The best half moon cookie recipe! I am bringing back my childhood memories from Upstate New York with my mom's half moon cookie recipe. This is the best and most authentic half moon cookie recipe out there and is sure to be a hit!
It's a super rainy cold spring day here in New York today and I was feeling nostalgic so I went through my old recipe cards and stumbled across my most favorite childhood cookie.. the half moon cookie! Just look at this cute handwritten recipe card. 🙂
I grew up in a tiny little town about an hour north of Syracuse and I used to make half moon cookies all the time! Back then I didn't know that Half moon cookies were famous to upstate New York, and you couldn't find them down south back then!
If you've never tried a half moon cookie and are visiting I highly recommend trying them from Harrison street bakery on the west side of Syracuse! Make sure to get them early in the day as they taste super fresh and fluffy in the morning and tend to get stale as the day goes on.
Love baking and want to truly take your healthy baking up a notch? Read my full No Discard Sourdough Starter Guide for Beginners! You can use sourdough starter in everything from cookies to cakes, breads, and so much more!
WHAT ARE HALF MOON COOKIES?
Whether you know them as half moons, or black and white cookies, the concept is the same: a soft fluffy cake-like cookie topped with half vanilla and half chocolate frosting. My old fashioned half moon cookie recipe below is surprisingly easy and taste just like the authentic bakery style cookies we all love!
If you are here looking for a healthy cookie instead, check out my healthy cookies page!
WHAT ARE HALF MOON COOKIES MADE OF?
My vanilla half moon cookie recipe consists of a fluffy cake like vanilla cookie topped with egg yolk vanilla and chocolate frosting.
Vanilla half moon cookie dough ingredients:
- 1 cup soft room temperature butter (not melted!)
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 cup sour milk 1 cup whole milk + 2 tablespoons vinegar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Half moon cookie egg yolk frosting (authentic recipe!):
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
- 3 tablespoons hot milk
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons cacao powder or cocoa powder
WHO INVENTED THE HALF MOON COOKIE?
Half moon cookies are suspect to be invented in the early 20th century in Utica, New York by Hemstrought's Bakery. Today, they are made all over upstate New York and iconic to this area!
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A HALF MOON COOKIE AND A BLACK AND WHITE COOKIE?
I once believed they were one in the same, but actually they are two different cookies. Black and white cookies are more common down state in the New York metropolitan area, they are flat and have royal icing on top.
Old fashioned half moon cookies are more common in Upstate and Central New York, they are fluffier with a slight dome-shape with fluffier frosting.
TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST HALF MOON COOKIES EVER
USE ROOM TEMPERATURE BUTTER. Your butter will mix into the half moon cookie batter so much better if you wait for it to get perfectly soft at room temperature.
CREAM BUTTER, SUGAR & EGGS COMPLETELY. Keep beating butter into the sugar and eggs until you no longer see any little pieces of butter. If the butter isn't totally incorporated, you could end up with flat oily cookies.
DON'T OVER MIX. For light, fluffy and cake-like half moon cookies, don't over mix your batter. Over mixing this cookie batter will result in more chewy cookies. Half moon cookies are meant to be very light and fluffy- like cake in cookie form!
DO NOT GREASE COOKIE SHEET. If you're worried about sticking, use parchment paper. But don't use any grease or oil spray, or you could end up with flat oily cookies.
DROP BY 1 TABLESPOON SCOOPS ONLY. Half moon cookies are a super fluffy cookie that puffs up a lot when baking! So only use 1 tablespoon per cookie and leave about 1 ½ to 2 inches between each one to give them room to spread and bake evenly.
COOL COMPLETELY BEFORE FROSTING. Make sure to cool the cookies completely before adding black and white frosting! If they are even warm at all, you will end up with a mess of frosting all over your counter.
HOW TO MAKE HALF MOON COOKIES
I made my authentic upstate New York half moon cookie recipe with sour milk to give them that perfect fluffy, cake like texture! Sour milk for your cookies is so easy to make with just whole milk and vinegar and is the secret to perfect fluffy half moon cookies!
You can use a standing mixer or beat them in the bowl with a wooden spoon like I used to do back in the day before I owned a standing mixer. Let's get started!
STEP 1: CREAM BUTTER WITH SUGAR AND EGGS
Get your vanilla half moon cookie recipe started by heating your oven up so once your batter is done you can slide them right into your oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
First, in a medium sized mixing bowl, add:
- 1 cup of soft butter
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 2 eggs (at room temperature)
Beat with the paddle attachment until completely smooth and no chunks of butter remain. Or, if you are not using a standing mixer beat the butter into the sugar the old fashioned way with just a wooden spoon!
Scrape down the bowl once or twice while beating to ensure everything is perfectly combined.
STEP 2: ADD DRY INGREDIENTS AND SOUR MILK
Next, add 3 ½ cups sifted flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 cup of sour milk, and 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract to the mixing bowl.
Mix again, scraping down the sides once or twice, until the vanilla half moon cookie batter is just combined. Be sure not to over mix your cookie batter!
HOW TO MAKE SOUR MILK FOR YOUR COOKIES
Sour milk is a necessity for my fluffy vanilla half moon cookie recipe.
For homemade sour milk: 1 cup of whole milk + 2 tablespoons of vinegar. Mix and let it curdle for about 10 minutes.
STEP 3: BAKE
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop cookie batter by 1 tablespoon scoops. Leave 1 ½-2 inches space between them.
Bake cookies for 13-15 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown. Cool cookies completely on a wire cooling rack before frosting.
STEP 4: MAKE FROSTING
A lot of half moon cookie recipes are made with thick fluffy buttercream frosting. However, the classic half moon cookie is made with just a little bit of frosting spread on top, not too thick.
In a bowl, add 1 egg yolk and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Get your whisk ready as we are whisking hot milk and butter into the yolk. Start whisking as you pour in the 4 tablespoons melted butter and then the 3 tablespoons hot milk.
Start whisking in the 2 ½ cups of powdered sugar. Keep whisking until the frosting is completely smooth.
Pour half of the vanilla frosting into a separate bowl. Whisk in 2-4 tablespoons cacao powder, using more if you want a dark chocolate flavor.
STEP 5: HALF MOON COOKIE FROSTING EASY!
Update December 2022, I just realized that I have been frosting my half moon cookies upside down my whole life! For the most authentic upstate half moon cookie make sure to frost the BOTTOM, and not the top like I do!
Spread half the chocolate frosting on the cooled cookies. You do not need very much! Maybe 1-2 teaspoons of frosting per cookie.
Finally, spread on the vanilla half of the frosting.
Enjoy!
Hope you love my most favorite half moon cookie recipe!
STORAGE
Half moon cookies do not need to be stored in the fridge, keep them in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
You're going to love these Healthy Cookie Recipes next!
- Lemon Zucchini Cookies with Lemon Glaze
- Healthy Molasses Cookies
- Healthy Macaroons
- Healthy Meringue Cookies
- Matcha Macarons with Mango Buttercream
- Almond Pulp Cookies Chocolate Dipped
- Healthy Lofthouse Cookies
- Healthy Almond Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies
- Coconut Flour Cutouts
- Healthy Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies
If you try my Authentic Upstate New York Half Moon Cookies Recipe, please let me know your thoughts by leaving a rating and comment below! Ready for more? Subscribe to my newsletter or follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube!
Old Fashioned Half Moon Cookies Upstate New York!
Equipment
- Standing mixer or mixing bowl + wooden spoon
- large cookie sheet
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
For the vanilla half moon cookie dough:
- 1 cup butter, soft
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 lg eggs, room temperature
- 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup sour milk 1 cup whole milk + 2 tablespoons vinegar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For the half moon cookie frosting:
- 1 lg egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoon melted butter
- 3 tablespoon hot milk
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 2-4 tablespoon cacao powder or cocoa powder
Instructions
STEP 1: CREAM BUTTER WITH SUGAR AND EGGS
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Add 1 cup of butter, 1 ½ cups sugar and 2 eggs to the bowl of a standing mixer. Beat with the paddle attachment until completely smooth and no chunks of butter remain. Scrape down the bowl once or twice while beating.1 cup butter, soft, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 2 lg eggs, room temperature
STEP 2: ADD DRY INGREDIENTS AND SOUR MILK
- Next, add 3 ½ cups sifted flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 cup of sour milk, and 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract to the mixing bowl.3 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder, 1 cup sour milk, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Mix again, scraping down the sides once or twice, until the cookie batter is just combined. Be sure not to over mix your cookie batter!
STEP 3: BAKE
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop cookie batter by 1 tablespoon scoops. Leave 1 ½-2 inches space between them.Bake cookies for 13-15 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden brown. Cool cookies completely on a wire cooling rack before frosting.
STEP 4: MAKE FROSTING
- In a bowl, add 1 egg yolk and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Get your whisk ready as we are whisking hot milk and butter into the yolk. Start whisking as you pour in the 4 tablespoons melted butter and then the 3 tablespoons hot milk. Start whisking in the 2 ½ cups of powdered sugar. Keep whisking until the frosting is completely smooth.1 lg egg yolk, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, 4 tablespoon melted butter, 3 tablespoon hot milk, 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- Pour half of the vanilla frosting into a separate bowl. Whisk in 2-4 tablespoons cacao powder, using more if you want a dark chocolate flavor.2-4 tablespoon cacao powder
- Frost half of the cooled cookies with vanilla, and half with chocolate.Enjoy!
Anne
Ahhh I’m so excited for these! I love half moons!! Going to surprise my family with home made ones this weekend thank you!!
Amelia
We’re from down south and you can’t find them where we live! I’m definitely making your recipe !
Em
I grew up just outside of Syracuse and bought half-moon cookies from Green Hills Farms on Salina Street. I've never seen the rounded side frosted though; it's always the flat side that is frosted. I'll have to try your recipe!
Rosemary
What a small world- I'll have to try their half moons too! I hope you like it this way- an old habit of mine to frost the wrong side haha! 🙂
Anna
These are just like the half moon cookies we always buy when we come back upstate !! Definitely making these cookies when I’m missing home
Rosemary
awe I'm so happy you found the recipe!
Gretchen
Do you have a recipe for a chocolate cookie Halfmoon?
Rosemary
Not yet!! But I love that idea 🙂