Valentines / Matters of the Heart / Cooking / The Way to a Man's Heart is Through His Stomach ?

Valentines Quote for the Day:

The way to a man's heart is through his stomach.  (English proverb)

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There are many "answers" to where this saying began.  Again, who thinks of these things?  I suppose that if you took a measuring tape and actually measured the inches from the heart to the stomach this would be an accurate proverb.  :)

I am thankful that I did not win my husband's heart that way....what a relief!  I'm really average, and at times, below average in the "art" of cooking.  Trial and error can be the best teacher over time.  When we were first married, if dinner was a disaster, my husband rarely complained but I'd find him in the kitchen later eating a peanut butter sandwich.  That came to be our gentle "signal" that dinner was not particularly tasty.  Over the years I have developed my own style and everyone in our family certainly has favorites.  Maybe I should do what  Julie Powell did and blog while cooking my way through a popular cookbook like she did with Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking.  I'll  have to think about that one.  


From my experience, just about everyone loves to have something cooked for them.  Women appreciate this as much as men do.  I love it when my husband and/or sons grill steaks or shish kabobs, or even fix a sandwich for me.  I'm happy when someone brings me a cup of hot coffee, too.  :)  The three men in our home love it when I make something that they especially like.  For example, my husband loves to come home from work and smell dinner (just about anything) cooking in the oven or simmering on the stove.  My older son feels loved when I pick out favorite foods to have on hand for snacks and enjoys when I prepare lasagna with garlic bread (one of his favorite meals); my younger son loves taco salad or chili at any time of the year and gets a big smile when I make either since he knows I know it's one of his favorites.  To extend outward, our neighbors were delighted to receive a loaf of homemade bread as Christmas gifts this year.

For me, cooking is generally just following a tried and true recipe from a reliable source.  I often use AllRecipes.com and Taste of Home websites for ideas.  I also love cookbooks by Martha Stewart (I'm not going to make a tablecloth  that same day though) and Natalie Duprée.  

Since I make most of the family's meals I want to spend my kitchen time working on something that is pretty much foolproof.  I don't know if I'll ever think of cooking as an art  form like some do--I'd rather sit down and play the piano--but I'll keep on keeping on so my family  is contented to be at home having dinner together.  It's not just the meal, you see, it's the special company you keep that's important anyway.  Plus, it's a way to express my love to the people I love.    :)

For this morning, my husband is taking me out for breakfast at Panera.  It's nice to have someone cook for me, too!