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Black and White Cookies | Life, Love and Sugar


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Black and White Cookies are a traditional New York cookie that that you must strive irrespective of the place you might be on the earth. Tender, cake-like vanilla cookies are topped with each chocolate and vanilla icing to make a splendidly elegant, completely scrumptious deal with!

A stack of black and white cookies. The top cookie is broken in half.

Why You’ll Love These Black and White Cookies

These deliciously cake-like black and white cookies are SO good! After I say “cake-like” I imply it. The recipe is definitely based mostly on my vanilla cupcakes recipe and adjusted only a tad to make mild, tender, fluffy cookies. As if that weren’t attractive sufficient, as soon as they cool, the cookies are frosted with half white and half “black” (chocolate) icing. So elegant and the right combo of chocolate and vanilla. Want extra the reason why it is best to do that traditional New York-style cookie right this moment? Listed below are some issues that I completely love about it and that I feel you’ll too.

  • Someplace between a cake and a cookie. I like how fluffy, tender and cake-like these cookies are. However they’re additionally within the form of a big cookie. I like that you simply get the portability of a cookie with a texture and taste that’s much like cake.
  • Better of each worlds. Can’t resolve between chocolate or vanilla? You don’t should with these treats. They rejoice each traditional flavors equally.
  • They’re enormous. These cookies are good and massive, making them a brilliant satisfying deal with.
  • Straightforward to make. They could look intimidating, however they actually aren’t laborious. You’re mainly making cupcake batter, baking it into cookies and frosting them. You’ll be completed very quickly!

What Are Half Moon Cookies?

Black and white cookies are additionally referred to as half moon cookies. They’re a traditional New York favourite. Cakey vanilla cookies are half coated in white icing and half in “black” (chocolate) icing. They’re so scrumptious and splendidly elegant.

Overhead image of half moon cookies on a marble surface.

Recipe Substances

Right here’s what you’ll must make these elegant black and white cookies. For exact measurements, scroll to the recipe card under.

Ingredients for black and white cookies.

Cookies

  • All-purpose flour – You actually need to you’ll want to measure your flour precisely. When you over measure, you could possibly find yourself with a dry cookie. I extremely advocate a meals scale, however you may also use the spoon and stage methodology.
  • Baking powder – I like the feel and rise baking powder offers these cookies when in comparison with baking soda. It feels extra cake-like. Plus, it gives you with a lighter coloured cookie, which I like right here.
  • Salt – Don’t depart it out and don’t underestimate it. It brings out the flavour of all the pieces round it and retains your cookies from being bland.
  • Unsalted butter – The butter ought to be at room temperature in any other case it received’t cream correctly with the sugar.
  • Sugar
  • Vanilla extract – This provides the cookies their taste, so a very good vanilla extract is beneficial.
  • Egg – Remember to use giant eggs, not medium or additional giant.
  • Buttermilk – The buttermilk helps make these cookies fluffy and tender. Use room-temperature buttermilk. Whether it is chilly, it received’t combine as simply into the batter. I extremely advocate the buttermilk, however entire milk can be effective too.

Icing

  • Powdered sugar
  • Water – You can use heavy cream right here as an alternative however utilizing water means you received’t have to fret about refrigerating the cookies.
  • Gentle corn syrup – You’ll be able to depart the corn syrup out, but it surely offers the icing a pleasant shiny look.
  • Vanilla extract – For taste.
  • Dutch-process cocoa powder – When you might use pure unsweetened cocoa, Dutch-process cocoa offers the icing a darker colour that appears extra black than brown (acceptable for black and white cookies).

Easy methods to Make Black and White Cookies

Prepared to start out baking? Right here’s a fundamental rundown of the best way to make half moon cookies. Don’t overlook to scroll to the recipe card under for extra detailed directions.

  • Prep. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Mix the dry elements. Whisk collectively the flour, baking powder, and salt.
  • Mix the moist elements. Cream collectively the butter, sugar, and vanilla till mild in colour and fluffy. Then, combine within the egg.
  • Put all of it collectively. Combine half of the dry elements into the batter adopted by the milk after which the remaining dry elements.
  • Bake. Scoop 4 tablespoons of batter for every cookie onto the ready baking sheets and form the bottoms a bit. Bake for 13-Quarter-hour.
  • Cool. Permit the cookies to chill on the baking sheet for five minutes earlier than transferring to a wire wrack to chill utterly.
  • Make the icing. Whisk collectively the powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons of water, corn syrup, and vanilla extract.
  • Make it chocolate. Switch about 6 tablespoons of the icing to a separate bowl and whisk the cocoa powder into the remainder of it together with one other tablespoon of water (or extra if wanted).
  • Frost. Unfold the vanilla icing onto one half of every cookie (on the flat aspect) and permit it to set for 20-Half-hour earlier than spreading the chocolate icing over the opposite half.
  • Set. Permit the icing to set for an hour or two.
Black and white cookies on a marble surface. One cookie is broken in half.

Ideas for Success

Do your self a favor and have a fast learn by way of these easy ideas and methods. They’ll assist take these black and white cookies from good to nice.

  • Room temperature elements. You need to begin with room-temperature butter, eggs, and buttermilk. If the butter is simply too chilly (or melted), it received’t cream correctly with the sugar (see my subsequent level). If the eggs and/or buttermilk are too chilly, they received’t incorporate easily and simply into the batter.
  • Don’t skimp on creaming time. When creaming collectively the butter and sugar, achieve this till the combination has considerably lightened in colour and turn out to be fluffy in texture. This course of incorporates air into the batter which helps make the cookies mild and fluffy.
  • Measure flour appropriately. Baking is a science and, as such, these cookies received’t end up the best way you need them should you don’t measure your elements correctly, particularly the flour. Use a meals scale or the spoon and stage methodology.
  • Don’t over-mix. When combining the moist and dry elements, watch out to not over-mix as this could trigger the glutens within the flour to overdevelop, ending you with robust, dense cookies.
  • Respiratory room. These cookies will unfold a very good bit so depart about 2 inches of house between every.
  • Use a cookie scoop. Utilizing a cookie scoop will make it easier to obtain even-sized cookies and, thus, even baking time.
  • Frosting consistency. Add sufficient water to get the frosting skinny sufficient to unfold over the cookies however not so skinny that it runs. Strive testing it out on one cookie at a time and adjusting as wanted.
  • Cool. Look ahead to the cookies to chill utterly earlier than icing them. If the cookies are heat, the icing will slide proper off.
  • Frost the flat aspect. Don’t overlook that you simply need to ice the flat aspect of the cookie. When you frost the spherical aspect, the icing may slide off.
  • Let it set. Give the white icing Half-hour or so to set earlier than including the chocolate icing. This can assist be sure that the colours don’t bleed collectively.
A stack of black and white cookies.

Ceaselessly Requested Questions

Can I make these prematurely?

Sure, they maintain up properly for 4-5 days. The icing insulates them a bit to assist them keep comfortable.

How do I retailer these cookies?

As soon as the icing has set, you may seal the cookies in an hermetic container and retailer them at room temperature for as much as 5 days. When you resolve to make use of heavy cream as an alternative of water within the icing, you’ll need to refrigerate the cookies for meals security causes. If you wish to freeze them, I like to recommend freezing them earlier than including the icing. The icing colours will bleed as they thaw. The un-iced cookies might be frozen for as much as 3 months.

Can I make these cookies smaller?

Whereas the massive dimension is a part of this cookie’s iconic attraction, you may make them smaller. As an alternative of utilizing 4 tablespoons of batter per cookie, use 2 tablespoons and bake for 11th of September minutes.

Extra Straightforward Cookie Recipes

Nonetheless looking for your good cookie? These half moon cookies may simply be your reply however, if not, listed below are just a few different wonderful recipes so that you can strive.

Watch Easy methods to Make Black and White Cookies

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Black and white cookies on a marble surface. One cookie is broken in half.