Pear, amaretti, and chocolate pie

To prepare the pear, amaretti, and chocolate pie, start with the Shortcrust pastry: the ingredients should be cold from the fridge. In a food processor, place the sifted flour, a pinch of salt, and the butter cut into pieces just taken from the fridge 1. Blend everything in pulses to avoid overheating the butter, until you obtain a sandy and floury mixture 2, then pour the obtained mixture onto a work surface (or into a bowl). Add the sifted powdered sugar 3.

Create a well in the center and pour in the grated lemon zest and yolks 4 (you can also flavor with orange zest, the seeds of a vanilla bean, or cinnamon). Then start mixing everything first with a fork, then when the eggs have absorbed the flour, you can continue by hand, just enough time to compact the dough without overheating it: form a dough ball, flatten it 5, and wrap it in plastic wrap. Then place it in the refrigerator to firm up for at least 30 minutes. In the meantime, peel the Abate pears with a vegetable peeler 6,

remove the core by cutting them in half (7-8) and dice them into not too small pieces 9.

In a saucepan, pour the butter 10 and let it melt over low heat, then add the pears 11 and cook over medium heat for about 3-4 minutes; in the meantime, gather the amaretti in the food processor 12

with the cocoa 13; in a separate small bowl, pour the sugar and cinnamon 14; then add the amaretto di Saronno to the pears and let it evaporate 15;

add the cinnamon-flavored sugar to the pears 16 and then the amaretti and cocoa powder 17, mix well with a spoon 18 and cook over moderate heat until the pears have lost their water, about 10 minutes;

transfer the obtained mixture to a bowl and let it cool slightly, then add the orange zest 19 and the cornstarch 20, then cover with plastic wrap and set aside 21.

Grease a 8-inch diameter mold on the bottom (and 9 inches on top if using a fluted one) with a pat of butter 22; then take the pastry dough and divide it 23, taking two-thirds for the base and one-third for the top. Roll out the two-thirds of pastry into a disc 1/8 inch thick 34

then roll the disc onto the rolling pin, and unroll it onto the mold 25, pressing well into the bottom and sides, then trim the excess pastry (set aside the scraps for decoration) 26; brush the bottom with half the amount of orange marmalade 27.

Cover with the other disc made with a third of the dough 28; always brush with orange marmalade and prick the edges with a fork 29, so that during cooking the moisture of the filling can escape without ruining the pie; knead and roll out the leftover pastry: you can create decorations 30

that you will place on the pie's surface as you like (31-33). Bake the pear, amaretti, and chocolate pie in a preheated static oven at 355°F for about 25-30 minutes (320°F for 15-20 minutes if fan-forced). After the first 30 minutes, lower the temperature to 340°F (300°F if fan-forced) and continue until the end of the cooking time, another 30-35 minutes (20-25 minutes if fan-forced). You can cover the pie with aluminum foil after the first 30 minutes to prevent it from browning too much. Before removing the pear, amaretti, and chocolate pie from the oven, check the consistency of the filling with a skewer. Remove the pie from the oven 33, and before serving, let it cool slightly.