A Black and White Cookie Disaster...Do you have a better recipe for me?

I made bad cookies.  Seriously, I almost threw them in the trash...I didn't, but I seriously contemplated it.  Not that they were in-edible, but they definitely do not live up to actually being called black and white cookies, which is totally what I was going for.  I don't know what happened, I thought I followed the recipe, read all of the instructions and followed them like normal.  Maybe I was distracted, maybe I missed a step or maybe this recipe just wasn't the best one.  Either way, I will try again.  

I will make the fluffy, cakey black and white cookies that you think of when you go into a New York City bakery.  The white frosting will be smooth and delicious and the chocolate frosting will be rich and delicious.  

The chocolate frosting on these cookies kind of just tasted cheap...like the chocolate cake that came out of your easy bake oven when you were a kid.  

Just not as satisfying as you want it to be.  But alas sometimes, recipes don't always turn out as well as we would like, sometimes cookies fall flat and the frosting is only mediocre.  But is it the baking disasters that make us each better bakers and chefs.  So, I am looking to you all for a little help on making better black and white cookies.  If you have a great recipe for these cookies, please share?  Thanks!

I did finally use my new hand mixer! Woohoo!