Black & White Crescents

• 7 oz. (1-1/2-cups) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. table salt
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 4 oz. (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup plus 2 Tbs. granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2 oz. white chocolate

Several hours before baking:

In a medium bowl, combine the flour and salt. Sift in the cocoa and baking soda; stir well to mix. With an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla, scraping down the sides of the bowl, until smooth and blended. Add the flour mixture, beating until well combined. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for at least 2 hours.

To bake:

Heat the oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment. Scoop the dough into pieces about the size of a heaping teaspoon. Roll each piece between your palms to form balls. Roll each ball into a-3-inch-long cylinder, tapering the ends slightly. Put the cylinders about 3/4-inch apart on a cookie sheet and curve the ends to make crescent shapes. When one sheet is filled, bake for 8 minutes while filling the other sheet. Bake the second batch for 8 minutes. (They’ll be puffed, covered with tiny cracks, and dry on top after 8 minutes.) Let cool on the sheets.

When the cookies are completely cooled, melt the white chocolate in the microwave or in the top of a double boiler over barely simmering water. Put the melted chocolate into a small plastic bag. Snip a tiny hole in one bottom corner of the bag. Pipe the white chocolate across the cookies to make thin zigzag stripes. Let the stripes harden at room temperature or in the refrigerator before storing the cookies.