Preheat oven to 350 F. Cream shortening, sugar, honey, and eggs. Stir in remaining ingredients. Drop by teaspoonful onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 F for 10 to 12 minutes.

Almond glaze Ingredients:
1 cup Confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp Almond extract
6 tsp Water

Melt butter in a saucepan. Stir in honey, milk and almond extract. Set aside mixture to cool. Combine half of the almonds and the brown sugar in a food processor. Process until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add cooled butter mixture to the processor mixture. Process until smooth and creamy. Then add flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Processor until mixture is combined. Scrape into a bowl. Stir in the remaining almonds. Line a 9 x 9 x 2 inch square baking pan with plastic wrap. Pat dough in to pan. Place in freezer until firm, about 30 minutes. Heat oven to 350 F. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick vegetable oil spray. Remove the firm dough from pan. Starting at any side, cut 1/4 inch slices. Arrange on the prepared baking sheets, placing them 1/2″ apart. Bake in a 350 F oven for 18 minutes or just until golden. Transfer to wire racks to cool. Drizzle with almond glaze. To make glaze: Combine confectioners sugar and almond extract in small bowl. Slowly add in 6 teaspoons of water while stirring or just enough for a thin consistency.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Add egg yolks and vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. Mix in sifted dry ingredients. Shape into 1 inch balls. Push your thumb through center of each ball and shape dough into a ring. Dip top of each ring in decorating candies. Place on lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 375 F for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from baking sheets and cool on wire racks.

Preheat oven at 350 F. Prepare a 13 x 9 inch baking pan with cooking spray lined with foil. In medium saucepan melt chocolate and butter until chocolate is completed melted. In mixing bowl combine sugar and flour. Add egg whites, vanilla, and walnuts until well blended. Mix with chocolate and butter mixture. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool in pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes for easy cutting. Lift out of pan. Invert onto back of pan and remove foil. Invert onto a cutting board. Cut into shapes with a cookie cutter and decorate.

Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine shortening, light brown sugar, water and vanilla in mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Beat the eggs into creamed mixture. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in another bowl. Mix into creamed mixture at low speed until just blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 F for 7 to 9 minutes, or until cookies are just set. Let cool before serving or storing.

Tart Lemon Glaze –
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Beat butter, sugar, lemon peel, salt and egg in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour and pecans. Cover and refrigerate about 1 hour or until firm. Heat oven to 350º. Roll half of dough at a time about 1/8 inch thick on lightly floured surface. Cut into 2-inch rounds. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 7 to 9 minutes or just until edges are starting to brown. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. Spread 1 rounded teaspoonful lemon curd between bottoms of pairs of cookies. Brush tops with Tart Lemon Glaze.

TO MAKE TART LEMON GLAZE: Mix all ingredients until smooth and spreadable.

1. Combine mint chocolate chips with shortening in a large microwave safe glass or ceramic bowl. Heat on 50% power for 2 minutes, stir (with a plastic or wooden spoon), then heat for an additional minute. Stir once again, and if chocolate is not a smooth consistency, continue to zap in microwave in 30 second intervals until smooth.
2. Use a fork to dip each wafer in the chocolate, tap the fork on the edge of the bowl so that the excess chocolate runs off, and then place the cookies side-by-side on a wax paper lined baking sheet. Refrigerate until firm. Makes 108 cookies.

PREHEAT OVEN TO 350F. Melt the semisweet chocolate and the butter over low heat or in the microwave. Stir until smooth. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla at high speed until well combined. Slowly beat in the cooled chocolate, then the dry ingredients until just blended but smooth. Stir in the chocolate morsels and the nuts. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls 1 inch apart on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Bake 10-to-12 minutes. Do not over bake. Cool on a rack. May be made ahead or frozen.

Lime Icing:

2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
1/4 teaspoon grated lime peel

Directions:

Cookies:

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Cream butter and sugar; beat in egg. Stir in flour and lime peel; mix in pistachios.

Refrigerate dough 1 hour. Roll out dough 1/4-inch thick; cut shapes with shamrock-shaped cookie cutter (see hints below).

Place cookies on ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned; cool completely.

Pipe lime icing to outline cookies.

Lime Icing:

Combine butter, powdered sugar, milk and lime peel in a medium bowl. Mix until smooth. Makes about 1/2 cup.

Hint: If shamrock-shaped cookie cutter is not available, cut out shamrock pattern from a piece of heavy paper and cut cookie dough using pattern and sharp knife. Or cut with 2 to 2-1/2-inch round cookie cutter and pipe icing in shamrock shape on cookies after baking.

Another Hint: Use green food coloring if you would like the icing to be deep green.