Indecisive When it Comes to Desserts? Look For Halfmoons

Half black, half white, the halfmoon cookie is the perfect choice for the indecisive dessert lover. Never again will you have to ask yourself, do I want vanilla, or do I want chocolate? The double-thick icing on either side of the cookie should satisfy all your desires. And, living in Central New York, you'll never be far from one. The sweet treat with a chocolate cake-like bottom was invented here. Its sibbling, the black and white cookie, is from the big apple and features a vanilla base. Harry Hemstrought, a former architect, created halfmoons at his bakery in Utica, New York. While Hemstrought's Bakery is now defunct, Saveur magazine acquired the original recipe in 1999. Try it for yourself.

FOR THE COOKIES:

3/4 cups flour

3/4 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. baking soda

2 1/4 cup sugar

16 tbsp. margarine, cut into pieces

3/4 cup cocoa, sifted

1/4 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups milk

FOR THE FUDGE ICING:

3 1/2 oz. bittersweet chocolate

3 1/2 oz. semisweet chocolate

1 tbsp. butter

4 1/3 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

2 tbsp. corn syrup

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Pinch salt

FOR THE BUTTERCREAM ICING:

7 cups confectioners’ sugar

16 tbsp. room temperature butter, cut into pieces

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

7 tbsp. milk

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Pinch salt

1. For the cookies: Preheat oven to 350°. Sift together flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a medium bowl and set aside. Put sugar, margarine, cocoa, and salt in bowl of standing mixer and beat on medium speed until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and continue to beat. Add half the milk, then half the flour mixture, beating after each addition until smooth; repeat with remaining milk and flour mixture. Spoon or pipe batter onto parchment-lined baking sheets, making 3'' rounds 2'' apart. Bake until cookies are set, about 12 minutes. Allow to cool, then remove from parchment.

2. For the fudge icing: Melt bittersweet and semisweet chocolates and butter in the top of a double boiler over simmering water over medium heat. Add confectioners’ sugar, corn syrup, vanilla, salt, and 6 tbsp. boiling water and mix to a smooth, stiff paste with a rubber spatula. Thin icing with up to 8 tbsp. more boiling water. Icing should fall from a spoon in thick ribbons. Keep icing warm in a double boiler over low heat.

3. For the buttercream icing: Put sugar, butter, shortening, milk, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer. Beat on low speed to mix, then increase to medium and beat until light and fluffy.

4. Using a metal spatula, spread about 1 tbsp. of warm fudge icing on half of the flat side of each cookie. Spread the other half of each cookie with 1 heaping tbsp. buttercream icing.

Not much of a baker? Several bakeries in the area carry both upstate and downstate versions of the delicious cookie-cupcake hybrid. Try the Skaneateles Bakery in downtown Skaneateles, Wegmans' bakeries, and The Purple Hippos Pastry Shop in East Syracuse.