The black-and-white cookie seems simple: just a sugary cookie with thick layers of chocolate and vanilla frosting covering its surface. But as I ate my way through your list of the best versions in the Boston area, I was reminded that this iconic dessert isn’t as simple as it seems.
For starters, not every pastry with a distinctive black-and-white frosted top can accurately be called a black-and-white cookie—there’s also its cousin, the half-moon. The former is a cookie, usually a little dry (a common problem, according to New York City baker Herb Glaser), with a thin layer of chocolate and vanilla fondant frosting on top. They’re modest in size, kind of like a generous sugar cookie. They may actually have evolved from the half-moon, which aren’t actually cookies at all. Instead, they’re small cakes, usually with a higher dome than you’d find on a layer cake, and topped with generous layers of whipped chocolate and buttercream frosting. Black-and-white cookies had their place in pop-culture history cemented in two classic episodes of “Seinfeld,” but both desserts are longtime New York City staples.
In Boston, we’re lucky enough to have both treats (some of which seem to toe the line between the two). Although this started as a round-up of black-and-white cookies, we’re including half-moons here as well because your list of suggestions included both. Take a look at the bakeries we visited and add your own tasting notes in the comments!
Cheryl Anns’ of Brookline
Size: 4.5” across (large) and 3” across (regular)
On the menu as: Half-moon
Despite their name, these cookies are more akin to black-and-white cookies. The base is slightly spongy and topped with a thin layer of sweet, sugary frosting that rises and meets in the middle.
Sugar Bakery
Size: 4” across
On the menu as: Half-moon
This cookie is a showstopper! At its peak, it has a full inch of frosting, which has a buttermilk-like tang. The cookie itself is thick and round and on the drier side, especially around the edges, with a hint of lemon.
Blacker’s Bakeshop
Size: 4.5” across
On the menu as: Half-moon
This rich treat toes the line between a cake and a cookie. It feels more like the top of a cupcake (the best part!) slathered with cake frosting. The base is spongy but still substantial and holds its shape, and the frosting is silky-smooth and rich.
Brooklyn Water Bagel
Size: 6.25” across
On the menu as: Black-and-white cookie
This cookie is huge. Not only is it more than six inches across, but the cookie itself—sans frosting—is at least an inch thick. The cookie is moist and cake-like, with hints of vanilla, and it’s topped with a thin layer of frosting—much less than the frosting on other cookies in this round-up.
Lyndell’s Bakery
Size: 4” across
On the menu as: Moon
One of this Cambridge bakery’s most popular items, the “moon” is more like an individual cake, and it looks and eats like the top of a frosted cupcake. According to their website, Lyndell’s has made these cakes for more than a decade, and it’s often acknowledged by Phantom Gourmet.
Mamaleh’s Delicatessen
Size: 4.5” across
On the menu as: Black-and-white cookie
These cookies sit nestled among the bialys and rugelach in this new Kendall Square restaurant’s tantalizing deli case. The modern deli’s take is similar to what I envision a black-and-white cookie to be, or at least reminiscent of the ones I ate growing up: a firm, dry cookie, with a thin layer of frosting. It also has a hint of lemon in each bite.
