way to his heart

The past, present and future of a popular proverb has weaved through women’s lifestyle magazines, love stories and Katherine Heigl romcom movies since the 1950s. This common cliché serves as a golden piece of wisdom from the female’s mighty book of knowledge on the opposite sex. Sometime between braces and Sweet 16 parties, grandmother’s and mother’s alike spend a day in the kitchen passing down this ageless note of advice on not only how to catch a man, but how to keep him.  While sifting flour and tightening apron strings, it is a guarantee that someone will say, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”

Now whether or not this pithy piece of advice is true or not, all women in less than a week will start to think about how to impress their significant other on the upcoming love-filled holiday. This Valentine’s Day forget the courtside tickets and hour-long dinner reservations and give him what he really wants; meatloaf.

Esquire Magazine’s Manly Meatloaf

By Michael Symon

1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 red onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lbs coarse ground beef (preferably with 20 percent fat)
1 1/2 lbs hot Italian pork sausage, removed from casing
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup panko bread crumbs
Coarse salt and ground black pepper to taste
Blended olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Melt butter in small skillet over medium heat and sweat onions and garlic until translucent. Let onions cool.

3. Place remaining ingredients and onion mixture in large bowl and mix with your hands.

4. Oil a 9-by-5-inch meat-loaf pan with blended olive oil and place mixture in pan, pressing down and packing medium tight (or mold into a meat-loaf shape and place in shallow roasting pan).

5. Bake for 40 minutes or until it reaches an internal temperature of 170 degrees. Remove from pan.

Jenny’s Kale Chips

1 bunch of organic kale
1 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and ground black pepper

1. Wash and pat dry kale. With hands, rip the leaves into chip-sized pieces away from the stem until you have ripped up entire bunch of kale.

2. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper.

3. Bake at 375 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.