Instructions

1. In a large bowl, cream the sugar and shortening together until smooth, add in the thickened soymilk and beat until smooth again.Add the vanilla, lemon oil or whatever spices/flavorings you are using and mix well.
2. Add the dry ingredients:soda, salt and flour. Mix until everything comes together.
3. Wrap in plastic wrap, shape into a big disk and freeze for ½ hour.Roll to ¼ inch thickness and cut out as you like.
4. Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheets at 350. 10 minutes will give you soft cookies (they may seem barely baked, but they’ll firm up when cooled), 14-16 minutes will give you golden brown edges and they’ll be crispy.Cool completely before icing.
5. Mix the icing ingredients together, getting all the lumps out. Add enough water for the proper thickness. I outline first, and flood with color. I use a toothpick or a small spoon to spread the icing around.  Hearts are made by making little dots and dragging a clean toothpick through the wet icing.  Here's a great tutorial on flooding if you're new to this stuff.