Spumoni Cookies

1 cup margarine or butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped pistachio nuts or toasted almonds
6 drops green food color
1 square (1 ounce) unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
2 tablespoons finely chopped maraschino cherries, drained

Mix margarine, sugar, vanilla and egg. Stir in flour and salt. Divide dough into 3 equal parts. Mix pistachio nuts and food color into 1 part. Mix chocolate into 1 part; mix cherries into remaining part. Line bottom and ends of loaf pan, 9x5x3 inches, with aluminum foil, allowing ends of foil to extend 5 inches over each end of pan. Press nut dough evenly in bottom of pan. Press chocolate dough on nut dough; press cherry dough on chocolate dough. Cover dough with extended ends of foil. Refrigerate at least 2 hours but no longer than 6 weeks.
Heat oven to 375 degrees. Remove foil and dough from pan; remove foil. Cut dough crosswise into 1/4-inch slices; cut each slice crosswise into halves. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake cookies unto set, about 10 minutes. Immediately remove from cookie sheet. About 6 1/2 dozen cookies.
Neapolitan Cookies: Substitute walnuts for the pistachio nuts. Omit green food color.

Submitted by Becky