or scroll for handy tips and a little nostalgia.
These Macadamia Cookies contain all the right ingredients for the ultimate Australian snack.
Aussie-grown macadamias, a crunchy old-fashioned biscuit recipe, a sprinkling of white choc chips and native spices make these cookies absolutely irresistible.
Macadamias: a native Australian nut
Kindal Kindal, Boombera, Jindill and Baupal are some of the words the First People of Australia used to describe the tree and nuts we now know as Macadamias.
The Macadamia tree is native to the north east coast of Australia and evolved 60 million years ago.
This gorgeous tree which produces rich, buttery nuts is now grown around the world and has created a multi million dollar industry.
According to consumer research, 83% of Australians love the taste of macadamias more than any other nut and two in three say they make any occasion more special.
After the intensely sad and frightening bushfires that ripped through Australia in 2019 and 2020, I planted a macadamia tree in the backyard as soon as conditions eased and rain was on the way.
I’d always wanted some type of nut tree in the backyard among the fruit trees, and a native variety became the obvious option.
It’s also a reminder that we need to respect and love our land more than ever (and listen more to the Aboriginal people who have loved and respected the land we all call home for tens of thousands of years).
Macadamia cookies with a little extra spice
To pack more “Aussie” into these little cookies, I’ve included two wonderful native flavours: lemon myrtle and wattle seed.
Your local health food store might stock these, or you can purchase online (like I did) from Oz Tukka.
Lemon Myrtle is a superb and versatile ingredient, described by Oz Tukka as “a unique lemon flavour with a whisper of eucalyptus notes in the background.”
If you don’t have this ingredient, try lemongrass or fresh lemon zest as a substitute.
Wattle Seed is described as a flavour with similarities to “hazelnut, coffee, walnut, and chocolate”.
Crushed coffee beans or walnuts may be the best substitute if you can’t get your hands on roasted and ground wattle seed.
A final, sweet, touch
These days, Macadamias often go hand in hand with white chocolate in cookies. I didn’t want to disappoint and have added this sweet touch to these cookies.
However, there’s only half of the chocolate compared with the macadamias. I’ve done this to avoid sugar overload and make sure the spotlight is firmly on this wonderful native Australian nut.
Macadamia cookies lost their crunch?
These cookies should be crunchy on the outside and slightly softer on the inside.
Ovens vary, and sometimes a littler trial and error can be involved in getting them just right.
If your cookies don’t have enough crunch, try cooking them a little longer on a slightly cooler temperature.
If they lose their crunch after a couple of days (like mine did thanks to the very high humidity), just pop them in the oven or your air fryer for a few minutes and they’ll be back their wonderful crunchy selves in no time.
More biscuits and cookies
Check out more wonderful biscuits and cookies from the collection over here.
The original cookies recipe
I found a wonderful crunchy cookie recipe from the 1950s to use as a starting point for this recipe. I have tweaked the base recipe a little and added/substituted some ingredients, so keep scrolling for the tested and tweaked version.
Macadamia Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups plain flour (all purpose flour)
- 1/4 teaspoon bicarb soda
- 115 grams butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (firmly packed)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup macadamia nuts
- 1/2 cup white chocolate chips (or roughly chopped white chocolate)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon wattle seed (roasted and ground) (optional -see above for substitute ingredient ideas)
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon myrtle (ground) (optional -see above for substitute ingredient ideas)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 155 degrees celsius (fan-forced).
- Cream butter and sugar.
- Add 3 tablespoons of the whisked eggs along with the vanilla extract and continue to beat until fluffy. Retain remaining whisked egg to brush on top of cookies before baking.
- Add sifted flour, bicarb and spices. Stir to combine.
- Add 1/2 of the macadamias, roughly chopped, and all of the chocolate chips and stir to combine.
- Use a dessert spoon to scoop out portions of the mixture. Roll into small balls and place on trays lined with baking paper, leaving space for spreading. You should have about 18 cookies.
- Brush the balls of mixture with the leftover whisked egg.
- Then push a few macadamias into each cookie.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool.
Jenny
Wednesday 22nd of April 2020
Keen to try this, when I get some macadamias, maybe off our tree even? I have tried making before, but your recipe looks better as my previous attempt was very crumbly.
Libby
Thursday 23rd of April 2020
Hi Jenny. It's a great recipe! I love Macadamia Cookies so I've tried a few and this recipe rates up there with the best in my book :) Happy cooking!