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–+ servings
Whole Black & White Cookie Cake on a white cake stand.

Black and White Cookie Cake

By Tammy Spencer
If you love black and white cookies, you'll love this Black and White Cookie Cake. With a light, spongy yellow cake and a delicious mouthful of chocolate and vanilla icing in every slice, it's a beloved cookie made into cake!
4.82 from 16 votes
Prep Time50 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Cooling Time1 hour
Total Time2 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 16 pieces
Calories: 402kcal

Special Equipment

Ingredients

For the cake

  • 2¾ cups (330 grams) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tablespoons (18 grams) buttermilk powder, or 1 cup buttermilk, see Recipe Notes
  • ½ teaspoon (½ teaspoon) baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon (½ teaspoon) kosher salt
  • 2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 4 (200 grams) large eggs, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons (2 teaspoon) vanilla extract
  • 1 cup (227 grams) water, omit if using buttermilk, see Recipe Notes

For the icing

  • 3 cups (336 grams) powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons (30 grams) light corn syrup
  • 1 to 2 tablespoons (1 to 2 tablespoon) lemon juice, adjust to taste, see Recipe Notes
  • ½ teaspoon (½ teaspoon) pure vanilla extract, add more to taste
  • 4 to 8 teaspoons (4 to 8 teaspoon) water
  • 4 tablespoons (22 grams) cocoa powder
  • ½ teaspoon (½ teaspoon) espresso powder, optional, see Recipe Notes

Instructions

  • Line the bottom of two 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper sprayed with baking spray. Line the pans with 9-inch parchment paper rounds, then spray the paper. Position rack in the middle of oven and preheat to 350 °F.
  • Soak the Bake-Even Strips in cold water for 5 minutes, then rap around the outside of the cake pans.
  • Make the cake: In a medium bowl, stir together 2¾ cups all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons buttermilk powder (if not using fresh buttermilk), ½ teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Set aside.
  • Place 2 cups granulated sugar and 1 cup unsalted butter in a large bowl and beat on medium speed for about 5 minutes, or until very soft and light. Beat in 4 large eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in 2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
  • Reduce the speed to low and beat in ⅓ of the flour mixture, then half of 1 cup water (or buttermilk, sour cream/water mixture, or your substitution of choice), stopping and scraping down the bowl and beater after each addition. Beat in another third of the flour, then the remaining liquid, stopping and scraping again. Finally, beat in the remaining flour mixture.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the tops with a small offset spatula.
  • Bake the layers for about 30 to 35 minutes, until they are firm and a cake tester inserted in the center emerges clean. Cool the layers in the pans on racks for 5 minutes, then unmold onto racks to finish cooling completely before icing.
  • Trim the top of each cake layer to flatten, if needed. You won't need to trim them if you follow my advice about the Bake-Even Strips. I'm not kidding, they really work!
  • Make the icing: Stir together 3 cups powdered sugar3 cups powdered sugar(sifted), 2 tablespoons light corn syrup, 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice, ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl until smooth.
  • Transfer half of the icing to another bowl and stir in 4 tablespoons cocoa powder and ½ teaspoon espresso powder (if using), adding more water, ½ teaspoon at a time, to thin to same consistency as the vanilla icing.
  • Finish the cake: Ice the bottom layer half white and half black. Place the top layer on top using cake lifters.
  • Frost the opposite sides of the top layer white and black so you’ll get both black & white icing in every bite. Serve & enjoy!
  • Storage Instructions: This cake can be stored well covered in the refrigerator for up to a week.
  • Make Ahead Tips: You can make the cakes layers ahead of time, then wrap the layers individually with plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze until you’re ready to assemble. Let the cakes defrost in the refrigerator before using. It's best to make the icings fresh so they don't harden.

Recipe Notes

If you don't keep buttermilk or buttermilk powder at hand, there are a couple of substitutions you can use instead. For 1 cup of buttermilk in a recipe (don't forget to omit the water from the recipe if you're using buttermilk or one of these substitutes instead of buttermilk powder):
  • Use ½ cup each water and sour cream (or plain Greek yogurt). Stir well
  • For 1 cup of milk, remove 1 teaspoon and replace it with 1 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar. Let sit for 5 minutes before using
Use a light hand with the lemon juice. You want the taste to be barely noticeable. It’s to cut the overwhelming sweetness of the icing without making it taste too lemony.
Adding espresso powder to the chocolate icing deepens the chocolate flavor. It's optional, but totally worth it!
This recipe makes one 9-inch cake, but you can easily half the ingredient amounts to make a 6-inch cake using two 6-inch round cake pans.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 402kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 148mg | Potassium: 82mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 50g | Vitamin A: 439IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 32mg | Iron: 1mg