Chocolate Chip Cashew Cookies
Posted Apr 08, 2026
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These chocolate chip cashew cookies have chewy edges, gooey centers, a rich cashew flavor, and tons of chocolate chips. They’re bakery-quality cookies with a delicious, nutty twist.
If you love chocolate chip cookies but want them with a delicious twist, you need to make these chocolate chip cashew cookies.
They’re made with cashew butter and roasted cashews for a rich, nutty flavor. Then we add lots of chocolate chips for a perfect cashew cookie that’s completely irresistible.
Cashews are the perfect addition to chocolate chip cookies because they have a naturally buttery, slightly sweet, smooth nutty flavor that just elevates the cookies making them special and unique.
Cashew Cookies: Ingredients & Substitutions
- Salted butter. Unsalted butter works well also.
- Granulated sugar. I recommend using organic cane sugar or white sugar.
- Light brown sugar. Dark brown sugar is a great substitute.
- Cashew butter. Use a creamy, unsweetened cashew butter for the best results. I prefer a roasted cashew butter (not raw) for a richer flavor.
- Eggs. For a list of the best egg substitutions, see my eggless chocolate chip cookies recipe.
- All-purpose flour. For a gluten-free version, use 1:1 all-purpose gluten-free flour.
- Chocolate Chips: Choose your favorite variety: milk, semisweet, dark, white, etc.
- Cashews. You can buy cashew pieces, or just crush whole cashews. I prefer roasted and unsalted cashews, but raw cashews work well too.
How to Make Cashew Cookies
Let’s walk through this recipe together, and don’t forget to watch the video! One note here is that the dough needs to chill. Just like peanut butter cookies, since we put cashew butter in the dough, it needs to chill for at least 2 hours before baking. So keep that in mind as you prep this recipe!
Begin by mixing the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and then set the ingredients aside.
Next, measure out your cashews and put them in a silicone bag or plastic bag. Close the bag 95% of the way to allow air to escape as you use a measuring cup or metal spoon to crush the cashews.
Then, beat the butter and sugars together for 1 minute. I prefer to use a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, but you can also use a large bowl and hand mixer.
Then, add the cashew butter, egg, and vanilla and beat for an additional 1 minute.
Next, beat in the dry ingredients on medium-low speed until they are fully incorporated.
Then stir in the cashew pieces and chocolate chips. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or transfer the dough to a large bowl with a lid, and chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
After two hours, preheat your oven and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Then use a 1.5- or 2-Tablespoon cookie scoop to portion the dough.
Roll the dough into balls and gently press extra chocolate chips and cashews into the tops of the cookie. This gives you that beautiful bakery-quality appearance!
Bake the cashew cookies for 9 to 11 minutes, or until the top is just set and the bottom edges are very lightly browning (they will look like they are not done – trust the process).
Remove them from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Serve
Serve these chocolate chip cashew cookies slightly warm or at room temperature.
They are a great addition to any holiday cookie or dessert tray, so be sure to check out all my cookie recipes and my Christmas cookie recipes.
Store
Once cooled, store the cashew cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-5 days.
Freeze
Or, you can freeze these cookies two ways:
Freeze the dough before baking. Portion out the dough and roll it into balls. Then freeze in a single layer in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
To bake: remove the dough from the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for 1-2 hours before baking according to the recipe instructions.
Freeze baked cookies. To freeze baked cashew chocolate chip cookies, let them cool to room temperature. Then store them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 2 months.
To thaw: let the cookies sit at room temperature until thawed.
Cashew Cookies Recipe FAQS
You can easily make your own cashew butter to use in this recipe. Blend ¾ cups cashews in a high-powered blender or process in a food processor fitted with the “S” attachment until they have turned into cashew butter. Then measure ¼ cup and use it in this recipe.
Unsalted roasted cashews are the best choice because they are flavorful without making the cookies overly salty. If you only have salted cashews, reduce the salt in the recipe.
Make sure you chill the dough for a full 2 hours before baking. If you do this and they are still spreading, chances are you didn’t use enough flour.
Absolutely! You can double the ingredients and use 3 baking sheets.
Yes, you can use raw cashews.
If you make and love my recipes, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a comment and rating! And don’t forget to follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, TikTok and Youtube – be sure to tag @joyfoodsunshine and use the hashtag #joyfoodsunshine so I can see your creations!
Chocolate Chip Cashew Cookies
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup salted butter (softened)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup cashew butter
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- ¾ cup chocolate chips (5 ounces)
- ½ cup cashews (2.5 ounces, measured whole then crushed)
Topping
- ¼ cup cashews (whole)
- ¼ cup chocolate chips (or chunks)
Instructions
Prepare the Cashews (or buy cashew pieces)
- Measure ½ cup cashews.
- Transfer them to a silicone (or plastic) bag, close the bag 95% of the way (leave some room for air to escape).
- Use a measuring cup to hit the nuts to crush them.
Make the Dough & Chill
- Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt in a medium bowl, then set it aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand-held mixer, beat the butter, white sugar and brown sugar on high speed for 1 minute.
- Add cashew butter, egg and vanilla and beat for 1 minute, or until light and fluffy.
- Add the dry ingredients and beat on medium speed until incorporated.
- Add the chocolate chip and crushed cashews and stir until evenly distributed throughout the dough.
- Transfer the dough to an airtight container and chill for at least 2 hours.
Bake, Cool & Serve
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius).
- Line two large baking sheets with silicone baking mats (or parchment paper).
- Use a 2 Tablespoon cookie scoop to measure out portions of dough, roll them into balls and place them evenly spaced on a baking sheet. Repeat until all the dough is used.
- Gently press 3 cashews and 3 chocolate chips (or chunks) into the top of each cookie.
- Bake in preheated oven for 9-11 minutes, or until the top is just set and the bottom edges are very lightly browning (they will look like they are not done, trust the process).
- Remove from oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes.
- Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.
Notes
- Salted Butter. Unsalted butter works well.
- Granulated sugar. I recommend using organic cane sugar or white sugar.
- Light brown sugar. dark brown sugar is a great substitute.
- Cashew butter. use a creamy, unsweetened cashew butter for the best results. I prefer a roasted cashew butter (not raw) for a richer flavor.
- Eggs. for a list of the best egg substitutions, see my eggless chocolate chip cookies recipe.
- All-purpose flour. For a gluten-free version use 1:1 all-purpose gluten-free flour.
- Chocolate Chips: choose your favorite variety: milk, semisweet, dark, white, etc.
- Cashews. you can buy cashew pieces, or just crush whole cashews. I prefer roasted and unsalted cashews, but raw works well too.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
