Last Updated on April 15, 2022 by Karen

‘Tis the season for homemade baked goods! You social calendar is probably filling up with holiday get-togethers and other cookie-appropriate events. This year, I was so happy to have participated in the 3rd Annual Great Blogger Cookie Swap (I signed up the day before the deadline – phew!) hosted by Love & Olive Oil and The Little Kitchen. In addition to providing the opportunity to share delicious cookies with bloggers from all of the country, the cookie swap serves a great cause, too! This year, they partnered with non-profit organization Cookies for Kids’ Cancer and raised over $13,000 to fund new therapies used in the fight against pediatric cancer, which claims the lives of more children in the U.S. than any other disease.

Each blogger is assigned to send three other bloggers each a dozen cookies. In return, each blogger receives three dozen cookies made by three different bloggers. It’s like a huge Secret Santa for food bloggers!

I received Chocolate Covered Candy Cane Cookies and Praline Cookies from Stephanie of Plain Chicken, Cardamom Cookies from Amy of Stay and Have a Cookie, and Pecan Almond Shortbread Cookies from Allison of Creative Corps. Thank you ladies for sharing the tasty treats with me – I enjoy them very much!

In return, I sent the cookies to Jamie of Coffee with Us 3, Wendy of Over the Top Mommy, and Erin of Au Bon Gouter.

I brought back a huge bag of roasted macadamia nuts from Hawaii, so I wanted to make some cookies with macadamia nuts and white chocolate. Remember those from the mall? Well, to take it up a notch, I added semisweet chocolate chunks and dried cherries (I used Cherry-go-round from Peeled Snacks). A little over-the-top indulgence can’t hurt, right?

Without further ado, here’s the recipe. Enjoy!

Double Chocolate Dried Cherries and Macadamia Nut Cookies

Servings 36 cookies

Author Karen from The Tasty Bite

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar firmly packed
2 eggs
1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup roasted macadamia nuts coarsely chopped
1 cup dried cherries

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter with sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, then vanilla, and mix until well blended. Slowly add flour, baking soda and salt. Fold in white and semisweet chocolate chips, macadamia nuts, and dried cherries.
Drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto baking sheets, spacing two inches apart, and bake cookies until just golden, about 15-18 minutes. Cool on sheets for 10 minutes before transferring cookies to a wire rack.