An Intimate Dinner For Valentine's Day

WHEN dinner for two for Valentine's Day is a homemade meal there has to be love in the preparation and serving.

This intimate feast starts with a rosy pasta dish followed by shrimp with artichokes and potatoes. The dessert is chocolate, a warm baked pudding for two, which is best made about an hour in advance. As for oysters, supposedly endowed with aphrodisiac qualities, some of these ordered on the half shell from a reliable fish market might be served with Champagne to start.

The wine of choice to accompany the Valentine dinner is the Beaujolais called St.-Amour. Georges Duboeuf has a particularly fine one complete with a special heart-shaped label. The 1993 is about $10 a bottle. Farfalle With Radicchio Total time: 25 minutes Salt 6 ounces farfalle (bow-tie pasta) 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 2 ounces prosciutto, finely slivered 1 head radicchio, cored and shredded 1 tablespoon unsalted butter Freshly ground black pepper Freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil for the farfalle. When it is boiling, add the farfalle, cook until al dente, about eight minutes; drain.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a heavy skillet. Add the prosciutto and saute over medium heat until it begins to brown. Add the radicchio and stir-fry a few minutes, until it begins to wilt. Add a few tablespoons of the pasta cooking water and continue to cook until the radicchio is tender.

3. Add the drained pasta to the skillet and toss well. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the butter. Serve at once with Parmesan cheese.

Yield: 2 servings. Ragout of Shrimp, Artichokes and Potatoes Total time: 45 minutes 8 small new potatoes, peeled and halved Salt 2 medium-size artichokes Juice of 1 lemon 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley 1 large clove garlic, chopped 1 teaspoon curry powder 1/2 cup dry white wine 1 1/2 tablespoons flour Freshly ground black pepper to taste 10 jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined.

1. Put the potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water, add a sprinkling of salt and bring to a simmer. Cook until they are barely tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

2. While the potatoes are cooking, trim the stems of the artichokes flush with the base and remove all the leaves and discard them. Using a sharp knife, cut away the fuzzy center choke, leaving the fleshy bottom, or heart, of each artichoke. Cut into eighths and toss with the lemon juice.

3. Heat half the oil in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the artichokes, potatoes, parsley and garlic. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring, until the artichokes and potatoes are lightly browned and tender when they are pierced with a sharp knife.

4. While these ingredients are cooking, dissolve the curry powder in a tablespoon of the wine.

5. When the artichokes and potatoes are tender, remove them from the skillet and set aside. Season the flour with salt and pepper to taste and toss the shrimp in the flour to coat them lightly.

Add the remaining oil to the skillet and increase heat to medium. Add the shrimp, stir-fry for a minute or two until they turn pink, then add the curry powder mixture and stir. Add the remaining wine.

6. Cook, stirring, until the wine just coats the bottom of the pan. Return the artichokes and potatoes to the pan, stir, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Yield: 2 servings. Baked Chocolate Pudding Total time: 1 hour plus resting time 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature 1/2 cup sugar 1 1/2 squares unsweetened chocolate 1/4 cup lowfat milk 1 jumbo egg, separated 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 tablespoons flour 1/4 cup chocolate sauce 1/2 cup heavy cream, whipped.

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 16-ounce souffle dish with half a tablespoon of the butter and line the bottom with waxed paper.

2. Cream the remaining butter with the sugar. Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler. Stir in the milk, then blend into the butter mixture. Beat in the egg yolk and stir in the vanilla and the flour.

3. Beat the egg until softly peaked and fold into the chocolate mixture. Spoon the batter into the prepared dish, put the dish in a pan of boiling water that comes halfway up the sides of the dish, put in the oven and bake about 40 minutes, until the top is firm to the touch.

4. Remove from the oven and allow to sit in the warm water for at least 30 minutes. To serve, run a knife around the inside of the baking dish, unmold onto a plate, peel off the waxed paper and spoon the chocolate sauce around the pudding. Serve with whipped cream on the side.

Yield: 2 servings.