Black and White Cookies. Look to The Cookie.

I love cookies.  Does anyone not like cookies?  Chocolate chip of course.  My new dark chocolate sea salt shortbread jobbies are pretty awesome.  But looking back, the black and white cookie really steals the show.  Almost not even a cookie, it is more of a single serve cake.  You plop it over and ice the bottom half black and half white.

I first had one at a coffee shop in Madison.  Since then on the rare occasion that I see one for sale I have to give it a try.  Many are lacking: too sticky, too bland, too salty.  I decided to make my own and after a few trials I finally found a winner in Gourmet magazine.  Just like my original with a light cake-like cookie and lemony vanilla along side deep chocolate.

These are a commitment.  The cookie itself is a breeze, but if you make the traditional monster size- even doubling the recipe only produces 16.  Really, it is the icing that takes commitment.  You must make the vanilla and then turn half of it into chocolate.  Then you must go back to the cookie.  Not once, but twice to spread the icing.  My secret?  Once they are lovingly done, I hide them.  I wrap each individually with plastic wrap and find a safe spot in the freezer... inside an old box of frozen spinach for instance...and then stash them.  Take them out one at a time, they thaw in a few hours, and eat with my coffee in the morning.  Nothing better.

This time I had a purpose though, Allie's birthday treat at school.  So I made some mini-black and whites for her to take and still have about six monsters to wrap and secret away for next weekend's coffee.  I can't wait already.


Black and White cookies from Gourmet magazine 2002
This only makes 8 cookies, so I always double it.
An easy way to make buttermilk is to add 1T lemon juice to a measuring cup, fill the rest with 1/2 and 1/2 and wait for 5 minutes.

For cookies

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup well-shaken buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/3 cup (5 1/3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg

For icings

• 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 to 2 tablespoons water
• 1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

preparation

Make cookies:
Preheat oven to 350°F.

Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Stir together buttermilk and vanilla in a cup.

Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes, then add egg, beating until combined well. Mix in flour mixture and buttermilk mixture alternately in batches at low speed (scraping down side of bowl occasionally), beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix until smooth.

Spoon 1/4 cups of batter about 2 inches apart onto a buttered large baking sheet. Bake in middle of oven until tops are puffed and pale golden, and cookies spring back when touched, 15 to 17 minutes. Transfer with a metal spatula to a rack and chill (to cool quickly), about 5 minutes.

Make icings while cookies chill:
Stir together confectioners sugar, corn syrup, lemon juice, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl until smooth. Transfer half of icing to another bowl and stir in cocoa, adding more water, 1/2 teaspoon at a time, to thin to same consistency as white icing.

Ice cookies:
Turn cookies flat sides up, then spread white icing over half of each and chocolate over other half.

Cooks'note:•If you can stand the wait, cookies taste better if cooled without being chilled.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Black-and-White-Cookies-106171#ixzz2T7rvFTkW