Dough

It's important to make this tender fresh pasta into pansoti as soon as you have cut the dough into squares: The squares dry out quickly and become difficult to seal.

This recipe originally accompanied epi:recipeLink="101888"Plum Pine-Nut Tart</epi:recipeLink>.

Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

For extra convenience, make this a week ahead and freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator.

This is my favorite pie crust. It took several years and over fifty tries to get it just right and is the soul of this book. It is unlike any other cream cheese pie crust because, in addition to being tender, it is also flaky. In fact, it is very similar in texture to epi:recipeLink="101858"Basic Flaky Pie Crust</epi:recipeLink> � almost as flaky but a little softer and more tender, and it browns more when baked, resulting in a rich golden color. The addition of cream cheese makes it even easier to prepare than basic flaky pie crust because you never have to guess how much water to add, and it gives it a flavor so delicious it is great to eat just by itself without filling! It is well worth purchasing or making pastry flour, as it will result in a more tender crust.

Any size mini-muffin pan can be used to bake the tartlets, but the nonstick variety works best.

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 2 3/4 hr (includes chilling)

Homemade pizza is more accessible than you think, especially if you keep a supply of dough in the freezer, and a few topping ingredients on hand. If you make small pizzas ("pizzettas"), you can individualize the toppings, and satisfy the various tastes of everyone in you household without a whole lot of extra work.

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 3 hr

Some of the tenderest pasta is made with Italian "00" soft wheat flour. Since this flour can be hard to find, we used a combination of cake flour and all-purpose flour with good results.

This recipe is an accompaniment for Mushroom Tortellini in Mushroom Broth . Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

This recipe makes enough dough for two crusts (one for the bottom of the pie and one for the top).

(PATE SUCREE) Makes plenty of dough for the Walnut Tartlets , Apple Galette or Apricot Tart .