building the recipe list

so far, i've got a couple of notches in my belt: breakfasts and snacks, chicken bryan, veggie mac and cheeseburger casserole, chicken cutlets, steamed veggies of all sorts. problem is, i don't have enough entrees that i'm crazy about yet. i made sirloin steak and it was fine, but not fabulous. same goes for the chicken saltimbocca. i had high hopes for that. DH loved the jambalaya, and it was okay for me, but the earth didn't move.

so. the bistro meals are still coming. i want at least 10-12 really great entrees before i cut the cord. the szechuan chicken/beef was all right, but didn't make my heart flutter. yesterday i had the bistro stir fry beef, and it was clear that i need to get the sauce absolutely right, so i love it the same. progress has been made, for sure, but i'm just not there yet.

i saved the label from the beef entree, so i have a list of ingredients. i can either attempt to re-create the sauce myself (PITA alert!) or compare it to ready-made sauces to find one that's as close as possible.

also on my to-do list: identify a strategy for replacing the cheese tortillini/ravioli meals (i LOVE those), create a buffalo chicken entree without turning it into a salt lick, try fish. i also need a good sauce for steak. (maybe i should just use A-1...) wouldn't some kind of indian curry be great too? like a chicken vindaloo or jalfreeze, maybe with low-fat creamed spinach and rice with peas. that's the nice thing about branching out on my own - i can use flavors bistro doesn't because they might not have the wide appeal. food for thought.