Half Moon Cookies
February 12, 2006 by Andrea 
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Filed under Dessert
If you are from central and upstate NY you probably call these Half Moon Cookies. If you are from NYC, you probably know these as Black and Whites. No matter what you call them, they are tasty. They are more cake-like in texture than a cookie, and they come in both vanilla and chocolate versions, with the ingredients and preparation being very similar.
[Updated: September 16, 2008]
Equipment
stand mixer with paddle attachment
#40 cookie scoop (1-1/2 tablespoons), or you may use a larger #20 scoop if you want larger cookies (3 tablespoons)
baking sheets lined with silicone mat or parchment paper
Ingredients
COOKIES
1 cup (175 g) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (193 g) shortening
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-1/4 cups ((254 g) cake flour
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (237 mil) 2% milk
FROSTING
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick, 67 g) unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
2-1/2 cups (325 g) confectioners’ sugar
3 tablespoons hot milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ounce (28 g) bittersweet chocolate, melted (reserve for chocolate batch of frosting)
Preparation
1. COOKIES – Preheat oven to 350° F/175° C.
2. Cream together sugar and shortening. Add egg and vanilla and mix until combined.
3. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, salt, and baking powder. Add to wet ingredients and alternate with milk a little at a time and mix until thoroughly combined. The mixture will resemble a thick cake batter.
4. Scoop and drop onto lined cookie sheet. Shake cookie sheet slightly to allow batter to settle.
5. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes and remove from oven. Allow cookies to sit on pan for a minute or two before removing and placing on a wire rack to cool.
6. Turn the cookie over and frost the back side of the cookie with vanilla frosting on one half and chocolate frosting on the other half. I usually put on a thin layer of frosting, a crumb layer, at first and let it firm up. Then I add a second layer. This keeps the crumbs from mixing into the top layer of frosting and makes the cookies prettier.
7. FROSTING – Combine all ingredients except the cocoa. Beat until smooth.
8. Divide mixture in half. Add melted chocolate to half of the frosting and stir well. Keep the frosting slightly warmer than room temperature for easier spreading.
Notes
Makes 30 cookies.
I wrap each cookie individually in plastic wrap once the frosting is set. This helps the cookies keep longer.
Do not refrigerate the cookies or they will be hard, like cold cake.
The frosting recipe is slightly different from others I’ve found. Most of the frosting recipes I’ve seen are simple water and sugar glazes, but my husband prefers the buttercream frosting.
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Source: adapted from a recipe in the Syracuse Post-Standard, 2003 and a few others I found on the Internet
Hello Andrea,
Thank you for having this where I could find it! My youngest daughter absolutely loves Half Moons, and yes, we live in Syracuse. But, I am not familiar with -
#40 cookie or ice cream scoop (or you may use a larger #20 scoop if you want larger cookies)
Can anything else be used? I would love to make these for her as a surprise treat. Thank you!
Sincerely,
Elizabeth
Hi Andrea
I lived in Syracuse for 44 years of my life and just in the last two years moved to Las Vegas NV. Now no one here even knows what a half moon cookie is. I am newly married and can’t wait to make these for my new husband. I thank you for the receipe. I use to go to Harrison Bakery when it was in Fayetteville NY.
Hi Elizabeth! I updated the recipe to include the measurement for each scoop: #40 = 1-1/2 tablespoons, #20 = 3 tablespoons. I’ve always used the scoops for measuring convenience and because the cookies come out perfectly round. I hope this helps!
I am originally from Marcellus (NY) and used to buy these at NoJaims Supermarket, but nobody in NC knows how to make them. They’ve never even heard of Half Moon Cookies. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m thrilled to find this recipe…..I’m originally from Syracuse and still LOVE half-moon cookies from Harrison Bakery. Whenever I’m back in town, that’s a must stop! (And I know what you mean Erin…nobody even knows what a half-moon cookie is in the south!!)
i made these half moon cookies and i have to say that they dont taste like harrison bakery half moons at all i remember them not being so sweet in the cookie, all the sweetness was in the frosting.. but i enjoyed making them… they were good but there just not the one i remember from harrison.
I tried this recipe and it tastes great. The only problem i had was the stickiness of the cookies. I think this is due to my minimal experience with convection ovens. I had to use one to make this recipe and am just learning to convert temperatures and bake times. Maybe i just need to bake them a little longer. I think i reduced the heat to 325 degrees and reduced the time to 6 minutes. Any hints or suggestions would be appreciated.
Hi
I grew up in Syracuse and the best half moon cookies were baked at Doris Ripleys on Onondoga Hill. I have never had one like it. I would love to have the recipe
Holy Cow!!! I just made these cookies and they are BETTER than the ones I remember from our local bakery..and they are not frosted yet!!! I cant wait to share them with my Dad..who loves chocolate halfmoons! Thanks Andrea!! Yummy!!
Sandy D
Fort Plain, NY
Our family was originally from Cortland but we moved down south. They have never heard of the cookies down here. We would get them from a bakery in Cortland but it closed. Thank-you for the recipe, my husband says they taste just like the cookies from Harrisons!
Andrea,
I just found your website by looking for Harrison Bakery’s 1/2 moon cookie recipe. Yeah! I’m going to try it today!!
I do have a question for you though……….I have recently moved to NC from Camillus and I would LOVE to know of anyone you know in my area of Huntersville NC.
Thanks,
Vicki
I made these cookies exactly as directed. I live in Syracuse so I know how they are suppose to taste and look. They were flat as pancakes and tasteless. I’m glad I didn’t make the frosting before I waited to see how they turned out.
This recipe is absolutely wonderful – thank you for posting it. We had these all the time growing up in Skaneateles, NY – from the now extinct Skaneateles bakery. They definitely don’t have them in Los Angeles, so I was really excited to make them and take a little trip down memory lane!