Love is in the air, and it smells like...bacon

I can't help it. I'm a sucker for Valentine's Day. I love the guys on the subway gripping single roses in cellophane - talking to themselves (are they rehearsing?). I love chewy cinnamon hearts and the chalky message ones (SWEET TART). I love paper cutout cupids and the idea of a daring, unlikely paring over sushi. This is one Hallmark holiday I've always swallowed hook, line and sinker.

Since I can remember, I've loved sweet and savory tastes together - the dried apricots in my mother's stuffed cabbage, the cooked-to-oblivion prunes in my grandmother's Tzimmes. A sour patch kid. My French kitchen is full of these sweet/tart pairings - goat cheese and fig jam, lamb and pears tagine.

I recently found a new sweet/tart combo – and it's a winner. Getting over jetlag from my last trip to the US, I needed to use up a red cabbage that had been wilting since before my trip. Wide awake at 4am, I consulted my Joy of Cooking. Their version of braised red cabbage is more like sauerkraut, with lots of salt. What I wanted was a quick sauté with a sweet finish. So I tweaked and dabbled, and this is the result.

This recipe is what I call almost-elegant food. I would make this for an informal dinner party; it's so homey, yet something about the royal purple cabbage gives it a bit of gravitas – and dare I say it, flair. Sausage and cabbage may not have the ring of a romantic Valentine's Day meal, but the first time I made this, G. kept coming into the kitchen and sticking his nose straight in the pot. To get to the pot, he had to put his arms around me. See where I'm going with this?

If you were trying to stuff your Valentine like a Thanksgiving turkey, I suppose you could add mashed potatoes, but I prefer my dining companion devote less energy to digestion, more energy to other things.

For dessert, why not try these spicy chocolate pots, served in espresso cups – again, less is more. Enjoy!

Pork Sausage with Honeyed Red Cabbage

2 best quality lean pork sausages - try to find a butcher who makes his own - after all it's is Valentine's Day, so why not go a little out of your way...
1 small head of red cabbage (approximately 1 pound), thinly sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
4 whole cloves
10 whole Sichuan or black peppercorns
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons honey

Slice the cabbage thinly, and soak in a bowl of cold water for 15 minutes. You'll get this gorgeous royal purple water (which will stain your hands and your clothes – so please, wear an apron!

Meanwhile, in a large non-reactive heavy skillet (stainless steel) or a Dutch oven (I use my enameled Le Crueset), brown the sausages with the olive oil. Add onion and spices, sauté until just starting to color. Deglaze with honey and vinegar. Then quickly throw in the cabbage, drained of purple water.

Lower the heat a bit and sauté for 15-20 minutes. I like my cabbage al dente – but if you like yours fondant, keep cooking, adding a little water along the way.

Serve the sausages on a bed of cabbage with Dijon mustard, and a sturdy Cote de Rhone.
Serves 2.