PrintThe Best Black and White Cookies? Half-Moons? Amerikaners?
Many current and former New York City residents swear by a local specialty: the black and white cookie, an oversize cakey, almost spongecakelike cookie iced with a shiny, half-vanilla, half-chocolate fondant frosting. There was even a famous Seinfeld episode, "The Dinner Party," in which Jerry held up a black and white cookie as a symbol of racial harmony and peace among men and women (George and Elaine, to be precise).
But what a lot of folks don't know is that, according to most culinary historians and even Wikipedia, black and white cookies probably originated in central New York (where they're called half-moons) at a Utica bakery, Hemstrought's. In 1999 Saveur magazine tracked down Hemstrought's half-moon cookie recipe. And just to confuse matters further, in Germany there is a black and white–like cookie called an Amerikaner.
Many, many years ago I remember doing a story on an upscale diner, the Lucky Dog, in Westhampton, New York. As a token of thanks for doing the story, the owner whipped out a box of half-moon cookies from a bakery in central New York and offered me one. He claimed these were the finest black and white cookies in the land. They were smaller than the New York black and white and mighty tasty, though. But for the life of me I can't remember the name of the bakery, though it may very well have been Hemstrought's.
I have found that most black and white cookies in New York City are leaden, oversize disks that are just too sweet and dry. They're made with inferior milk chocolate and other substandard ingredients. It's not hard to find one of these specimens. They're for sale at almost every deli, bodega, and convenience store in Gotham.
But there is at least one black and white cookie worth savoring.
The black and whites from William Greenberg Jr. Desserts are made with good-quality dark chocolate and are surprisingly light and moist. A dozen regular hubcap-size black and white cookies are $45 plus shipping. Eighteen minis are $27 plus shipping.
Serious Eats contributor Lucy Baker explored Brooklyn's best bakeries looking for the paradigmatic black and white in a story she wrote for the Brooklyn Paper. The only cookie she awarded an A to was from the Joyce Bakeshop. I think it's time for the ultimate interborough Serious Eats Black and White Cookie Taste-Off. And we might as well throw in some half-moons from Hemstrought's to avoid being called New York City chauvinists.
Wm. Greenberg Desserts
Address: 1100 Madison Avenue, New York NY 10128 (b/n 82nd and 83rd streets)
Phone: 212-861-1340
Joyce Bakeshop
Address: 646 Vanderbilt Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11238 (b/n Park and Prospect places)
Phone: 718-623-6470
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26 Comments:
The best black and white cookies I've had are the ones that have a slight dome in the middle or, rather, just hint at being cone shaped. It makes that super fluffy middle bite so wicked. Are domed black and whites a sub-species of the cookie, or just a lucky coincidence?
Leah
Editor, The Jew & The Carrot
www.jcarrot.org
TheJewAndTheCarrot at 9:37AM on 01/15/08
My mother and grandmother have made half moons as treats for as long as I can remember. Theirs are quite different from one's I've found in bakeries however - they are smaller and more cake-like and the frosting is made w/ shortening and powdered sugar and is fluffy. On holidays we tend to color one of the halfs to reflect the season (i.e. orange and chocolate halves on halloween).
krispychikin at 10:18AM on 01/15/08
Ed, please, no more posts on cheesesteaks and cookies! At least for a couple months... i thought we were trying to lose some weight here! Now you've got me salivating for one of these sugar bombs. And a pile of sliced steak, onions, pepper, cheese wiz, mayo, ketchup on a fluffy white flour sub roll... you're EVIL!!!!! (j/k)
seyo at 10:33AM on 01/15/08
William Greenbergs are the best I have had, but I am more than willing to work at confirming that finding. I remember people talking about a place on First Avenue (around 87th/88th Streets) having a very good Black & White. I don't recall the name at the moment.
FoodBoy at 10:53AM on 01/15/08
FoodBoy, you're talking about Glaser's Bake Shop. And, yes, they are the best B&Ws in the city.
growler at 11:03AM on 01/15/08
In Syracuse - about 30 minutes west of Utica - Half Moons are still widely available but the cheap industrial bakery version that's closer to a Black & White has taken over the market in most places. The "real" half Moon cookies are about half the diameter of the B & W, have a denser more cake-like texture, a distinct note of vanilla in the cookie itself and a a frosting that is not too thick nor is it overly sweet. If passing through this area just look for a Harrison Bakery location (there are several) and try one of theirs for a good example (but skip just about everything else they sell).
phaelon56 at 11:07AM on 01/15/08
I have to second Greenberg's at the best. I've had their B&W cookies and cinnamon babka (yes, another babka, a better babka) since I was a kid and I can't find any that compare.
offthebeatenpath1 at 12:09PM on 01/15/08
Regarding my diet, I limited my black and white cookie consumption at Greenberg's to three bites. If I'm going to make my diet work portion control is the key, since I have the pleasure of eating for a living. We'll see how I did this past week on Thursday.
Ed Levine at 12:09PM on 01/15/08
I like Leskes out in Bay Ridge. They're nice and sticky, not the creepy glaze that a lot of places use.
theheadhen at 12:17PM on 01/15/08
Half-moons are indeed available all over Western New York still - often found in grocery store bakeries as well as a number of local "dairies" and free-standing bake shops.
If you're ever in the area (and, I mildly apologize if you are), the best moons I've found can be had at Holland Farms Dairy, in a suburb of Utica. They offer half-moons with both chocolate (the original) and vanilla bottoms (an adaptation and the downstate standard). In both cases, the cakey bottoms are so moist that they stick to you fingers, and they're smeared with fudgey chocolate frosting on one side and fluffy white on the other. They are bliss, especially with a cold glass of milk.
And in general, though it's true that there are a few places in the city, like Greenberg's, making pretty good black-and-whites, I have yet to find anybody here making anything quite like the moons back home. Perhaps nostalgia and home-bound loyalties make me a touch biased, but I really believe this is one of the few food corners in which upstate has the city thoroughly beat.
Amanda Clarke at 1:13PM on 01/15/08
This post just made my day--as a native New Yorker who has spent her last 20+ years in Atlanta, Knoxville, and DC, I had all but given up on the simple beauty of a great black and white. Thanks for all the tips--I may have to have some shipped ASAP!
bettyjoan at 1:34PM on 01/15/08
Having grown up in Western New York, I can attest to the popularity of half-moon cookies in that part of the world - they can be bought at any bakery or half decent grocery store. Wegmans offers as close to true half-moons as possible for those living outside of the state.
petergabriel at 1:47PM on 01/15/08
I think Zabar's has pretty good black and white cookies.
KitchenKore at 2:03PM on 01/15/08
Three bites??? Ed, I admire your resolve. I'm all or nothing. Zero discipline.
seyo at 5:35PM on 01/15/08
Thanks growler. I will have to give Glaser's a try.
FoodBoy at 9:51PM on 01/15/08
phaelon - I agree about Harrison Bakery! Columbus Bakery, on the other hand, I always loved when I was a kid. Next time I'm home in Syracuse I'll have to try the Harrison half moon. Always nice to see CNY represented on serious eats!
Littlebluesiren at 11:54PM on 01/15/08
Amanda - you said:
"Perhaps nostalgia and home-bound loyalties make me a touch biased, but I really believe this is one of the few food corners in which upstate has the city thoroughly beat."
I agree but I think "Utica Greens" deserve a mention. There's absolutely nothing in NYC I've tried that's close to them (or elsewhere for that matter).
Littlebluesiren - you absolutely have to try the "stretch bread" at Pasta's Daily Bread bakery next time you're in town. I still enjoy a loaf of Columbus bread on occasion but Pasta's bread is far superior to theirs and IMHO competes with the very beast breads NYC has to offer.
phaelon56 at 9:46AM on 01/16/08
Ed - how were the 3 bites doled out? How one chooses to eat a black and white is right up there with how one chooses to eat corn on the cob.
I've always been partial to eating one side first - usually the white. Although I have taken the aggressive 1st bite right down the middle.
I prefer the minis for 1 sublime bite.
And by the way Ed, why did Greenberg shutter so fast in our neighborhood??
harrison at 4:49PM on 01/16/08
The Donut Pub on 14th St, just off Seventh Ave, has fresh and wonderful donuts and variations thereof. (Let's argue about what a true cruller is, how to spell it, how to pronounce it). But the Black and Whites (some frosted just white, others just black) are exquisite cake-like discs with achingly sweet icing. Really just about perfect as far as I can eat.
richard dilallo at 5:31PM on 01/16/08
as a kid, the best part about the 12 hour road trip to NYC to visit relatives was the promise of a black and white cookie. i've tried to explain the exquisite wonderfulness that is black and white cookies to my friends here in Michigan, and everyone things i'm nuts, because it's really just a dry, cakey, almondy cookie with some frosting on top.
the cakier the better! when i was a little kid, my sister and i would share one, and we'd make my mom cut it half exactly, so we each got the same amount of black & white frosting.
just the mention of these wonderful cookies brings back such happy memories!
redhead at 6:20PM on 01/16/08
I grew up in Syracuse were they always were half moon cookies. It wasn't until I moved to Brooklyn well over 25 years ago that I heard everyone call them black & whites. So, I found it nostalgic when I went to the NY State Fair (in Syracuse) this past fall and once again heard people order half moons at the bakery booths. Harrison Bakery had several booths there.
SavtaShayna at 1:27PM on 01/18/08
Moishe's Bakery on 2nd avenue in the east Village is a contend for best B&W.
--Guttergourmet
guttergour at 4:45PM on 01/19/08
I confess I've not tried the B&Ws at any of the places mentioned. But I've eaten many a B&W in the city and, yes, most of them are dry and crumbly in the base and overly sweet and gooey on top.
My own personal favorite is sold at Nussbaum & Wu's on 113th and B'way. I don't know if they make them themselves, but they do sell them on cookie sheets, so who knows. The base is moist and cakey, and the frosting is almost ganache-like, with intense vanilla and chocolate flabor. Mmmmm.
They also sell a Brown & White which, I believe, is coffee-flavored, but needless to say, as a purist, I've never tried it.
klg19 at 11:21AM on 01/20/08
Greenberg's? Pheh! The icing is good, but the cake is too fluffy, almost Twinkie-like. They are actually better if you let them get a little stale.
I have not had any of the upstate black and whites, but here in the city, my vote for best b&w goes to the East Broadway Kosher Bakery on Grand St.--they've been my favorite since they actually were on East Broadway. The cookie is moist without being spongy; the icing has the appropriate light snap, but is not the sugar helmet that too many inferior cookies wear.
In addition, with Kossar's and the Donut Plant within 100 feet, it has to be one of my favorite culinary blocks in the world. (And the Pickle Guy is just around the corner, too!)
guy2k at 3:15AM on 01/21/08
Toojays which anybody who vacations or live south of tampa in FLorida would know has the best B&W's they have 20 locations in florida. They also have the best NY deli sandwichs out of NY
jdat11 at 7:49PM on 01/21/08
I grew up with what we called "Day N Nite" cookies in Gloversville, N.Y. I have tasted a number of different varieties and Rauch's Bakery in the Gloversville are absolutely best. They are extremely large and very moist. It is too bad they don't sell them elsewhere. I feel certain they would win "hands down" if compared to other recipes!!
SharNY at 4:03PM on 08/17/08