These White Chocolate Ube Sourdough Cookies are soft, chewy with an intense ube flavor. A twist on classic white chocolate, macadamia nut cookies, these cookies are irresistible and as addictive as they are eye catching.
Jump to:
What is Ube?
Ube was one of my favorite desserts when I was growing up in the Philippines. Traditionally, we ate it during the holidays in the form of halaya, a delicious but labor-intensive dessert made with mashed purple yam cooked with milk, sugar and lots of butter.
Ube is such an integral part of Filipino cuisine. Ube was always present at special occasions in one form or another, whether it was ube rice cakes at family reunions or large ube sheet cakes at our birthday parties. We'd always have a tub of ube ice cream in the freezer for days when there was nothing to celebrate.
Ube is a purple yam that originates from the Philippines. It’s often confused with purple sweet potatoes, however it’s a totally different species and is much sweeter with a more nutty and intense vanilla flavor. It also imparts a richer, darker color to baked goods.
In the last few years, ube has become the darling of the social media baking world because of its scroll-stopping violet hue. It works great as a natural food color that takes baked goods over the top. Ube has helped hundreds of home bakers go viral with desserts ranging from macarons to gourmet donuts. Even companies like Trader Joe’s are cashing in with their very own Ube Mochi Pancake Mix.
Where to buy ube
Since it has cemented its status as a cult favorite, ube has become more easily accessible, but you probably still can’t find it at your local grocery store. The purple sweet potatoes sold at specialty stores like Sprouts is not the same as ube and won’t impart the same flavor or deep purple color. In a previous version of this recipe I mistakenly used purple sweet potatoes, so my cookies were not as flavorful and had a bit of a pink-ish hue.
While purples yams may be difficult to find, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to find the extract and powder you need for this recipe at your local Asian supermarket. You can also purchase both on Amazon, I used McCormick Ube Flavor Extract and Fil Choice Brand Powdered Purple Yam.
Baking with sourdough discard
Sourdough discard adds a great flavor to these cookies. Since you are not using it to make bread, your sourdough starter does not need to be activated or fed for it to work in this recipe. You can use your discard directly from the fridge. Older discard will have a tangier, acidic flavor than freshly-fed sourdough starter. Both will work for this recipe, you’ll get a slightly different result but your Ube White Chocolate Sourdough Cookies will still be delicious!
Love cookies made with sourdough discard? Check out my recipes for Sourdough Crinkle Cookies, Sourdough Biscotti and Sourdough Banana Cookies.
Ingredients for sourdough cookies
Unsalted butter: Adds richness, substitute with coconut oil or your favorite plant-based alternative
Granulated sugar: Granulated sugar is the best choice for these cookies, when creamed with butter it aerates the dough and imparts a chewy texture to these cookies
Ube extract: The main flavor component for these cookies, it adds an intense ube flavor and purple color to these cookies
Sourdough discard: If you don’t have any sourdough discard add 37 grams of flour and 37 grams of water into the recipe
Egg yolk: Adds richness and binds the ingredients together
Ube powder: Intensifies the ube flavor in these cookies, if you can’t find any, simply leave this ingredient out
Baking powder: Helps these cookies rise and produces a light texture when baked
Baking soda: Helps with the chewy texture of these cookies
Salt: Use sea salt or kosher salt for the best results
All-purpose flour: Keeps these cookies soft and light, do not substitute another type of flour for these cookies
White chocolate chips: Milk or dark chocolate both work great as a substitute, feel free to use baking bars but your cookies may spread a bit more
Macadamia nuts: Pistachios and cashews would make a great flavor substitute in these cookies
Step-by-step Instructions
STEP 1. Cream the butter, sugar and ube extract together until no lumps of butter remain, beat in the sourdough discard, egg yolk until the sourdough discard is completely dissolved
STEP 2. Add in the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt until there are no more traces of dry flour
STEP 3. Fold the white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts in until evenly distributed
STEP 4. Portion out cookie dough and bake at 350 for 10 to 12 minutes
Recipe FAQs
Ube is sweet and has a milky flavor that’s a cross between pistachios and vanilla. It’s a little hard to put your finger on its exact flavor profile, but it’s delicious!
The most prominent flavor in these cookies is ube and not sourdough. Sourdough adds a little bit of tang and moisture that keeps these cookies tasting fresh for days longer.
It’s extremely important not to overbake these cookies, so you’ll pull them out of the oven before they are completely set. While they will be fully baked, your cookies will still be fragile so you need to let them cool and harden on the baking sheet before moving them to a wire rack.
You May Also Like
Did this recipe rise to the occasion?
★★★★★
Please leave a star rating and a comment. Your feedback helps me create more delicious sourdough recipes. I read and truly appreciate every message.
Don't forget to PIN this recipe on Pinterest to save it for later!
Thank you for your support!
Ube White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Sourdough Cookies
Equipment
- 1 ½ tablespoon cookie scoop
- hand mixer or stand mixer
This section may contain affiliate links
Ingredients
- 226 grams unsalted butter softened
- 200 grams granulated sugar
- 12 grams ube extract
- 1 egg yolk
- 75 grams sourdough discard
- 240 grams all-purpose flour
- 14 grams ube powder
- 3 grams salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 170 grams white chocolate chips plus more for topping
- 70 grams macadamia nuts roughly chopped
Click US Customary to view volume measurements
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Make the dough: Using a hand mixer fitted with beaters or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar and ube extract together until no lumps of butter remain.226 grams unsalted butter, 200 grams granulated sugar, 12 grams ube extract
- Beat the sourdough discard and egg yolk in until the sourdough discard is completely dissolved.1 egg yolk, 75 grams sourdough discard
- Switching to a spatula, stir in the dry ingredients until no traces of flour remain.240 grams all-purpose flour, 14 grams ube powder, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, 3 grams salt
- Fold the white chocolate and macadamia nuts in until evenly distributed throughout the dough.170 grams white chocolate chips, 70 grams macadamia nuts
- Portion out cookie dough: Using a small cookie scoop (1 ½ tablespoon) portion out the dough and position cookie dough on parchment-lined baking sheet with room to spread (about 2 inches apart). You should be able to fit 12 cookies on each sheet. Top each cookie with more chocolate chips (optional).
- Bake: Bake cookies at 350 for 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at leat 5 minutes. Move cooled cookies to a cooling rack.
- Enjoy and store: These cookies are best after they have cooled slightly. Store any leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Tips
These recipes were developed and tested using grams for precise measurements. To increase your chances of success, I recommend investing in a kitchen scale. I've included rough volume estimates (in tablespoons and cups), but they might not be totally accurate.
Remember all ovens are unique, these recipes were tested in my oven which runs cooler than others. You might need to lower the temperature if your bake appears to be browning too quickly. Monitor your bake closely and make adjustments if needed.
Notes
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist or dietitian, any nutrition information provided is an estimate.
Hazel says
can these be frozen after baking?
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Yes! It should work just fine!
Mary Lou says
Hi - was wondering if there would be a way to swap out the white chocolate chips and add flaked coconut? Would it be the same ratio?
Thanks!
Hannah Dela Cruz says
I think it could definitely work! Since white chocolate is much heavier than coconut flakes I'd start with 1/4 of the amount (by weight) that the recipe calls for.
Ak says
I made bunch of these with your double choco cookies and sugar cookies. You know what?! I LOVE THEM ALL! They're ALL SUPER DELICIOUS! i made all of them for my daughter's birthday. Sooo amazing cookies!!! I made ahead of time then bake the next day.. though ube is stickier, but i did not expect it to be super yummy!! Thanks for all your recipes kababayan!
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Thank you for trying out all of these cookie recipes! Love that you made them for your daughter's bday. You're so welcome!
S says
When do we use the ube powder? 😅
Hannah Dela Cruz says
hi! It should be added in with the rest of the dry ingredients. Thanks for your note, I edited the recipe to specify.
Sig says
Can I switch out the Ube extract for vanilla extract? I just want to make plain White Chocolate Macadamia Nut? I don’t want the Ube.
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Yes you absolutely can!
Nica says
Couldn’t find ube powder. Would ube extract or ube jam work?
Hannah Dela Cruz says
Hi Nica! Feel free to skip the ube powder and just use the extract that the recipe calls for.
Cathy says
These are absolutely delicious! I didn’t have any macadamia nuts and used white and dark chocolate chips. Giving them away to the kids at the farmers market tomorrow 🎃
Hannah Dela Cruz says
That sounds incredible! Thank you for making my recipe and sharing the cookies.
Candi says
I can't find I've anywhere but I have ube powder. What would the sub be?
Candi says
Ube*
Make It Dough says
You could try subbing sweet potato and adding 10 grams of ube powder for color!
heather7878 says
Ooh this sounds so good! Cookies and sourdough are a dream 🙂
Make It Dough says
These cookies are the best and a breeze to make!