On Hearts and Minds

Lamb's and veal brains are pale pink and delicate.

Lamb’s heart is the most tender and lightest in flavor.
Pig’s heart is larger and slightly coarser;
Beef or ox heart is big, but not very tender.
All need long, slow cooking and careful preparation.

Chicken hearts are very small

Source

What I like about this poem, taken from the offal section of a coffee table book about food, it the way its language stands at the crossroads of ingestion and desire, tallying up the few knowable landmarks in the terra incognita of consumption. In food and in love, the author suggests, there is no telling what will attract; all the advice one can give is a description of how to find and prepare each heart. Some will choose the tender brain of the lamb, and those who do must invest patient attention; some will try the hearts of chickens, no matter that they've been warned.