TOP 10 : In the course of a year we test and taste hundreds of recipes. These were our favorites in 1990. : The Best of 1990 : Winners: Our favorite recipes of last year.

“Chocolate cake in the kitchen for tasting.” Every few hours a little note like that goes flashing across all the computers in the Food Section. Whereupon all of us dutifully get up from our desks and traipse into the Test Kitchen, forks in hand.

It’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it.

In the course of a year, we test and taste hundreds of dishes. We stand around the island in the center of our kitchen, arguing the merits of the food in front of us. What follows are recipes for the ten dishes we liked the best.

Despite the considerable differences in our tastes, there turned out to be remarkable consensus on this list. These are dishes we’d gladly serve to friends. We think you’ll like them, too.

This is just about the best apple pie any of us has ever tasted.

APPLES AND CREAM

CRUMB PIE

(From Wonderful Parties,

Wonderful Foods,

Culver City)

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1 egg

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 pounds apples, peeled, cored and cut in thin wedges

Cinnamon Pastry Shell

Streusel Topping

Combine sour cream, egg, sugar, flour, vanilla and salt in large bowl. Add apples and mix well. Turn into Cinnamon Pastry Shell. Cover crimped edges lightly with foil. Bake at 450 degrees 10 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees and continue baking 35 to 40 minutes.

Remove pie from oven. Stir apple filling, gently but thoroughly. Remove foil around edges. Spoon Streusel Topping evenly on top. Return to oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes longer. Serve warm, at room temperature or cold. Makes 1 (10-inch) pie.

Cinnamon Pastry Shell

1 3/4 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup cold butter

2 to 3 tablespoons cold water

Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt in mixer bowl. Cut in butter until particles are size of small peas. Sprinkle in cold water, 1 tablespoon at time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost cleans side of bowl.

Gather into ball. On lightly floured board, roll pastry 2 inches larger than inverted 10-inch pie plate. Ease into pie plate and crimp edges decoratively.

Streusel Topping

1/2 cup flour

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar, packed

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup cold butter

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Combine flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in bowl. Cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in walnuts.

It takes a lot of work to turn 12 pounds of short ribs into one tiny terrine. But a few of us thought that this recipe of Michel Richard’s was the best dish that came out of our Test Kitchen all year.

SHORT RIB TERRINE

WITH HERB

VINAIGRETTE

(From Citrus’

Michel Richard)

12 pounds lean short ribs

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped

2 carrots, coarsely chopped

1 head garlic, unpeeled, cut in half crosswise

1 onion, coarsely chopped

3 tomatoes, coarsely chopped

2 bay leaves

10 sprigs thyme

2 quarts chicken stock

Coarse salt

Assorted steamed vegetables

Herb Vinaigrette

Season short ribs to taste with salt and pepper. Place in 8- to 10-quart roasting pan. Scatter celery, carrots, garlic, onion, tomatoes, bay leaves and thyme over ribs. Make second layer of ribs if necessary. Pour in chicken stock to cover ingredients. Place over high heat and bring to boil. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees 3 hours.

Cool cooked ribs just enough to handle. Remove bones, fat and gristle from short ribs, leaving meaty portions in 1 piece. Line 8x4-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap, letting wrap extend over edges. Place hot meat pieces lengthwise in pan as close together as possible. Layer until pan is filled. Fold plastic wrap over meat to cover.

Place second 8x4-inch loaf pan on top, pressing down firmly to remove any air pockets. Pour off excess fat or juices. Place weight in top loaf pan and chill until firm.

Remove top pan, unwrap surface of terrine and invert pan onto work surface. Lift off loaf pan and plastic wrap. Cut terrine into 1/2-inch slices. Place on oven-proof serving plates and reheat until warm, sprinkling little coarse salt over each slice. Accompany with steamed vegetables and spoonful of Herb Vinaigrette. Terrine may also be served cold. Makes 12 servings.

Herb Vinaigrette

1 or 2 shallots, minced

1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon chopped chives

Combine shallots, egg yolk, mustard and vinegar in bowl. Blend in olive oil. Fold in chives. Cover and set aside until needed. Makes about 2/3 cup.

Basically, Piemonte’s bagna cauda is a “hot bath” of olive oil, anchovies and plenty of garlic in a terra cotta pot warmed over embers (or a chafing-dish arrangement) in the center of the table. This recipe, from wine maker Giacomo Bologna, uses a whopping pound of garlic for every liter of extra-virgin olive oil.

At the end, when only a little sauce is left in the bagna cauda pot, it’s usual to break an egg into the pot for each person, and let it cook very slowly.

BAGNA CAUDA WITH

VEGETABLES

1/4 pound whole salt-packed anchovies

2 cups extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/2 pound (about 4 heads) cloves garlic, peeled

Assorted Vegetables

1 or 2 eggs per person, at room temperature

Small white truffle, optional

Fillet whole anchovies under running water, washing away all salt. Remove scales and intestines from anchovies if needed. Pat dry, roughly chop and set aside.

Heat olive oil and butter in heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Saute garlic until lightly golden. Add anchovies and cook gently, stirring, until anchovies dissolve into sauce, about 15 to 20 minutes. (Be careful not to burn garlic.) Pass sauce through fine sieve.

Keep sauce warm in chafing pot and serve with Assorted Vegetables. When everyone is sated on vegetables, and only small amount sauce remains in pot, break 1 or 2 eggs for each person into bubbling sauce. Cover and cook few minutes. When eggs begin to set, break yolks with fork and gently stir. (Eggs should be soft curds.) Shave white truffle over cooked eggs just before serving. Makes 6 servings.

Note: Salt-packed anchovies are sold in bulk at some Italian groceries or international delicatessens. If you use anchovy fillets in oil, rinse well and add small amount at time, since these are generally saltier and stronger tasting than salt-packed anchovies. Remember weight in recipe refers to whole salt-packed anchovies, so use much less if you are weighing out fillets only.

Assorted Vegetables

Cardoons, washed and trimmed, cut ends rubbed with little lemon juice to prevent discoloring

Raw or roasted sweet red peppers, cut in quarters or strips

Celery stalks, cut up

Turnips, cut in quarters

Carrots, whole or cut in strips

Red radishes

Fennel, cut in quarters

Jerusalem artichokes

Medium artichokes

Small whole onions, roasted in oven

Beets, baked in jackets, peeled and sliced

Radicchio, escarole and other bitter greens, separated into leaves

Cabbage leaves

Arrange cardoons, sweet peppers, celery, turnips, carrots, radishes, fennel, Jerusalem artichokes, artichokes, roasted onions, beets, radicchio and cabbage on large serving platter and/or basket.

This stew, from chefs Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken, would be a great dish to serve to friends who scoff at meatless meals. It is so hearty and delicious -- and the grapefruit and chile salsa added at the end is such an inspired touch--that nobody could possibly miss the meat.

BORDER GRILL

VEGETARIAN

RED BEAN STEW

2 cups uncooked red beans

Salt

2 carrots, peeled and cut in chunks

2 stalks celery, sliced

2 turnips, peeled and cut in chunks

2 parsnips, peeled and cut in chunks

1 zucchini, cut in chunks

1 yellow crookneck squash, cut in chunks

4 red potatoes, cut in chunks

Extra virgin olive oil

6 cups diced onions

Pepper

1 tablespoon garlic puree

6 tablespoons ground roasted ancho chiles

1 habanero chile, seeds removed and diced, optional

Ancho Chile Salsa

Rinse beans and place in saucepan with 6 cups salted water. Bring to boil over high heat. Boil 3 minutes. Soak beans overnight in salted water. Rinse again. Add 6 cups water and simmer over medium heat until beans are plump, but still firm. Rinse again.

Blanch carrots, celery, turnips and parsnips. Grill zucchini and squash. Cook potatoes in boiling, salted water and drain.

Heat 1/4 cup olive oil in soup pot. Add onions and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook until caramelized, stirring over medium heat until dark golden brown. Add garlic puree and continue to stir until garlic is heated and aroma rises. Stir in ground ancho and diced habanero chiles. Add cooked beans, vegetables and 4 cups water. Cover and cook until beans are slightly tender.

Serve vegetables and beans in large bowl topped with Ancho Chile Salsa and drizzle with extra olive oil. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Ancho Chile Salsa

2 ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed

1 cup orange juice

1/2 cup lime juice

1/2 cup grapefruit juice

Salt, pepper

Roast chiles, being careful not to scorch. Cool, peel, then chop and mix with orange, lime and grapefruit juices. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

This recipe, from the Cheeca Lodge in Islamorada, Fla., uses 15 egg yolks and a quart of cream--for starters. Is it any wonder that it tastes terrific?

CHEECA LODGE

CHOCOLATE CREME

BRULEE

15 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup half and half

1 vanilla bean

1 quart whipping cream

4 ounces semisweet chocolate

Raw or granulated sugar

Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar. Bring half and half and vanilla bean to boil. Stir small amount half-and-half mixture into egg yolk mixture, then return to remaining half-and-half mixture, stirring to blend well. Stir in whipping cream. Strain.

Shave chocolate and place in 13x9-inch baking dish. Fill baking dish with cream mixture. Place baking dish in larger pan filled halfway with hot water. Bake in water bath at 325 degrees 60 minutes or until set.

Coat surface evenly with sugar and broil until sugar caramelizes. Makes 12 servings.

We tested this recipe from Wolfgang Puck’s restaurant, Eureka, late in the day, and although it said, “Cool before serving,” it smelled so tantalizingly delicious that none of us could wait to taste it. And most of us agreed that it was one of the most wonderful things we had ever eaten.

It was good cold the next day too--but not as good.

EUREKA

BUTTERSCOTCH

PUDDING

6 ounces butter

2 1/4 cups brown sugar, packed

2 1/2 cups half and half

10 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 cups milk or half and half

6 egg yolks

1 tablespoon vanilla

Combine butter and brown sugar in saucepan over low heat. Simmer 5 minutes, stirring. Add half and half, stirring until smooth.

Combine cornstarch and salt in bowl. Slowly stir in 1 cup milk or half and half until cornstarch dissolves. Add to saucepan with remaining 3 cups milk or half and half. Bring to boil over low heat, stirring constantly to prevent burning. Boil gently 2 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Slowly whisk in egg yolks, stirring until smooth. Add vanilla.

Return saucepan to heat and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Strain and pour into 12 custard cups. Serve warm or cold. Makes 12 servings.

Most of us don’t love fruitcake. Most of us, in fact, groaned at the thought of tasting one. But this one was different. We tasted it, tasted it again--and then again. Hey, we said to one another, that was really pretty good.

Actually, it was more than pretty good. It was great.

HOLIDAY FRUITCAKE

(From Kathie Jenkins)

1 pound dried apricots, chopped

1 pound dates, chopped

1 pound golden raisins

1 pound red and green candied cherries

1 pound red and green candied pineapple

1 pound almonds, blanched, toasted and chopped

1 pound pecans, broken into pieces

4 cups flour

1 pound unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

12 eggs

1 teaspoon ground cloves

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground mace

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup rum

1/4 cup brandy

Grand Marnier

Juice and zest of 2 oranges

Juice and zest of 2 lemons

Thoroughly grease 4 (8x5-inch) loaf pans. Combine apricots, dates, raisins, candied cherries and pineapple, almonds and pecans in large bowl. Mix in 1 cup flour to dredge mixture. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at time, beating after each addition.

Sift remaining flour with cloves, cinnamon, mace, baking soda and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with rum, brandy, 1/4 cup Grand Marnier and fruit juices and zests. Fold into fruit-nut mixture. Pour into loaf pans. Bake at 300 degrees 2 1/2 to 3 hours, or until wood pick inserted in center of cakes comes out clean.

Cool in pans 15 minutes. Remove from pans onto wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Moisten 4 pieces cheesecloth, large enough to cover each loaf, with Grand Marnier and wrap around each loaf. Wrap Grand Marnier-soaked loaves in foil and refrigerate or store in cool place. Makes 4 (8x4-inch) loaves.

Note: Fruitcake improves in flavor with storage.

This recipe, from Jennifer Brennan’s book, “Curries and Bugles -- A Memoir and a Cookbook of the British Raj” (HarperCollins, $25), is as delicious as you’d expect a dish that combines butter, mangoes and whipping cream with chicken and then tops it all with fried cashews.

“In Bombay it is sworn that the only way to eat mangoes is naked and in the bath,” writes Brennan in her book. “But this dish can be sanely, safely and soberly eaten with your clothes on. Pity! Serve the dish with rice and semi-ripe banana halves, sauteed in a little butter. Fried cashews may be sprinkled over the top.”

AAM MURGHI BOMBAY

3 tablespoons ghee or clarified butter

3 pounds chicken pieces, skinned

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon oil

2 large onions, sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 large ripe mangoes, peeled

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

Zest of 1/2 lemon, cut in strips

1 cup chicken stock

Juice of 1 lemon

1 cup whipping cream

Heat ghee in large saucepan placed over medium-high heat. Saute chicken pieces until lightly browned. Remove chicken and drain over pan.

Reduce heat and add butter and oil to same pan. Saute onions and garlic until tender. Roughly chop flesh of 1 1/2 mangoes. Season with nutmeg, pepper, salt and turmeric. Add lemon zest. Cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Return chicken to pan with chicken stock.

Cover pan and simmer 45 minutes, or until chicken is tender. Remove chicken to heat-proof casserole and keep warm in low oven.

Reduce mango gravy in pan by half. Stir in lemon juice and whipping cream. Cook, stirring, another 5 minutes (do not boil).

Puree gravy in blender or force through sieve. Pour over chicken in casserole. Slice remaining 1 1/2 mangoes crosswise. Arrange decoratively on top and let dish remain in oven 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings.

This is a dish that was mentioned in the text of an article about typical Tuscan food. There was no recipe with the article, but it sounded so incredibly delicious that Donna Deane and Minnie Bernardino, Times Food Stylists, went into the kitchen and whipped up their own version of the dish.

And it is incredibly delicious.

RAVIOLI WITH

RICOTTA AND

SAGE BUTTER

1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese

Grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

Ravioli Pasta Dough

Sage Butter

Sage leaves

Combine ricotta and 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese with nutmeg in bowl. Beat until thoroughly blended. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Divide Ravioli Pasta Dough into 8 portions and using pasta machine set on widest setting, roll several times into thin sheets, 4 inches wide and 18 inches long. Spread each pasta sheet out flat on work surface. Divide dough into left and right halves. Place 8 rounded teaspoons ricotta filling over right hand side of sheet. Moisten pasta with water between filling.

Fold left side of pasta over filling, pressing down all spaces before completely sealing. Seal dough between filling by pressing firmly with sides of hands. Cut into 2-inch squares using fluted pastry wheel. Discard scraps. Transfer to floured cloth. Repeat with remaining pasta sheets.

Cook in boiling salted water until ravioli float to surface, about 5 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and drain in colander. Serve with Sage Butter, sprinkle with additional Parmesan cheese and garnish with sage leaves. Makes 8 servings.

Ravioli Pasta Dough

2 cups unbleached flour, about

3 extra large eggs

1 tablespoon olive oil

Place 2 cups flour in food processor bowl fitted with metal blade. Beat eggs and olive oil in small bowl until thoroughly blended. With motor of food processor running, add egg mixture all at once.

Process until dough forms ball and is very smooth. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead well, adding flour as needed, until dough is smooth and very elastic. (Add small amounts flour while kneading, just enough to keep dough from sticking to hands and surface.) Let dough rest 20 to 30 minutes before rolling out.

Sage Butter

1 cup butter

1/4 cup minced sage

Heat butter in skillet over medium heat until golden brown. Stir in sage, cook 1 to 2 minutes.

An extraordinary soup from chef Patrick Healy of Champagne Restaurant; it has only 150 calories per serving. If you’re not on a diet, this might tempt you to start one.

ROASTED EGGPLANT

AND RED BELL

PEPPER SOUP

3 large Japanese eggplants

Salt, pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

2 sweet red peppers

1 large onion, sliced

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1 quart chicken stock

1 bunch fresh basil

Wash eggplants and split lengthwise in halves. Lightly season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with olive oil to taste.

Roast eggplants at 400 degrees 45 minutes or until tender and golden brown. Puree flesh with skin in blender or food processor. Set aside.

Place peppers under broiler until skins are scorched on all sides. Place in plastic bag 10 minutes to soften, then peel and remove seeds. Puree flesh in food processor until smooth. Set aside.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in skillet. Saute onion and garlic until tender. Cover to sweat over very low heat 5 minutes. Add roasted eggplant puree and chicken stock to onion-garlic mixture.

Cook over low heat 15 minutes until flavors blend and mixture is heated through. Puree mixture in blender or food processor until smooth, then strain into clean bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cut basil leaves into tiny cubes, resembling confetti.

To serve, place serving of soup in deep bowl. Spoon red pepper puree in center and swirl into soup. Drizzle lightly with olive oil, if desired. Sprinkle with basil. Makes 6 servings.