I love the big huge Black and Whites that they have all over at the coffee shops in New York City. They are lighter than they look, with a lemon and vanilla flavor, and the lovely soft vanilla and chocolate glaze over the top. These cookies have been taken out of context, and now they are an incredibly beautiful addition to an elegant dessert buffet.

3 cups AP flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/3 cups white sugar
2/3 cup soft butter
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon extract
2 tsp light corn syrup
1/3 cup sour cream

Vanilla and Chocolate Glaze

1/2 cup water
1/4 cup light corn syrup
5 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 oz unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium sized bowl, gently mix together the dry ingredients and set aside.

In another bowl beat together with an electric mixer the butter, shortening and white sugar. Beat until they are light and fluffy, a few minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, and then the vanilla, lemon and corn syrup.

Slowly add half of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, and follow with the sour cream. When the ingredients are all combined, add the rest of the flour and beat until just smooth. Let the dough sit in the refrigerator for about 5-10 minutes.

Spoon the cookies out and shape into balls on a sheet pan with a silpat liner on it. Lightly pat the balls down so that the cookies are round. Leave plenty of room for the cookies to spread. Bake the cookies in the center rack of the oven, and let them bake for about 12 minutes, or until barely turning golden at the edges. Remove the cookies from the oven and let the cookies sit until they are cool before removing the cookies from the sheet pan.

Vanilla and Chocolate Glaze

Sift all of the powdered sugar, so that you remove all lumps. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl.

In a medium saucepan, bring the water and the corn syrup to a boil over medium heat. When it has come to a boil, remove the mixture from the heat, and add the powdered sugar and vanilla. Stir the mixture until it is completely smooth.

Add 1 cup of the hot vanilla glaze to the chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth, adding a few more Tablespoons of vanilla glaze if you need to thin it.

Spread 1/2 of the cookies with the chocolate glaze, and half with the remaining vanilla glaze. Let the cookies cool and set up completely before moving. These will keep up to a week, or can be frozen for a month.