So many recipes, so little time

I never cease to be amazed by people who say they make the same four or five meals over and over and over again. I am equally perplexed by people who say they can never think of what to cook. My friends, I have the exact opposite problem. There never seems to be enough hours in the day or days in the week to try all the recipes I want to try and to experiment with all the recipes already in my repertoire.

At this very moment, and in no particular order, I want to make:
• French Onion Soup. We love French onion soup in our house, but have never made it ourselves. Online recipe searching turned up many recipes with an extensive ingredients list including several items for which I would have no other use. Any recommendations on a recipe that provides amazing depth of flavor without having to buy out the liquor store to achieve that flavor would be greatly appreciated.
• Meatballs. I’m totally intrigued by the idea and have been know to crave them periodically, but have never made them. I was deeply scarred by several encounters with really bad (read: spongy and bland) meatballs in the 80s and haven’t yet fully recovered. This could very well explain my hesitancy in tackling them myself.
• Chocolate truffles…no explanation/justification necessary
• The Barefoot Contessa’s lemon cake (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-cake-recipe/index.html). I came across this recipe in a magazine many years ago and was immediately intrigued. A few years later I was delighted to learn the author of this recipe would be debuting a show on Food Network. The rest, as they say, is history.
• Lobster stuffed beef tenderloin, a recipe found in “Dining by Fireflies,” a cookbook from the Junior League of Charlotte. Two luxury ingredients rolled into one perfect entrée. I am certain it would be a showstopper and a crowd pleaser if I could just get around to making it.
• Chocolate strawberry tuxedos (we learned the technique on our recent cruise, now we have to attempt this stunt without a net or, in this case, without Chef Darcy on standby).
• Shrimp Scampi that tastes exactly like it does at Carrabba’s. Any ideas/inspiration/inside information would be appreciated beyond measure. This one truly confounds me, it seems to have all the standard scampi ingredients, but the taste is not like anything else I’ve ever had that called itself Scampi.
• Alton Brown’s Slow Cooker Pepper Pork Chops (http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/slow-cooker-pepper-pork-chops-recipe/index.html). These are unbelievable and it’s been a couple of years since I’ve made this recipe (for no other reason than what the title of this post suggests.) When you try this, and you must, be kind to yourself and spin the leftovers into a Shepherd’s Pie. Trust me; you’ll be so very glad that you did.

Fellow foodies and cooks, this is just the short list of what’s on my mind at the moment, ask me again tomorrow and you may get a dozen different ideas. Have I said, so many recipes, so little time?

Is it just me? What about you guys? What are you craving/daydreaming about/contemplating for your next kitchen adventure? Do share; after all, that’s half the fun of cooking.