February 22nd is my blog’s 7th anniversary! (Blogiversary?)
Wow, just wow! 717 published posts and I’m still going. I seriously can’t believe it. In honor of such occasion, I’m sharing these fancy black and white cookies today. Every blogiversary post has something to do with chocolate so I’m continuing with the tradition. These are not just any ordinary black and white cookies. They are filled them with miniature chocolate chips. Excited? I know I am!
The traditional black and white cookie originated from a NYC bakery and is an iconic cookie. These large cake-like cookies are coated with a thick layer of sweet frosting, half vanilla and half chocolate. I made them back in 2013 and they were a huge hit with my family. I mean HUGE, they actually said they were the best things that I’ve ever made. Out of the hundreds and hundreds of recipes I’ve made. That’s really saying something.
I haven’t made them since the first time because, to be quite honest, they are kind of a pain to make. But when my youngest sister came home with a black and white cookie loaded with mini chocolate chips that she had bought from a NYC bakery I knew in that moment that I needed to recreate them at home. Plus, a blogiversary is a great excuse to make something that I wouldn’t normally make everyday, even if they are a pain.
The cookie batter is very easy to whip up. However, it gets a tad tricky when you scoop out the dough onto the pan because the batter is soft and sticky, like a thick cake batter. That makes sense since these are a cakey cookie. Scoop out the batter the best you can to keep them in a roundish shape. They will spread as they bake and that’s what they’re supposed to do, so perfectly round isn’t required. The heat will cause them to sort of fix themselves as they bake. Stick with four cookies per pan so that they have enough room to spread and not touch each other. These cookies are big.
The picture below shows the flat side of the cookie facing up. It’s already looking great. My husband and I had a debate as to which side to ice. I say it’s the flat side and he says it’s the round side. What do you think? I iced the flat side because that’s how I think they should be. A nice and flat area to hold frosting. My husband accepts that he might be wrong, but also strongly asserts that it doesn’t matter to his tummy.
Speaking of icing, this part is also kind of annoying because the icing hardens very quickly so you have to work fast. Last time I made these cookies, I iced the vanilla half first and the chocolate seized up by the time I got to it. This time I iced the chocolate half first but the vanilla seized up when I got to that part. I can’t win. The only advantage was that microwaving the vanilla icing actually helped to thin it out, where when I was doing the same thing with the chocolate it just bound up even tighter.
You may be thinking “why the heck would I make these cookies if they’re so finicky?” Great question. The answer is in the pictures and my family’s feedback. They are absolutely delicious. To quote all three of my sisters, “these cookies are better than any bakery and one of the best things you’ve ever made.”
Most people have that “pain in the butt” recipe that takes a lot of time or effort or both. Why do you make it again? Because it’s worth it, and usually because other people beg you to. And after 7 years of blogging, they are certainly worth sharing again (but with chocolate chips). Thank you for your continued support. It means the world to me! Here’s to another 7 years of delicious recipes!
Chocolate Chip Black And White Cookies Recipe
(Makes 20 huge cookies)
Ingredients for Cookies:
- 4 cups cake flour, equivalent to 16 ounces
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter (equivalent to 2 sticks)
- 1 and 3/4 cups white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 cup whole milk
- 3/4 cups miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips
Ingredients for Icings:
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5 cups powdered sugar, equivalent to 20 ounces
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 2 to 4 teaspoons water
Directions for Cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- In large bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside the dry ingredients.
- In another large bowl, cream the butter and sugar. (About 3 to 6 minutes.)
- Mix the eggs, vanilla extract, and lemon extract into the butter and sugar. These are the wet ingredients.
- Into the wet ingredients, mix in the dry ingredients and milk. Alternate between dry and milk a few times as you go. (Note, the batter will be very sticky and resemble a cake batter.)
- Stir in the miniature chocolate chips.
- Using a 1/4 measuring cup, scoop out dough, then ever so slightly flatten and spread out with your fingers.
- Bake them four to a tray in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until slightly browned on the edges.
- Allow them to cool for about 10 minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack. Make sure the cookies have cooled completely before icing them (otherwise the icing will melt off of the cookies).
Directions for Icings:
- In a medium saucepan, over Medium heat, bring the 1/3 cup of water and corn syrup to a boil.
- Remove it from the heat and whisk in the vanilla extract and powdered sugar.
- In a medium bowl, melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30 second increments and stirring in between sessions.
- Transfer 1/2 of the icing into a bowl and set it aside. This is the vanilla icing. (I use my kitchen scale for this to make sure it’s even.)
- Take the remaining 1/2 portion of the icing and whisk in the melted chocolate and 2 to 4 teaspoons of water. Use as much water as needed until the icing is smooth and spreadable. This is the chocolate icing.
- Spread the chocolate icing over half of each cookie. I spread it on the BOTTOM of each cookie, i.e. the flat side, using a little spatula.
- Let the chocolate icing set (about 15 minutes).
- Spread the vanilla icing over the other half of each cookie and let them sit until the icing has hardened.
Adapted from: The America’s Test Kitchen: Family Baking Book
your recipe for Petite vanilla scones calls for 1 pkg. of vanilla instant pudding and I am
wondering if I could use the sugar vanilla instant pudding in this recipe?
I have not tried that so I am not sure if that would work. If you end up trying it, let me know how it goes.
Thanks for the recipe!It will help me!! It not only looks wonderful but it’s delicious. 🙂