Yield: approx. 12 cookies
The Best Black and White Cookies
No cookie is more "New York" than the classic Black and White. At their best, these cookies combines a light but rich base similar in flavor to pound cake but lighter in texture, with a simple yet delicious royal icing. For this recipe I am combining techniques from a few sources to provide for the you, the absolute epitome of this classic New York dish. And for added fun, Zoe insisted we make them in the colors of her new favorite movie. Can you guess which one that is?
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes
Additional Time
20 minutes
Total Time
1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 2 C /245g All Purpose Flour
- 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
- 1/2 tsp Fine Sea Salt
- 1/3 C/77g Sour Cream
- 1/3 C/74g Whole Milk
- 2 TBS Vanilla Extract
- 1 Stick/4oz/1/2 C/113g Butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4C+2TBS/200g Granulated Sugar
Frosting
- 1 1/4 C/140g Confectioners Sugar
- 3 TBS Milk
- 1 TBS Light Corn Syrup
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1/4 tsp Fine Sea Salt
- 1.5-2 TBS Dutch Process Cocoa Powder, Sifted (for dark brown/black cookies, use Valrhona or Black Cocoa Powder)(optional)
- Gel Food Coloring (optional
Instructions
- Heat Oven to 350 and line two baking sheets with parchment paper
- In separate bowls, combine dry (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt) and wet (milk, sour cream, vanilla) and set aside
- In stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on medium high until light and fluffy and no trace of sugar granules can be detected - 7-10 minutes. Scrape the bowl down with a rubber spatula every 2-3 minutes to ensure everything is mixed properly. It is crucial to a light texture to properly cream the butter and sugar.
- Slow the mixed to medium and eggs the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating the first before adding the second.
- Add dry and wet in 2-3 alternativing batches, finishing with dry. Fold the last addition of dry in by hand.
- Scoop cookies using a spring loading cookie disher in he size you want. Cookies can vary from 1oz up to 4 or more ounces depending on what you like. Space the cookies 2" apart because they will spread.
- Bake until lightly borowned around the bottom edge and a toothpick, skewer or cake tester comes out with just barely moist crumbs (almost clean but not completely). Cook on the pan minutes then transfer to a rack to cool completely. (To shorten time until frosting, transfer to the freezer for 5-10 minutes)
- Make the frosting:
- Combine confectioner's sugar, corn syrup, vanill and milk in a bowl. The mixture should be quick thick but still spreadable - like thin peanut butter Add liquid a little at a time until you reach the right consistancy. It might not take all of the milk and it might require a little more depending on how you measured.
- Divide icing into smaller bowls and color with food coloring or add coco powder as desired.
- Spread white or lighter color on half of cookie then set aside to dry (to speed up the process put the cookies back in the freezer for 5 minutes)
- Repeat with the other color. Dry at room temperature or in the refrigerator until the icing is dry to the touch and no longer shiny.
Notes
Cookies keep best in the refrigerator (or freezer for longer term storage). They do tend to stick to one another so use wax or parchment paper between layers.