One of the things Darren and I enjoy most about traveling (I would actually say THE thing Darren and I enjoy most about traveling…) is the food.
On our first visit together to New York, I introduced him to one of my favorite spots on the Upper West Side: the legendary delicatessen called Zabar’s. It’s been open since 1934 and was making me very happy in 1987.
While we were there, I bought some black and white cookies – mostly for the nostalgia of it, never thinking Darren would really like them. (His love for baked goods is a little shy of mine.)
Well, guess what? He loved them. So much so that we headed there again on our next trip back.
What is a black and white cookie? A quintessential New York Deli treat – a domed cake-like vanilla cookie that is coated, on the flat side, with half chocolate icing and half vanilla icing.
“Like many famous New Yorkers, the black and white cookie’s history begins with a tale of reinvention, where mythology supplants fact,” says Rebecca Salzhauer. “Some food historians trace the cookie’s origins to the early 20th century at Hemstrought’s Bakery in Utica, N.Y. …
Others say the cookies came to New York with Bavarian immigrants, who may or may not have been Jewish. When John and Justine Glaser founded Glaser’s Bake Shop in 1902, the black and white was among their original recipes.
No one quite knows how or why the cookie’s popularity exploded, but by the mid-20th century, they were everywhere.”
When Darren and I bought them that first time, I hadn’t had one for YEARS.
So…..
After a lot of research (because, let’s be honest, I’m a bit of a cookie snob), I decided to try recreating a black and white cookie in my own kitchen. The elevation and humidity at home in my (very dry) state affects baking significantly – so I adjusted the recipe I had found in the New York Times accordingly and got to work.
Who says I only get to have them when I’m in New York?
For that matter, and in no particular order,
Who says I should only make my mom’s curry soup on Christmas Eve?
Who says birthdays require waiting for someone else to bake your cake?
Who says new traditions can’t be started at any time?
Who says date nights have to be at night?
Who says vacations have to be planned months in advance?
Who says Saturday mornings have to be for chores?
Who says we have to wait for Thanksgiving to make stuffing?
Who says you can only go to Disneyland with kids?
Who says handwritten notes should only be for thank-yous and condolences?
Who says we have to wait for the right moment to do something meaningful?
Sometimes we limit certain traditions to certain times and places for really good reasons. BUT, as life changes, so do we – and so can the things we hold onto. Maybe we can reclaim something (like cookies!) in a new way. Maybe we can let go of what no longer fits.
Kendra Adachi says “Your needs and your perception of those needs change with your circumstances and even as you age, so making different choices about how you live and spend your time is natural and wise.”
She goes on to say (and I’m adapting here, for our purposes) that in every new season of our lives we get to notice where we are, who we’ve become, and what we want to release or embrace moving forward.
My black and white cookies did not turn out perfectly, but pretty good for a first try.
And if I close my eyes, I can pretend I’m on 79th street. Right here. Right now.
I can’t wait to hear about the things you want to embrace – or let go – in your current life. And if you’re not sure what those things are, I’d love to help you find them.
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