These Toffee Macadamia Oatmeal Cookies are seriously the absolute best oatmeal cookies you will ever make. They are extremely chewy, with a complex flavor profile thanks to brown butter, toffee and macadamia nuts – a modern take on a classic hit!
I have to admit I did not come up with this recipe all on my own. I adapted it from Claire Saffitz’s Oat and Pecan Brittle Cookies, from her book – Dessert Person. I even made a coconut macadamia brittle that you can directly replace the pecan brittle in her recipe. It’s amazing, I love it so so much, but ain’t nobody got the time to make 2 recipes for 1 batch of cookies, so I replaced the brittle with toffee bits and toasted nuts instead.
And how did these toffee oatmeal cookies turn out? You might ask. To which I will reply: Still absolutely amazing!! One of my coworkers is waiting for me to post the recipe so I think there will be one very happy husband and a couple very happy kids once this recipe is released into the wild.
Trang’s Recipe Highlights
- FLAVOR: Buttery, nutty, sweet and salty, with a deep deep caramelized flavor from both the brown butter and the toffee.
- TEXTURE: Satisfyingly chewy with crispy edges, and a bit crunchy from the chopped macadamia nuts, but not overly so because half of the nuts are blitzed in the food processor to be incorporated directly into the cookie dough.
- EASE: This recipe is not difficult but I would say it is an intermediate level recipe since you do need to brown the butter and there is also an additional step to grind part of the oats and macadamia nuts finely so they can be incorporated into the dough for more flavor. It is definitely more labor intensive than a typical oatmeal cookie recipe.
What you’ll need
Here’s everything you’ll need to make these macadamia toffee oatmeal cookies. As always, for the full list of ingredients with quantities and step-by-step instructions, you can skip right ahead to the recipe card.
About the toffee bits
There is just one brand of toffee bits you can buy at the store, Heath English Toffee Bits. And apparently it’s not all that easy to find. I’m lucky to have them at my local Stater Bros, I live right next to one so it’s easy for me to pick them up. But last time I did a pick up order at Walmart for a pack of 6, and it was much cheaper. You can get them on Amazon, but the stock and pricing can be very fickle.
If you can’t find them anywhere, you could make this macadamia brittle using 1 ¼ cup of macadamia nuts called for in the recipe. You’ll need to blitz half of the brittle in the food processor with the oats and then fold in the other half – broken into small bits.
Or you can make homemade toffee bits.
Tips for the perfect macadamia oatmeal cookies
Grind half the oats and macadamias
Don’t skip this step! This is essentially making a mixture of oat and macadamia flour to incorporate into the cookie dough along with all-purpose flour. The remaining half oats and macadamias are used as mix-ins along with the toffee bits.
Perfectly round
These macadamia nut oatmeal cookies do spread in all directions when they are baked. While there is a certain appeal to rustic cookies, if you want yours to look absolutely perfect, simply take a round cookie cutter or a spatula and scoot the edges in as soon as they come out of the oven and still soft.
The blue round cookie cutter I’m using in the above photo is 4 ¼”. It’s plastic and from IKEA. It’s perfect for this task.
Storage
These toffee macadamia oatmeal cookies will stay soft and chewy for 3-5 days in an airtight container. They do get dry the longer you store them, still edible beyond 5 days, but they just won’t taste as good. Freeze them for longer storage and simply thaw at room temp before serving.
For any cookies, and not just for these, I recommend freezing the dough balls. Simply toss them in a freezer bag and keep them in the deep freezer for 3-6 months. Bake a few when you want fresh cookies for the best treats ever! Thaw the dough balls at room temp before baking or if you can’t wait just increase bake time by a min or so.
Gimme more cookies!
- Want more macadamias? Try my Macadamia Nut Butter Cookies – simple, nutty and a wonderful small afternoon treat.
- Want more oatmeal? Grab one of these Oatmeal Mango Cookies with Coconut and Macadamias, go ahead and have one for breakfast! 😆
- Can’t wait to try toffee in something else? You won’t want to go back to regular chocolate chip cookies after trying these Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Hungry for more?
Toffee Macadamia Oatmeal Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- Light Color Saucepan
- Skillet
- 3 Tbsp Cookie Scoop
Ingredients
- 8 oz unsalted butter, 227 g, brown 4 oz
- 1 ¼ cup macadamias, raw or roasted and unsalted, 180 g, divided
- 2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, don’t sub instant oats, 200 g, divided
- 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour, 180 g
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, Morton brand, 5 g
- ¾ cup brown sugar, 150 g
- ½ cup granulated sugar, 100 g
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 bag toffee bits, 226 g
Instructions
- Brown the butter – place half the butter in the stand mixer bowl and heat the other half in a light colored saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter melts, it will become foamy. When the foam subsides, you will see clear bubbles, start whisking continuously at this point to keep the milk solids from burning. When the butter is caramel in color and smells nutty, turn off the heat and immediately pour it over the butter in the stand mixer bowl to melt it. Stir as needed. Set aside to cool completely before making the cookie dough.8 oz unsalted butter
- Roast the macadamia nuts – In a skillet over medium heat, roast the macadamia nuts for 3 – 5 minutes until toasty and fragrant. Set aside to cool.1 ¼ cup macadamias
- Grind half the oats and macadamia nuts – Add half the oats and half the roasted macadamia nuts to a food processor and blitz until finely ground. Transfer this to a medium bowl, sift in the flour, baking soda, and stir in the salt. Mix to distribute evenly and set aside.1 ¼ cup macadamias, 2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, 1 ⅓ cup all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Cream butter with sugar – When butter is completely cool, add both granulated and brown sugar to the stand mixer bowl, beat with the paddle attachment on medium low to medium speed for at least 2 minutes.8 oz unsalted butter, ¾ cup brown sugar, ½ cup granulated sugar
- Add remaining wet ingredients – Add the eggs, vanilla extract, and continue beating for at least another 2 minutes until creamy.2 large eggs, 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- Incorporate dry ingredients – Add the oat-macadamia-flour mixture set aside earlier to the wet ingredient mixture in the stand mixer bowl, stir until incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary.
- Add the remaining mix-ins – Add the remaining roasted macadamias and oats, along with the toffee bits, stir to distribute evenly. Stop the mixer and use a spatula to scrape the side and bottom of the bowl to ensure good distribution of all the mix-ins. Roughly chop the macadamias if you think the pieces are too big.1 ¼ cup macadamias, 1 bag toffee bits, 2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- Divide cookie dough – Portion the cookie dough with a 3-tablespoon cookie scoop and place them on a lined baking sheet. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before baking.
- Preheat the oven – Set the oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F.
- Bake – Place 6 dough balls on a large lined baking sheet, about 2-3 inches apart, and bake 1 batch at a time for 15 minutes, until the cookies are golden but still slightly undercooked in the middle.
- Cool – Remove the baking sheet from the oven, but allow the cookies to sit on the baking sheet to finish baking from the residual heat for 10-15 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely. Shape them with a round cookie cutter or spatula if you want them perfectly round as soon as they come out of the oven.
Notes
- Storing baked cookies: store your macadamia oatmeal cookies in an airtight container at room temp for up to 5 days.
- Storing cookie dough: portioned cookie dough can be kept refrigerated for 3-4 days, and frozen for 3-6 months.
- Baking frozen dough: you can bake frozen cookie dough directly without thawing, simply increase baking time by about 1 minute or so.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
My husband said these are the best cookies i’ve ever made even though he said that last time when I made Trang’s Brown Butter Chocolate Chip cookies. I would have to agree though! These cookies are the perfect sweetness, and are better BECAUSE they don’t have the extra sweetness from chocolate chips. They are also perfectly chewy from the oats and toffee! This is definitely my new go-to recipe when I want to make something with a unique and extra special.
I would say it is definitely a more involved recipe with the brown butter and if you have to toast the macadamia nuts (i bought roasted ones from Trader Joe’s so I didn’t roast them per the recipe). And it can be difficult to find the toffee bits but I was finally able to snag some bags while they were in stock from Amazon Fresh!!! That being said, it is 100% worth the extra steps because they really are the perfect cookie!
Five stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you ❤️ Glad to hear you found more toffee!!!