Capture A Man With An "Engagement Chicken"

And, more importantly, his engagement ring.

You might be tempted, when you see Glamour’s new cookbook, 100 Recipes Every Woman Should Know, to assume it’s 1969. Back then, Helen Gurley Brown told the Single Girl how to seduce a man with Pommes Dauphinoises (“Can’t you forget how fat you’re getting, just this once?”) and how to kick him out the morning after with wine-poached “Ghastly Eggs.” I’d say Glamour’s updated the formula, but instead they’ve just recycled it: 100 Recipes was inspired by an “Engagment Chicken” that’s won rocks for scored of the magazine’s staffers and their readers. And that’s not all!!! In addition to Engagement Chicken, “the book covers breakfast (“He Stayed Over Omelette”), entrees (“Let’s Make a Baby Pasta”) and drinks (“Forget the Mistake You Made at Work Margarita”), all tried-and-true recipes perfected by Leive and her editors.” Oh, and let’s not forget “skinny jean scallops.” But don’t worry, it’s not all about pleasing one’s man: meet “No Guy Required Grilled Steak.”As Leive tells the Daily News, “Each one of these recipes satisfies a certain need that comes up in a woman’s life.”

I’m all for people knowing how to cook, which is a great skill, a way to save money, and a real source of pleasure. When we cook for someone, or make a meal with someone else, we’re sharing a piece of our history and revealing a part of ourselves. I’m not even opposed to gimmicky cookbooks, which can be a lot of fun. And I’d even go so far as to say, yeah, it’s useful for any omnivore to have a simple roast chicken recipe in her arsenal. But not because it’ll get you a proposal. Gurley-Brown’s rationale was more to the point: “Never trust a man who isn’t interested in food,” she wrote. “If a man isn’t capable of savoring the thrills of fine food, he can never truly savor all the marvels of a woman.”