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Loaded with macadamias and cranberries, these macadamia nut cookies are stuffed with cream cheese for a decadent treat. Super soft and chewy, they’re easy to make and are totally indulgent!
If you love baking cookies, you’ll definitely want my other favorites! Try my White Chocolate Chip Cookies or bake a batch of my daughter’s favorite Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies – it’s a classic treat!
Why This Recipe Works
Just the Right Balance – These cookies are a perfect sweet spot—super indulgent yet surprisingly easy to make. You’ll impress without the stress!
Flavor Party – Imagine crunchy macadamia nuts, tangy cranberries, creamy white chocolate, and a zesty hint of lemon all in one bite. Yes, it’s as good as it sounds!
Creamy Surprise – Who doesn’t love a surprise? Each macadamia nut cookie hides a creamy center that takes it from “yum” to “wow”!
No Time? No Problem! – Ready in 30 minutes, these cookies are your quick fix for that gourmet bakery taste. Perfect when you need something special but are short on time.
Texture-Love – Soft, chewy, with bits of crunch—every bite is just SO good! Even the most cookie-clueless bakers can nail this cookie recipe!
Ingredients You’ll Need
To whip up these white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, you’ll only need some simple ingredients, from the creamy chunks of white chocolate to the crunchy macadamia nuts, get ready to make some irresistible cookies!
- Unsalted butter: You will need two sticks of butter.
- Pure Vanilla extract: To add flavor.
- Eggs: The binding ingredient that holds everything together.
- Sugars: You’ll need a blend of dark brown sugar and granulated piloncillo. You can substitute the piloncillo with more brown sugar.
- All-purpose flour
- Cornstarch: This will add chewiness to your cookies.
- Ground ginger: It adds a subtle, warm spiciness to the white macadamia nut cookies.
- Salt: Adds flavor and balances the sweetness.
- Baking soda: Acts as a leavening agent to help the cookies rise and be light and fluffy.
- Toasted shredded coconut: Coconut flakes work too.
- White chocolate chunks: White chocolate chips work too.
- Lemon zest: Orange zest is a great substitute.
- Salted macadamia nuts: You can also use unsalted macadamia for this.
- Dried cranberries: For a similar tartness or sweetness, use dried cherries instead or raisins. Dried blueberries are also good in this recipe.
- Cream cheese: You can use low-fat or full-fat cream cheese. Nut butter or Nutella are good substitutes.
How to Make Macadamia Nut Cookies
Follow these simple steps to combine melt-in-your-mouth textures with rich flavors so that every batch of cookies is perfectly soft, chewy, golden, and delicious!
- Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- In a large bowl, whisk melted butter, vanilla extract, eggs, and yolk until combined. Mix wet and dry ingredients separately.
- Add dark brown sugar and granulated sugar to wet ingredients. Then add flour, cornstarch, ginger, salt, and baking soda. Stir until moist dough forms. Add extra flour only if too wet.
- Fold toasted coconut, white chocolate, lemon zest, macadamias, and cranberries into the dough gently.
- Make dough balls using 2 tablespoons of dough, flatten, and press a thumb in the center. Fill with 1/2 tablespoon cream cheese, cover with more dough, and re-roll into a ball.
- Place dough balls on the baking sheet, leaving 4″ space between each. Bake for 13-15 minutes, then rest for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.
Do I Need To Chill The Dough?
No, this is a no-chill recipe that you can pop right into the oven. However, if you want to make the cookie dough in advance, you can store it in the fridge for a few hours until you are ready to bake.
Recipe Tips And Variations
- Use the middle rack. If possible, bake only using the middle rack because the bottom and top racks usually have an uneven heat distribution. This way, you don’t have to cut or extend the baking time for any of the batches.
- Baking Tip: Ensure all ingredients are at room temperature before starting. Ingredients like cold eggs can lead to lumpy batter, a denser texture, and extended baking times. Room temperature ingredients mix more easily and result in a smoother, more consistent bake.
- Let the cookies rest. Don’t try to remove them from the tray right after baking or they’ll fall apart. You need to let them rest so that the cookies can finish baking and firm up.
- Change the filling. You can also stuff these cookies with peanut butter, almond butter, or Nutella.
- Use regular chocolate. Milk, bittersweet, and dark chocolate chips or chunks are an excellent substitute for white chocolate in this recipe.
Serving Suggestions
These cookies are perfect with your favorite morning coffee, like my Dalgona Coffee or Mexican Coffee. Tea is also great, so try my Starbucks London Fog Drink or Matcha Latte. A tall glass of warm or cold milk is fantastic with them, too!
How to Store Macadamia Nut Cookies
- Refrigerated Storage: Since these cookies have a cream cheese filling, store them in an airtight container or bag and keep in the fridge for 5 to 7 days.
- Freezing Raw Cookie Dough:
- First, arrange the dough balls on a parchment-lined baking tray.
- Freeze for 1-2 hours.
- Transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months.
- To bake, place them on a baking tray for 1 hour at room temperature, then bake as directed.
- Freezing Baked Cookies:
- Place the baked cookies on a parchment-lined tray and freeze for 1 hour.
- Then, transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container and freeze for up to 3 months.
- To serve, thaw them on the counter.
More Easy Cookie Recipes
- Chocolate Cloud Cookies
- Apple Oatmeal Cookies Recipe
- Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cookies Recipe
- Gluten Free Salted Peanut Butter Cookies
- Ginger Snap Cookies with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
ENJOY!
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Macadamia Nut Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup melted unsalted butter
- 3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs,, at room temperature
- 1 egg yolk, , at room temperature
- ½ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup granulated piloncillo,, or any unprocessed cane sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2½ teaspoons cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup toasted shredded coconut
- ½ cup roughly chopped white chocolate chips
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ¾ cup roughly chopped salted macadamia nuts
- ¾ cup dried cranberries
- 8 tablespoons cream cheese,, softened
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350˚F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set it aside.
- Whisk the melted butter, vanilla extract, eggs, and yolk, in a large mixing bowl until well combined.
- Mix the dark brown sugar and granulated sugar into the wet ingredients until you get a smooth mixture. Add the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, ground ginger, salt, and baking soda. Stir them into the mixture until you form a relatively moist dough.
- Add the toasted coconut, white chocolate chunks, lemon zest, macadamias, and cranberries. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold them into the dough.
- Grab 2 tablespoons of dough and quickly roll them together into a ball. Use your hands to flatten it out slightly into a thick disk and lightly press your thumb down the middle. Fill the cavity with 1/2 tablespoon of cream cheese. Add another tablespoon of dough on top and press it down and around the sides to seal the cream cheese inside. Gently re-roll it into a ball. Set it aside and repeat for all the dough.
- Arrange 6 to 8 balls of dough on the prepared baking sheet, with 3 to 4-inches space between them. Press them down lightly.
- Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until the edges of the cookies start to brown. Remove them from the oven and let them rest for 5 minutes. For best results, cookies should be baked on the center oven rack for even heating and air circulation.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let them cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Eggs: When baking, it is important to work with ingredients that are at room temperature. Cold eggs, for instance, can result in lumpy batter, a heavy texture, and require longer baking times.
- Piloncillo: This is unprocessed cane sugar, but you can substitute it for dark or light brown sugar.
- Use the middle rack: Bake only using the middle rack because the bottom and top racks have an uneven heat distribution.
- Let the cookies rest: Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Change the filling: You can also stuff the cookies with peanut butter, almond butter, or Nutella instead of cream cheese.
- Use regular chocolate: Milk, bittersweet, and dark chocolate chips are suitable substitutes for the white chocolate in this recipe.
- To Freeze The Dough: Place the balls of raw dough on a parchment-lined baking tray. Freeze them for 1 to 2 hours, or until solid, and then transfer them to a freezer-friendly bag or container. Freeze them for up to 3 months. When ready to bake, set them on the baking tray for 1 hour and then bake as usual.
- To Freeze Baked Cookies: Arrange the cookies in a parchment-lined baking tray and freeze them for 1 hour. Place them in a freezer-friendly bag or container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Set them on the counter until fully thawed when you’re ready to eat them.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This is such a perfect treat! My kids enjoyed it!
Looks totally irresistible! I’m definitely making this!
I love a good cookie recipe. This one looks amazing and very unique. I cannot wait to try them!
I’m in love with these cookies. They’re just so chunk-tastic. I can’t wait to make them. They look delicious.