Classic black and white cookies are a mainstay of New York City shops and bakeries. Bursting with vanilla flavor and boasting a super soft texture, these large cake-like cookies are topped with thick vanilla and chocolate icings.
This New York City-style black and white cookie recipe comes from the highly talented, knowledgeable, and influential team over at America’s Test Kitchen. The first time I worked with them was to help promote their Naturally Sweet cookbook a while back.
ATK’s latest cookbook, The Perfect Cookie, is dedicated to something we ALL have in common: a deep love for cookies. There’s 250 cookie, brownie, and bar recipes packed inside!
Tell Me About these Black and White Cookies
- Texture: These are super soft and cakey cookies with a thick, creamy icing. The combination of cocoa powder and milk make the icing thinner than the coating on peanut butter half moon cookies, and it crackles when you bite into it like the glaze on these glazed doughnuts and chocolate pop tarts.
- Flavor: The cookie itself has the flavor of basic vanilla cake, but the icing is the star here. Thick, sugary sweet, and of course vanilla and chocolate flavor.
- Ease: Don’t be intimidated! This black and white cookie recipe is a lot easier than I originally thought. You’ll need a few special ingredients like corn syrup and sour cream, but the rest of the ingredients are probably already in your pantry.
- Time: There’s only about 25 minutes of prep work, but you’ll need to let the icing set so the icings don’t run together. The great news is that this cookie dough doesn’t require any dough chilling. See all of our no cookie dough chilling recipes including our giant chocolate chip cookies, snickerdoodles, and shortbread cookies.
Recipe Testing: What Works & What Doesn’t
What I love most about ATK’s The Perfect Cookie cookbook—and what I know you’ll appreciate as well—is the comprehensive breakdown of each recipe. Why it works, how it works, tips, tricks, lessons, troubleshooting, and more. It’s the book for the baking nerd in all of us. Here are a few of the things that really worked in these black and white cookies:
Overview: How to Make Homemade Black and White Cookies
The full printable recipe is below, but let’s walk through it quickly so you understand each step before we get started.
So, which half of the black and white cookie do you prefer—the chocolate or the vanilla? Get your ingredients ready because we’re about to find out!
Black and White Cookies Recipe
Ingredients You’ll Need
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla extract, and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine. Reduce to low speed and add the dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with the sour cream. Beat everything on low until combined and no pockets of flour remain. Batter is extremely thick.
- Using a greased 1/4-cup dry measuring cup, drop mounds of dough 4 inches apart on prepared baking sheets—6 cookies per sheet. Bake for 16-18 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.
- Whisk the confectioners’ sugar, 6 Tablespoons milk, the corn syrup, vanilla extract, and salt together in a medium bowl. Transfer 1 cup to a separate bowl, add remaining Tablespoon of milk and the cocoa powder. Whisk until combined.
- Spread vanilla icing onto half of the cookies—the flat side. Refrigerate for 15 minutes or until set so that the icings do not bleed into each other. Spread chocolate icing onto other side and allow the icing to set completely, about 1 hour, before serving.
- Cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
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