Cooking and Loving

So i am OBSESSED with cooking, most of my spare time is spent perusing blogs or working out while watching giada de laurentis on the food network.  Here is the thing, i have serious recipe envy but every time i try a recipe it never quite is my taste- or turns out. I yearn to do my own thing, im afraid too!! i seriously have the largest collection of recipes ive never even tried and ones that i have rarely make a reappearance.

I need to think of a plan.

My fiance has decided he loves my cooking so much he doesnt need meat anymore. Wohoo!! naturally im ecstatic and its always my goal to impress him like crazy with what i create. He loves when i come up with my own things.
I have been vegetarian for i think 2 or maybe even three years now so ive become a little lazy on the nutrient side. And as you can observe from this blog i have been in and out of many different eating trends (eat to live, vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian)...i truly feel strict vegetarian is the best for my body and i want to strive for a healthy satisfying diet to accommodate that. Especially for him too, as he is a newbie and i dont want him to miss out on anything vital in his diet.

He LOVES hearty filling satisfying meals, think HUGE, and i would be satisfied with a bowl of soup and piece of chewy bread with earth balance, or a bean spread. This will not work for K. Or for future children.
So this blog needs to be a dedication towards meeting in the middle. Filling meets light and refreshing.

I need to be either more adventurous with my cooking- and use different ingredients, or start doing more recipes so i can understand how to create this filling meals. Getting married soon, i know dinner will have to be on the table and it better be a good one to so he doesnt start thinking he needs meat again.

I really want to make an effort to start cooking and using different ingredients- for REAL this time. No messing around. Im going to make a short list of recipes to try and DO them. If we like them, i will make my own versions. And i must document my experiences so i can formulate a cook book, K loves having good things over again.

Where to start? My favorite blogs:
-vegan version
-oh she glows
-vegan num num
-vegan yum yum
-lunch box bunch
-vegan dad

my favorite magazine- Vegetarian times (not many vegan recipes though!)

and of course, various vegan cookbooks ive collected over the years.
Some will be success, some will be fails but ive got to follow through.

Some recent success:
-wild rice with tomato/mushroom/onion chutney + grilled tofu * (fry the tofu next time!)
-cauliflower bisque with buttered bread crumbs (the kind life)
-mushroom "no meat" loaf (vegan version)
-spanish chickpea balls (vegan num num)

Fails:
-polenta (vegan dad)- just do not like it, too bland