The best way to your Valentine's heart, the saying goes, may be through his or her stomach. When the chosen food is red velvet cake, the result is even more assured. Chefs at San Francisco's longtime popular/now closed American Cupcake bakery and cafe went one step further in guaranteeing success: innovative uses that got worldwide media attention of red velvet batter that may surprise and thrill even the most gourmet Valentine and that you can emulate in your home kitchen.

Either make or buy red velvet cake or cupcakes and store that away for a tasty dessert. Red velvet cake is a rich chocolate layer cake made with cocoa powder, buttermilk, red food coloring and cream cheese frosting that's popular nationwide.

The chefs at American Cupcake creatively included red velvet cake batter in the batter for their fried chicken, and soaked chicken pieces in it, and then breaded it with red velvet cake crumbs. All of this gives the fried chicken a distinct slightly sweet flavor and red tinge. You could do the same for your sweetie starting with your own favorite fried chicken recipe as a base.

Here are a few other ideas inspired by items that had been on the menu at American Cupcake, which SF Eater described as "like a candy store for adults."

PANCAKES THAT SET A MOOD

Make pancakes for your sweetheart with red velvet cake batter. Serve with red food coloring-infused whipped cream, maraschino cherries and cherry- or raspberry-flavored syrup.

PINK POPCORN SHRIMP

Toss popped popcorn with red or pink food coloring. Crush popcorn or pulse in a strong blender or a food processor. Use it as part of popcorn shrimp breading and fry according to the directions of a popcorn shrimp recipe. Serve atop a bed of popped pink popcorn and serve with dipping sauces, such as Candy Apple Barbecue Sauce (see below).

CANDY APPLE RIBS

Prepare candy apple coating according to a candy apple recipe and include a drizzle of apple juice. Stir in homemade or store-bought barbecue sauce. Coat ribs in this Candy Apple Barbecue Sauce before cooking according to a rib recipe. If using as a dipping sauce for another entree, cook the sauce thoroughly first.

COCOA-INFUSED SLAW

Into store-bought or homemade cole slaw, stir dashes of unsweetened cocoa powder and sugar. If desired, add finely chopped roasted peanuts and minced green onions.

AFTER-WORK GOURMET COOKBOOK SHELF

Anthony Bourdain has lots of inspirations that could fill a cookbook, "Appetites," his first in 10 years. First he was a professional chef, and now a globe-trotting chronicler of the most interesting food the world has to offer on his CNN series, "Parts Unknown." However, Bourdain, now a father, decided to pull together instead his all-time favorites to share with family and friends. This kind of intimate writing and recipes are a gift, and include offerings most readers may want to duplicate many times, such as a Boston Lettuce Salad with Radishes, Apples, Carrots and Yogurt-Chive Dressing; Ravioli of Salt Cod with Lobster Sauce; and Roasted Baby Beets with Red Onion and Oranges.

Lisa Messinger is a first-place winner in food writing from the Association of Food Journalists and the author of seven food books, including "Mrs. Cubbison's Best Stuffing Cookbook" and "The Sourdough Bread Bowl Cookbook." To find out more about Lisa Messinger and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.