I’m not the biggest fan of cooking with alcohol because I just hate having to buy a whole bottle of wine or rum when I only need to use 1 teaspoon. But when I came across this recipe, I just couldn’t resist! I then realized that I could just buy those little miniature-sized rum bottles at the liquor store, which only cost $2. I still only used about 5% of the rum but at least I didn’t waste a whole bottle!

The rum was such a crucial ingredient for the cookies, even though I only used 3/4 of a teaspoon. It’s amazing how you could taste the rum but not the alcohol, which was absolutely delightful. I especially enjoyed the cookies because of the thin crispness with the chewy center of butterscotch goodness. I’ll definitely be making these again, especially since I have all that rum to use up!

Rum Cookies (adapted from Martha Stewart):

Yields 12 cookies

  • 1/2 cup macadamia nuts
  • 1/4 cup butterscotch chips
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar
  • 1 medium egg
  • 3/4 teaspoon dark rum
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F with racks in the lower and middle positions.

Finely chop macadamia nuts.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.

Beat in egg and rum until well combined.

Stir in flour and salt.

Mix in butterscotch chips and 2/3 of macadamia nuts.

Drop dough, about 2 teaspoons per cookie, onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart.

Bake for 4 minutes; remove from oven, and top with remaining 1/3 macadamia nuts. Rotate sheets, and return to oven.

Bake until golden brown around edges, 5 minutes more.

Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.