New York boasts an incredibly vast array of bakeries, boulangeries, candy shops, chocolatiers and the like. You can sample a wide assortment of chocolates, cookies, beautifully crafted pastries, cakes, pies, candy–you name it. The sky is the limit, basically.
Having said all that, sometimes what you really need in your life is a good old-fashioned black and white cookie.
Simple? Yes. Is it the most exquisite or unique thing that you're ever going to put in your mouth? Probably not. It's a New York classic though, and with good reason. Often referred to as New York's version of an Oreo, this quintessential culinary gem is both graphically appealing and thought- provoking as well as being delicious.
Where did this cookie come from? My theory is that some brilliant baker a hundred years ago couldn't decide whether he/she wanted to make a cookie with chocolate or white icing. Or maybe he/she wanted to save money? People have many different theories about how and why the black and white was born but it remains a mystery.
There is also much debate about the right way to eat the black and white cookie. Do you break it in half and eat both sections separately? If so, which side do you eat first? Which side is your favorite? Do you fold it in half and eat both the black and white icing side simultaneously, a'la how a true New Yorker would gobble a slice of pizza?
Every good New Yorker knows the show Seinfeld, and will think back with fondness at the episode where Jerry reflects: "You see, Elaine, the key to eating a black and white cookie is that you wanna get some black and some white in each bite. Nothing mixes better than vanilla and chocolate. And yet still somehow racial harmony eludes us. If people would only look to the cookie, all our problems would be solved." I'm with Jerry.
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| My sis, acting as Vanna. |
I've had a harder time in recent years finding a black and white cookie as easily as I used to. I'm sure they'll continue to exist in this city for a long time, but just in case you can't conveniently grab one from around the corner (like me), I've included a recipe that I found from an archived New York Times article about the black and white cookie. Enjoy!
BLACK-AND-WHITE COOKIES
Time: 1 hour
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), at room temperature
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 to 1/2 cup boiling water
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate
1 teaspoon light corn syrup.
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 2 baking sheets with nonstick spray, or line with parchment paper.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine sugar and butter. Mix by machine or hand until fluffy. Add eggs, milk and vanilla and lemon extracts, and mix until smooth.
3. In medium bowl, combine cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Stir until mixed. Add dry mixture to the wet in batches, stirring well after each addition. Using a soup spoon, place heaping spoonfuls of the dough 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake until edges begin to brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Cool completely.
4. Place confectioners' sugar in large mixing bowl. Gradually stir in enough boiling water to the sugar to make a thick, spreadable mixture.
5. Put half the frosting in the top half of a double-boiler. Add the chocolate and corn syrup, and set over simmering water. Warm the mixture, stirring, until chocolate is melted and frosting is smooth. Turn off the heat, but leave chocolate frosting over hot water to keep it spreadable. With a brush, coat half of the top of each cookie with chocolate frosting, and the other half with white frosting. Let dry, and store in an airtight container.
Yield: 2 dozen large cookies.
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