If you've never been to Copia, February might be a good time to check it out. Not only is admission free for the entire month, but as you enter the door, you're likely to be given a sample of a perfectly decadent, luscious hot chocolate.

Chocolate is the thing this month at Copia with a range of programs devised to delight chocoholics, culminating in the annual Death by Chocolate tasting experience, Feb. 18.

The event includes tastings of chocolates from a variety of purveyors, wine pairings and this year, the Best Darn Chocolate Chip Cookie contest finalists.

Copia invited home cooks to send in their favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes and the finalists' concoctions will be available for sampling at Death By Chocolate, when the winners (including a Peoples' Choice) will be announced.

Linda Carucci, curator of food, and the Copia staff, screened the submissions and then invited a panel to taste and judge the dozen finalists last Friday. Among them were cookbook authors Flo Page, James McNair and Alice Medrich, Copia's resident dessert pro Nicole Plue, pastry chef for Juila's Kitchen, and yours truly. We spent two grueling hours eating cookies and discussing the finer points of the art of creating a perfect chocolate chip cookie. Interestingly we first tasted the cookies blind, so to speak, (without looking at the recipe) while the pros made guesses at what unusual ingredients the cooks had included to make their cookies stand out. Then we got to see the recipes. Suffice to say there will be some interesting ingredients in the cookies that will be available for guests at Death by Chocolate to taste and vote on for the Peoples' Choice. The Register will print the winning recipes after the Feb. 18 event.

Plue is conducting a workshop Feb. 12 "Nicole's Sweet Shop: Focus on Chocolate" where she'll demonstrate how to make confections including Chocolate-Cashew Drages and Chocolate Brownie Cookies. This program is $35 ($25 for Copia members.)

Medrich, the renowned Berkeley chocolatier, will be making an appearance on Feb. 18. Having sat next to her through out the tasting, I can report that she is positively eagle-eyed about recipes, which is probably why her current book, "Chocolate Holidays, Unforgettable Desserts for Every Season" is such a gem. She comes up with imaginative ways to use chocolate all year long, from Winter Solstice Cookies and Chocolate Latkes to Ice Cream Easter Eggs and Chocolate Banana Waffles for Dad. Wedding cakes, Independence Day Sundaes and Day of the Dead Cookies are just a few more of her ideas. It's only a wonder that one doesn't gain 10 pounds just reading the book.

Medrich will be signing copies of her new book Feb. 18 at Copia, during a demonstration "Playing with Chocolate" at 11 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. She'll be sharing techniques for the home cook like making chocolate truffles, glazing and marbling a chocolate torte and creating a simple but spectacular chocolate basket.

Tickets for Death by Chocolate, which runs from 1 to 3 p.m. are $35 and may be purchased in advance. Last year this event sold out.

From Medrich's "Chocolate Holidays," here's her Valentine suggestion.

Breakfast Valentines

Alice Medrich

"Chocolate Holidays"

For a special Valentine's breakfast for tea, the quintessential chocolate scone to nibble with barely sweetened whipped cream, creme fraiche and jam. Makes 10 2 3/4 inch scones.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup sugar

1 Tbs. baking powder if using Dutch-process cocoa or a scant 1 tsp. baking soda if using natural cocoa

1/4 tsp. salt

10 Tbs. (1 1/4 sticks) melted, unsalted butter, hot

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. unsweetened cocoa powder, Dutch process or natural

1 egg, cold

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. cold milk

Barely sweetened whipped cream for serving, optional

Creme fraiche, for serving, optional

Jam, for serving, optional

Berries, for serving, optional

Equipment

A 2 1/2 inch heart-shaped biscuit or cookie cutter

1 baking sheet, preferably lined with parchment, otherwise ungreased

Directions:

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

To make the Valentines, in a medium bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder or soda and salt.

In a separate bowl, mix the hot butter and cocoa until smooth. Stir in the egg and milk. Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients. Fold gently with a rubber spatula, scraping the ingredients from the sides of the bowl to the center, just until all of the flour mixture is moistened. Do not try to make a smooth dough.

Place the dough on a sheet of wax paper and pat it into a 10 by 5 inch rectangle ( assuming your cookie cutter is 2 1/2 inches). Chill the dough for about 15 minutes to firm it up slightly.

Cut out eight hearts. Use the dough scraps to form two more hearts. Transfer the hearts to the baking sheet. Bake until the tops are dry and cracked and the bottoms have begun to color, about 12 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. Serve plain, dusted with powdered sugar or with the whipped cream, creme fraiche with jam or berries if desired.