A classic goes keto! Chewy white chocolate macadamia nut cookies get a low carb, sugar-free makeover. With awesome new keto-friendly white chocolate chips.
Finally, finally, finally! Finally someone has come out with a decent keto white chocolate, and I am over the moon about it. And of course, the first thing I had to make with them was White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies. I mean, what other recipe could I use to test drive this new and exciting keto product?
Oh these cookies! Oh these gorgeous chewy keto cookies. You want these in your life. Preferably as soon as possible.
Where to find Keto White Chocolate Chips
In case you haven’t seen this new development, it’s a brand called Bake Believe and they are only available at Walmart in store. This is tough for me because I have no Walmarts very close to me and I like to shop locally as much as possible.
But I decided it was important to get my hands on some and test them out for keto baking purposes. So I traipsed all over Portland and Vancouver, Washington, looking for the damn things.
The first two stores I went to didn’t have them at all. The third had a space for them but none on the shelves. Fortunately, one kind employee looked in the back and found 6 bags. I bought all 6 of them.
Then she told me another “nearby” store carried them as well. Nearby turned out to be another 10 miles and after putting in so much effort, I decided to stock up. I bought another 10 bags. Plus I bought some of the semi-sweet and dark chocolate chips as well.
Because I am crazy like that. And because I thought it would also be fun to do a giveaway for the chocolate chips, since I know full well they aren’t that easy to get your hands on. (scroll down to enter the giveaway!).
Are the Bake Believe Chips any good?
So here’s my expert assessment on these new sugar-free white chocolate chips:
They are very good, but they aren’t perfect. By which I mean that they do have some limitations, both in taste and in bake-ability.
The first thing I noticed is that they don’t taste quite like conventional white chocolate. They taste sweet and very good but it’s not exactly that white chocolate flavor. Close but not quite there. In a recipe, however, they play the white chocolate part very admirably.
The second thing is that they melt quite a bit and can almost disappear into the baked goods. For these keto white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, the chips toward the edges melted entirely away. Fortunately, I had hand-placed some chips right on the tops of the cookies and those held their shape and stayed in place.
I also made some white chocolate cups for my kids and I found that the chips melted well for covering and coating, so that’s a big plus.
I tried making keto chocolate fudge sauce with the dark chocolate chips and those didn’t melt as well. It was serviceable but didn’t melt as smoothly as Lily’s does. And the sauce became almost jelly-ish as it cooled. So I’d say that they don’t make great melting or couverture chocolate.
Update! I have now tried all three brands of keto white chocolate chips. Both ChocZero and Lily’s are far superior to Bake Believe.
Tips for Keto White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
So given the nature of these keto white chocolate chips, what’s the best way to use them for baking? Here are some tips for making these delicious keto cookies:
Shredded coconut makes them chewier: I really like this combo of almond flour and shredded coconut and I use it my regular keto chocolate chip cookies too. But you can use all almond flour if you prefer.
Gelatin is optional: but it also gives them a delicious chewiness. If you prefer your cookies more crisp, leave it out.
Brown sugar substitutes: I am ever so grateful for the development of Swerve Brown, as it truly bakes like brown sugar. If you don’t have access to a good brown sugar substitute, try adding in 1 to 2 teaspoons of Yacon syrup or molasses. It won’t add more than about 1g carbs per serving.
Chop the macadamia nuts: It’s best to chop these fairly finely so that the cookies hold together a little better. But you can have some bigger chunks in there too, for texture and visual interest.
Don’t add all of the white chocolate chips into the cookie dough: It’s best to hold some of them back and press them into the top of the cookies so that they show through when the cookies are baked.
BIG UPDATE!!! I have had a chance to try out the new ChocZero white chocolate chips and they are, in my opinion, superior. They don’t melt and disappear into the baked goods, they hold their chip shape. And they taste delicious and a bit more like you would expect from conventional white chocolate.
Give them space: These cookies do spread quite a bit so leave space between them!
More keto cookie recipes you might like:
Keto Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookies
Keto Peanut Butter Cookies for Two
White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups almond flour
- ½ cups shredded coconut (can use another ½ cup almond flour)
- 1 tablespoon grassfed gelatin (optional)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup Swerve Brown
- ¼ cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1 large egg room temperature
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup chopped macadamia nuts (finely chopped with a few bigger pieces)
- ⅓ cup sugar-free white chocolate chips (see recipe notes)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F and line two large baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, shredded coconut, gelatin, baking soda, and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter with the sweeteners until well combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla until well combined.
- Add the almond flour mixture and beat until thoroughly combined. Stir in the macadamia nuts and most of the white chocolate chips using a rubber spatula.
- Roll the dough into 1 ¼ inch balls and place several inches apart on the prepared baking sheets (they will spread). Press down to about ½ inch thickness with the heel of your hand.
- Divide the remaining white chocolate chips among the cookies and press into the tops.
- Bake 12 to 15 minutes, until golden brown around the edges. The cookies will still be very soft. Remove and let cool completely on the pan. (If your oven cooks unevenly, you can switch the pans halfway through baking).
Video
Notes
Myra says
Followed recipe exactly and may have made them a little bit too large..They spread out flat. What did I do wrong? They have a wonderful taste and will be eaten but too soft to pickup.. Thanks for the recipe.
Carolyn says
What sweetener did you use? If they’re too soft, that sounds like you use a different sweetener. The spreading issue means there wasn’t enough flour to give them structure so I think you may want to add a bit more almond flour. They all differ a little so it’s hard to judge without knowing brands, etc.
Myra says
I used lakanto monkfruit as the sweetener. It is what I have and use. I did put it in the fridge for the second batch and that helped some. Thanks for replying will do another batch to see if maybe I missed something inthe recipe. They are a great tasting cookie.
Carolyn says
I don’t think you necessarily missed anything, it’s just that almond flours differ a bit and so you could probably use a another tablespoon or two to give your cookies more structure. If the dough feels very sticky as you’re rolling it, you definitely need that!
Jenny says
Do you have a type of flour other than almond that you recommend? I love it but it always tears my stomach up.
Thank you!
Carolyn says
You can try sunflower seed flour but… it has a greyish color to begin with, and you need to add a tablespoon of acid (lemon juice or vinegar) to avoid the green reaction.
Bonnie says
So delicious! Thank you so much for posting Carolyn! I have the biggest sweet tooth and am trying to cut back on the sugar slightly so this recipe is perfect! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes 🙂
Judy Klein says
Can I use dry roasted salted macadamia nuts?
Carolyn says
I suppose so but your cookies are boing to be quite salty.
Laura Deal says
I’ve tried so many keto recipes that claimed to be amazing (and were awful) but this truly was amazing! I subbed out 1 tsp agar agar for the 1 TB gelatin since I’m a vegetarian, but other than that it was wonderful. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! I will be making this again and again. (I found out about you through Highfalutin Low Carb Youtube Channel)
Carolyn says
So glad you liked them!
Nancy Camacho says
Can you please let me know how to store these cookies. Do they need to be in the fridge or can they stay on the counter in a sealed container? With the egg in them I am not sure?
Carolyn says
Like any homemade cookie, they are fine on the counter for 4 to 5 days, unless you live in a very humid environment.
Hannah says
Can cacao butter be used in this recipe?
Carolyn says
For the white chocolate chips? No… it will melt and disappear into nothing.
Sarah says
Super easy and delicious! Great recipe and I will definitely be making again. I used Lily’s white chocolate chips and they were perfect.
Kristy says
These are delicious!! Mine did not spread at all. Just curious what you think happened. These will go into the Great column!
Carolyn says
There was probably a bit too much flour in them. Make sure you’re not packing down your almond flour.
Cheryl says
Love love love these, have helped making low carb a success. I notice there is only baking soda and no baking powder…is there a reason for no bakingpowder?