Chocolate Tortellini in Pear Broth

Notes: Poached pears should be made a day or more ahead to allow the flavor of the broth to develop.

Assembly: In a small bowl over saucepan 1/4 full of simmering water, melt chocolate. Whisk to smooth, and dip one end of each of the biscotti. Lay biscotti on parchment covered sheet pan and put in cool place to set.

Drain poaching liquid from pears into large saucepan. You will be starting with about 8 cups; reduce this to 6 cups. At full boil, this takes 10 to 15 minutes.

In a large pasta pot half full of rapidly boiling water cook Chocolate Tortellini for 3 to 5 minutes -- until they are al dente. Drain them, and add to reduced pear broth along with the Armagnac.

Heat soup bowls. Fan-cut (do not cut completely through the narrow end so that when slightly flattened, the pear slices fan attractively) 6 pears and lay a pear half at the side of each bowl. Ladle in broth and tortellini. Serve biscotti on the side.

About keeping: Pasta must be cooked close to serving time; the dough will lose its texture if it remains in the broth for long, especially if kept warm. Also Try: Sprinkle with a dusting of Spiced Ground Orange Peel (recipe follows).

Poached Pears Notes: No other fruit reaches our markets in such a bewildering array of varieties, from the delicate juicy Bartletts through the buttery Comices to the sturdy Boscs and d'Anjous. Any of these can be used here, although the softer types or very ripe pears of any variety require greater care in handling to prevent scarring (bruises do not go away) and a far shorter cooking time. As a general rule pears of less than out-of-hand eating ripeness are best and the firmer varieties like Bosc and d'Anjou the most reliable. But all pears beg to be poached, for two important reasons. Since they brown and bruise easily, they need the double protection of being kept from the air and being slightly candied by the sugar. And although the flesh retains its shape well when cooked, the sponge-like texture has a tendency to dissipate pears' moisture content; so it is best to cook and store them suspended in liquid until serving to keep them plump, firm and juicy.

Although pears are most often poached in red wine, I find the color unpleasant after they are drained for serving and dry off a bit, and the color doesn't completely penetrate, which causes problems if you need to trim, slice or fan the fruit for presentation. A perfect match is found in wedding the flavors of pear and Chardonnay, and the mellow golden color the pears assume is very appealing. For enough poaching liquid to make Chocolate Tortellini in Pear Broth, double the amounts of wine and cinnamon, and add pear nectar (you'll still have 4 extra pear halves; use them to top green salads with toasted nuts and a tart dressing).

Halve and squeeze the lemons into a medium bowl which you've half-filled with water, and throw in the rind. To prepare pears, cut off stems and pare out blossom ends. Peel pears; a paring knife is fine, but a vegetable peeler gets smoother results. Halve them, scoop out seed pocket with melon baller, and remove stem fibers with a v-shaped notch cut from hole to stem end. Put each half immediately in lemon water as completed. In a large saucepan heat to boiling the wine, cinnamon and sugar (and pear nectar, if making Chocolate Tortellini in Pear Broth). Add pears and, if necessary, some of the lemon water to cover. Bring back to a simmer, cover and cook until pears can be pierced with a fork at the seed cavity but are still firm -- from 5 to 20 minutes, depending on ripeness and variety. If pears are just right at this point, remove saucepan from heat and allow to cool uncovered before transferring to a storage container for refrigerating. Or if they have already started to get soft and can be easily pierced with a fork, lift out each pear half carefully with a slotted spoon and lay it out on a sheet pan to cool quickly cool the poaching liquid separately, before adding it to pears for storage.

About keeping: Will keep several weeks, refrigerated.

Chocolate Tortellini: Measure flour, cocoa and sugar into food processor; pulse until combined. Add egg, water and chocolate extract; process until mixture forms a ball. With floured hands remove dough. Form into a flat square, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate at least 1/2 hour, to relax dough before rolling.

In a small bowl blend chestnut puree, ricotta cheese, ground almonds and egg yolk. Set aside.

On lightly floured board, roll out dough into an approximately 20-by-20 inch square. With round 2-1/2 inch pastry cutter, cut 36 rounds of pasta. Pull background scraps away and discard. Place one teaspoon of the filling on each round. Spray surfaces with a mist of water, fold each in half and pinch edge to seal. Pull the two points toward each other across the back fold, and pinch together. Repeat with all 36, transferring each to wire-mesh rack as completed. Freeze.

When ready to serve, drop tortellini into a large pot of rapidly boiling water and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until al dente.

About Keeping: Tortellini should be frozen, then bagged until ready to use (or the moisture in the cheese will migrate into the pasta and ruin it). Will keep 2 to 3 weeks frozen and, once cooked, minutes.

Spiced Ground Orange Peel: Yield: approximately 2 tablespoons ground peel Notes: This gorgeous, saffron-colored powder is useful in desserts, as a garnish or even in most savory cooking where a hint of orange is desired. If you find particularly well-colored oranges, make more -- it will keep until you use it up.

With vegetable peeler (which allows the precise control of thickness you need) cut orange part of skin from oranges. Lay strips on parchment-lined sheet pan with outer skin side up and put in 250F oven for 30 minutes or until they are crisp when cool, but not browned. Open a few times to release moisture and let the fragrance into the kitchen! When cool combine with cardamom in spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.

About keeping: Lasts indefinitely if kept in freezer.