White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blondies

Not everyone is a big white chocolate fan, but even people who don’t generally like white chocolate find that it is a great combination with macadamia nuts. Creamy white chocolate is a great compliment for crunchy, buttery macadamia nuts because the flavors work extremely well together and neither one dominates the other. Other kinds of chocolate can sometimes overwhelm the delicate flavor of macadamia nuts. I happen to be a fan of white chocolate, so it goes without saying that I like the combination, but these White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blondies are good enough to win anyone over.

The blondies are dense and almost fudgy, just with a very brownie-like texture despite the fact that there is no chocolate in the bars themselves. They are, however, packed with chopped macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips. The bars are rich without being too heavy, and they have a good butter and vanilla flavor to them that showcases the white chocolate and nuts very well. I used slightly more macadamia nuts than white chocolate chips, simply because I wanted a little extra crunch in my blondies, although you can boost the amount of white chocolate a bit if you want a little extra in your batch.

I also used toasted, salted macadamia nuts for my blondies. You don’t need to use salted nuts if you prefer not to (and even untoasted work well), but I like the slightly savory edge that the salt gives to the nuts and think that it creates an even nicer contrast with the white chocolate. Cut these bars into any size slice you like. I usually opt for about 16 pieces, but you could serve smaller bite-sized bars or huge and indulgent ones. They will keep well for a couple of days when they are stored in an airtight container, too, so you you can make them ahead of time.

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Blondies
1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup toasted and salted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8×8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil and lightly grease.
In a large bowl, whisk together butter and sugar until well-combined. Beat in salt, egg and vanilla extract until well combined.
Stir in flour and mix until no streaks of dry ingredients remain. Fold in macadamia nuts and white chocolate until they are evenly distributed.
Transfer dough to prepared baking dish and spread into an even layer.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until bars are set and light golden.
Cool completely in the pan before slicing.

Makes 16.