Yay for me. My first post on eGullet! I've been working on a few things this year, attempting to replicate favourite dishes from oft-visited restaurants near my home and office. The first one is a shrimp and white bean salad over mixed baby greens in a light lemon vinaigrette. The sweetness of the shrimp is accentuated by the earthy starchiness of cannelini beans, with the vinaigrette adding a slight acidic touch. A delicious salad from a small mom and pop pizza joint in Saddle Brook, NJ named "La Mezzaluna Trattoria". I haven't gotten the vinaigrette just right, yet. It's a mixture (I think) of finely minced celery, minced red onion, lemon zest, parsley (maybe basil and oregano, too?), olive oil, and vinegar. It can't be too powerful, or you lose the interplay of shrimp and beans. The second one is grilled Caribbean style pork chops, from the now defunct "Jimmy Armstrong's Saloon" in NYC. Actually, I've been trying to make these chops for a few years now, but have only recently come close to the real thing. Well, as real as I can remember. Armstrong's was a great little restaurant on the northern reaches of Hell's Kitchen which sadly went out of business when Jimmy died a few years ago. But, without a doubt, Jimmy made the best grilled chops in the world. A few weeks ago, I tried making the marinade more like a brine, and that seems to have done the trick. I could never figure out he got so much garlic and bay flavorings into the meat, and how he made them so juicy. My last attempt was a little over the top, having let them sit in the marinade for 2 days. So now, I just have to back off some of the spices, and reduce marinating time, and I think I'll have it. The last new thing that I've tried this year was my first Manhattan style clam chowder: http://www.recipezaar.com/Buckytoms-Manhat...-Chowder-354393 I made it for a pot luck "soup party" that my sister threw for my family in January, and it was a big hit. It was the only soup that everyone went back for seconds. I incorporated both fresh and canned clams, using chopped large clams as well as whole baby clams for different textures. Everyone asked how I got it to taste so "clammy". I'm just beginning to tackle Korean food, so I hope to be able to make a good kalbi jim and/or naeng myun this summer.