When I was 14 years old I got my first job working in a bakery. It was the type of bakery that sold mini cookies by the pound. Big blocks of dough would be shipped to the bakery semi-frozen in plastic bags and brown boxes and we would all take turns scooping the dough into little balls to be baked into cookies all day long. I can still remember the distinct way the dough smelled, not all together pleasant yet nostalgic just the same. My favorite were the little white chocolate macadamia nut cookies and to this day it’s still my favorite flavor of cookie.
I do find most white chocolate cookies to be too sweet for my liking. I mean white chocolate by itself can be sickly sweet and then baked into a super sweet cookie dough base it becomes…too much. I love these particular cookies, however, because I don’t find them to be too sweet and combined with the salty nuts the flavor profile is perfection.
This recipe takes the basic white chocolate macadamia nut cookie we all know and turns it up a notch with the addition of THREE other types of nuts. It makes for a more interesting cookie that you will want to keep off of Santa’s cookie plate and hoard for yourself. Go on…I won’t tell!
makes 4 dozen cookies, both dough and cookies can be frozen
NOTE: The dough needs to chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours, so plan accordingly. Dough can also be made a day ahead
INGREDIENTS:
dry
- 345 g all-purpose flour (2 and 3/4 cups spooned & leveled)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
wet
- 230 g softened salted butter (1 cup or 2 sticks)
- 200 g brown sugar (1 cup)
- 50 g granulated sugar (1/4 cup)
- 2 large eggs – room temperature
- 2 teaspoons real/pure vanilla extract
- 270 g chopped white chocolate or chocolate chips ( 1 and 1/2 cups)
- 175 g coarsely chopped nuts (dry roasted salted macadamia nuts, almonds, walnuts, pecans) (1 and 1/2 cups)
DIRECTIONS:
- Measure out or weigh the whole nuts using any combination of the kinds listed. Equal parts of all, or more macadamias if that’s what you prefer. I like to use an equal mixture of all the nuts. Chop the nuts using an electric chopper or chop by hand. set aside
- In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt and set aside
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with an electric mixer in a large bowl – cream together the butter and the two sugars until well mixed. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed to ensure even mixing
- Add in the vanilla extract and the eggs one at a time, mixing completely after each addition
- Add in the dry ingredients from step 2 and mix just until no dry ingredients remain
- Mix in the white chocolate and the chopped nuts from step 1
- Cover the dough in the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight (cookies will spread when baking and won’t hold their shape if you skip this step)
- Remove the dough from the fridge and preheat your oven to 350 F
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper
- Scoop dough using a medium sized cookie scooper and drop onto prepared baking sheets making sure to leave room between the balls of dough
- Bake for 9-12 minutes until the edges are light golden brown and the centers are set. Cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring
- Transfer warm cookies to a baking rack to finish cooling
