How to Make Shamrock Stained Glass Cookies

St Patricks day is as everyone knows on March 17th, but as we say in our house, there is never just one day to enjoy your heritage. It can and should be embraced and enjoyed as often as possible. Being of Irish heritage myself, and being plunked down in the midst of a huge Italian family, I sometimes find myself searching for ways to remind my sons of the other side of their parental duo. Shamrock glass cookies are one of those ways. Easy to make and tasty to eat, they are the kind of cookie that works equally as well as a family treat, classroom goodie or even taken to the office to celebrate St Pats day. It is so simple in fact to make that scout troups, clubs and even fund raisers can easily whip up a batch of these goodies which are, as I've found, an instant hit. Yummy to eat, eye catching and just different enough to be attention grabbing, these cookies are beyond a doubt, a great one for Irish lovers of all ages!

Supplies needed:
! package of premade sugar cookie dough (don't worry about buying those name brand ones, the generic work just as well and are a lot less expensive as well)
Green colored hard candies (life savers if you can find them are perfect or you can use jolly ranchers apple flavored ones)
ziploc bags
rolling pin
2 shamrock shaped cookie cutters, (one should be slighly smaller than the other one)
Optional: green decorative sugar
Aluminum foil
Cookie sheet
Note: This recipe makes approximately 2 dozen cookies

How to create your Shamrock Glass Cookies:
Roll out the cookie dough until it is approximately 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick.
Using the larger of the two cookie cutters, cut out a shamrock shape from the dough
Using the smaller of the cookie cutters, cut a smaller shamrock from the middle of the first
Set smaller cookie aside (you'll have options on what to do with that later on)
Place cookies carefully on foil covered cookie sheet (the foil part here is important, don't skip it)
Put hard green candy in ziplock and using rolling pin, crush well.
Fill the holes in the Shamrock shaped cookie with the crushed candy, (do not skimp in filling the cookies please)
Bake the cookies at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes until lightly brown
Let cool completely and then carefully remove from cookie sheet.
Arrange on decorative plate (I like white ones, they show off the cookies well)

Options: with left over dough, you can reuse it and make more of the glass cookies, OR you can simply use the smaller shapes as regular sugar cookies, sprinkling them with green decorative sugar and serving them alongside the Shamrock Glass cookies. Either way you cut it, you have a tasty treat that is sure to be appreciated by those who are fortunate enough to be within shaing r

Serve with a smile and an "Erin Go Braugh (which by the way is Gaelic for Ireland Forever) and enjoy. And I hope you enjoy this treat as much as my family does! Have fun!