Tasty Tuesday Chocolate Cookies!

Many, many moons ago when my sons were very young, I joined a play group so my kids wouldn't grow up out here in the middle of nowhere without ever having the chance to play with other children. One of the mothers in the group was Lisa, the wife of the pastor of a local church. Not long after we met Lisa, the ladies of the Women's Ministries from her church began putting together a cookbook, to which I contributed a couple of recipes. After the book was printed, Lisa had a party and served some goodies made from those recipes. She had also made these cookies, which were NOT in the cookbook! After tasting these soft, chewy delights, I demanded the recipe and wrote it down in the back of the dessert section.
Per Sam's request, I made a batch a few days ago. I hadn't made them in years--and there's a good reason for that. If you think chocolate chip cookie dough is good, don't try eating any of this stuff. You'll never bake the cookies if you do!

Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients

1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa
4 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
2 cups flour
1/2 cup nuts (optional)
powdered sugar

Directions

Melt the shortening and butter in a large saucepan. Remove from heat and add sugar, vanilla, and cocoa and mix well. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each one. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Chill dough until firm. It will look like a big pot of chocolate fudge. Having said that, I double-dog dare you to make these without eating a big spoonful of the dough. Once you have eaten as much dough as you can hold, roll the remaining dough into balls, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Roll in powdered sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes and enjoy!