies or brown butter marshmallow crispy cookies if you’re curious about it. Basically, an extra egg yolk = extra richness and extra chew. Both good things.
Two final changes: I add a little more baking soda for additional volume because the original cookies typically over-spread. I also switch the amounts of sugar. Here we use an equal amount of granulated sugar and brown sugar. In addition to sweetening, brown sugar creates a soft and more flavorful cookie and granulated sugar creates spread. Balancing them helps produce a chewy, yet crispy edge cookie.
Best Macadamia Nuts to Use
I LOVE using salted dry-roasted macadamia nuts in white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. The roasted salty flavor pairs beautifully with the extra sweet white chocolate morsels—you won’t regret it!
3 Cookie Tips to Improve Your Next Batch
- Spoon & Level the Flour: The amount of flour makes or breaks a cookie recipe—literally. Spoon and level that flour or, better yet, weigh your flour.
- Chill the Cookie Dough: Chilling the cookie dough, especially since we’re using melted butter, is an imperative step in this recipe. The colder the dough, the less the cookies will over-spread into greasy puddles. You’ll have thicker, sturdier, and more solid cookies.
- Bake 1 Batch at a Time: You get the best possible results when the oven only concentrates on 1 batch at a time. If you need to bake more than one batch at a time, rotate the baking sheets from the top rack to bottom rack a couple times through the baking process to encourage even browning. And turn the sheets around as well. Ovens have hot spots!
If you can’t get enough of sweet white chocolate, try my white chocolate brownies and white chocolate peanut butter cookies next!
Print
Super-Chunk White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 30 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These white chocolate macadamia nut cookies are soft-baked style with extra chewy centers. They’re absolutely PACKED with white chocolate morsels and salted macadamia nuts. Chilling the cookie dough is imperative, so set aside at least 2 hours.
Ingredients
- 2 cups + 2 Tablespoons (265g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, melted + slightly cooled
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 heaping cup (210g) white chocolate chips*
- 1 cup (120g) roughly chopped macadamia nuts*
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract together until combined. Pour into dry ingredients and mix everything together with a silicone spatula until completely combined. Fold in the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts. (You can use a mixer for this step if needed.)
- Cover and chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 4 days. If chilling for longer than 2 hours, allow to sit at room temperature for at least 20-30 minutes before rolling and baking because the dough will be quite hard.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Roll cookie dough into balls, about 1-1.5 Tablespoons of dough per cookie (I like to use this medium cookie scoop), and arrange 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 12-13 minutes or until lightly browned on the sides. The centers will look soft.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Allow to come to room temperature then continue with step 4. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Unbaked cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack
- White Chocolate Chips: I usually use closer to 1 and 1/4 cups white chocolate chips, about 210g. For looks, you can press a few extra chips into the tops of the warm cookies when they come out of the oven.
- Macadamia Nuts: I used salted dry-roasted macadamia nuts. You can use unsalted, raw, and/or whichever macadamia nuts you love most. Salted dry-roasted adds incredible flavor though.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hi Sally, I trust all of your recipes wholeheartedly! I’m making these soon and realize I’ve made a mistake – the butter I have on hand is salted. I’ve got salted and roasted macadamias, too, so I’m wondering if I need to go to the store or if I can somehow make this work with more sugar or another tweak? I never buy salted butter – such a simple error to throw a wrench in my recipe!
As a first time cookie maker, I felt a bit nervous going into this, but i followed your recipe to the point and they came out sooo deliciously buttery, with a moist and chewy centre and a crispy outer. The perfect cookie!! Thanks so much!
These have become the family favorite! The crispy edges and chewy middles are the perfect dreamy cookie! I’ll double the recipe in the future, and try with browned butter. Thanks Sally!!
Hi Sally!
I absolutely love your recipes and thorough instructions!
I’m planning to make this scrumptious recipe but would like to make large cookies; about 1/2 cup of batter each. Would I need to change any part of the recipe to do this? (Aside from baking time)
Thanks so much!
I don’t think so– simply extend the bake time. It will be similar to my Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Hi Sally,
Is it necessary to chop the nuts or just add the whole, roasted and salted nuts to the recipe. I don’t see in the recipe instructions anything about chopping the nuts.
I’ve made several of your recipes and they are all top-notch and my goto recipes. I expect these will be no exception.
Thanks in advance.
Hi Ray, thanks so much for your positive feedback, we really appreciate it! Use roughly chopped macadamia nuts in this recipe.
Yes, these cookies are amazing. They are just what I am looking for in a white chocolate/macadamia nut cookie! This was the first recipe of yours that I tried, and I can’t wait to try more!
Hi Sally,
Just wanted to let you know that I just pulled a variation of these cookies out of the oven (Yes, I love cookies enough to crank up the oven in July).
I subbed Macadamias for roasted hazelnuts, reduced the sugar by 1/4 cup and replaced the extra egg yolk with a heaping tablespoon of Nutella. A sprinkle of sea salt on top perfectly balances the sweetness of the white chocolate. I’m in cookie heaven and the kids love them, too.
Lots of love from Germany,
Jazz
Excellent recipe!!! This cookies turn out sooo good! I followed the recipe 100% just with the exception on the chilling part, I did it only for 30 min! Baked them for 12
They are delicious!
Thanks!
Hi Sally, I love this recipe – made them for the first time today. The cookies turned out SUPER! Thank you for the lovely recipes and gorgeous photos, they give people like me the encouragement and confidence to bake. Regards.
Hi,
I followed the instructions to a “T” and my first batch burned at 10 minutes. Checked my oven thermometer and it was 350 degrees so wasn’t the oven. To keep them from burning I had to only bake 6 minutes which left me with browned raw cookies. Not sure what I am doing wrong. I used organic sugar which has a bit bigger grain than white sugar, used regular light brown sugar but maybe altitude? I live at 5000 feet in New Mexico. Help.
Hi Dorthy, I always suggest an oven thermometer – see number three in my 5 Cookie Baking Tips post! I wish I could help with your location, but I have no experience baking at high altitude. I know some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
Hi Sally, I have made the dough and it is currently chilling in the fridge. I use a gas oven though and always have to try and work out the temperature. Can you tell me if your oven is an electric fan oven or not? Thanks
I have conventional electric ovens with a convection setting. I use the convection/fan setting for savory items- like when I’m roasting veggies or cooking meats. When I’m baking, I prefer the traditional conventional setting because I feel things overbake quickly when using the convection setting.
I highly recommend an oven thermometer! See #7 in my Top 10 Baking Tips.
Followed the recipe to a T and these were the best White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies ever! These cookies didn’t last long with my family around. Next time I will add more white chocolate chips.
Hi Sally! My husband has requested these cookies for his birthday, but with a tropical twist. He want’s to add lime! Do you think one tablespoon of lime juice and some zest would throw off the texture of the cookies?
Yum! I haven’t tested it but you can definitely add zest with no other changes. Extra liquid could make the dough too thin but you can try subbing 1/2 tsp of the vanilla with lime. Let me know if you try it!
I want to make them but have only white chocolate bars. How much should I use, and how big the chunks?
Hi Sarah! Chop up your chocolate bars into pieces similar in size to white chocolate chips. You’ll use the same amount- about 1 heaping cup of chopped white chocolate.
Hi Sally! I made these cookies today and they went down an absolute treat with my family! I’m not much of a baker but these turned out faultless, thanks to your simple instructions. Would it be possible to sub in milk and dark choc chips instead of macadamias without it affecting the recipe? Thank you once again, looking forward to trying out more of your recipes
Absolutely! Just keep the total amount of add-ins to about 2 cups.
I accidentally added buttermilk to my ingredients. What can I expect ? How well this effect my cookies?
These are amazing! My whole family loved them- thank you so much for sharing the recipe and your great tips.
I just wanted to thank you so much for your very thorough instructions. I love baking but I don’t have a lot of experience so whenever I use a bare-bones recipe I end up making mistakes without realizing it. Your detailed recipe made everything fool-proof and I’ve learned so many great tips! Why it’s important to chill the dough, not to put dough on a hot baking sheet, etc. I’m so grateful to be able to use a recipe like this after you’ve done all the difficult trial-and-error work for me! They turned out PERFECT!
It would be great if you gave weights for everything. You put a suggestion at the bottom to weigh everything (which I do, because… people really bake by measuring cups??), but you don’t actually include weights for half the ingredients.
Jason, the metric weights for how I tested them are included in this recipe. Thank you!
I came across this recipe whilst looking for something to use my salted macadamia nuts for (I don’t like them on their own)
Couldn’t find white chocolate chips anywhere. Am substituting butterscotch chips as they were the only ones I could find (at two stores). Dough is currently chilling in the fridge but folded over super smoothly and smells delicious. Can’t wait to try them!
Hi,
Can I brown my butter for these? I’m wondering if it will make the cookies a bit less sweet. I’m also planning on adding dried sour cherries. I love riffing on your recipes, everything I bake of yours is always a winner
You could use brown butter, Robin. Yum! Here is exactly How to Brown Butter.
Can I halve this recipe without any issues? I wish I could bake a full batch but don’t have enough white chocolate
You can certainly try it. I would maybe use 1 egg yolk as the egg. I’m unsure of the exact results. Or bake the entire batch and substitute some regular chocolate chips.
Hello, Sally!
The recipe looks divine and I’m excited to give it a go! Would the cookies turn out okay if I only chill the dough for 2 hours? Does the butter have to be melted, will I get the same results if I don’t melt it?
Hi Mors, The melted butter produces an extra buttery flavor as well as a chewier texture so I recommend sticking to the recipe. 2 hours is the minimum I recommend chilling the dough so that it doesn’t spread when the cookies are baked.
Hi Sally!
I read the comments and I am more than convinced to try and follow your recipe with a little bit of changes in the flour (bread and all-purpose) and sugar (cutting it maybe 1/2 a cup combined) —I’m not a fan of white chocolates though, can I use dark belgian callets and some milk chocolate chips, instead? Thanks!
Hi Jo, for best results, I recommend following the recipe as written but feel free to test it with your changes. You can use either (or both) chocolates you mention to replace the white chocolate chips with no problem though!
Delicious! Best cookie recipe I’ve made.
I did almost exactly as the recipe said except I use a half of cup of each of the sugars and they are perfect thank you for a great recipe
Great recipe! Turned out wonderful! I had to bake mine a little longer, 15 minutes.m, but still soft & chewy.
Could this be made into a cookie cake?
Sure can! You can use the baking instructions for my Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake as a guide.
They’re yummy but they were difficult to mix at the end. I had to use my hands to incorporate the chocolate and nuts as everything was crumbly and dry. My cookies did not spread out as much as the pictures and are much more round. Also I think I chopped the nuts too much as I’m missing the nutty crunch and am mostly just tasting the white chocolate.
Hi, would like to ask how many flour do we need? Is it 265 grams in total
Hi Yvonne, Yes it’s 265g total. Enjoy!
I’ve been looking for a lemon flavored white chocolate chip macadamia nut recipe, yours sounds so good but is there a way to add lemon flavor to this?
Hi Barbara! None that I’ve tested. You can definitely add some lemon zest and lemon extract, though. Reduce vanilla extract to 1 teaspoon and use 1/2 or 1 teaspoon of lemon extract.