Chocolate Chunk Drops

3/4 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon hot water
1 cup broken bitter-sweet chocolate
1 1/2 cups walnuts

Cream butter [sic] and add sugar gradually. Add eggs and beat in well.  Mix and sift all the dry ingredients. Add sifted dry ingredients, chocolate (broken in 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces) and nuts to the mixture, and then the soda dissolved in the hot water. Drop in spoonfuls on a buttered baking sheets [sic] and bake at 375 degrees F. for about 10 minutes until brown.