This is my last week of classes before exams.  Just as the weather becomes warm and we delirious 1Ls begin to wander out of doors like dazed, caged animals shielding our eyes from the sun, they lock us down again for a month of studying.  It is the cruelest month.

Perhaps unwisely, I took Saturday off from work for something of a “last hoorah” before finals arrive.  It’s wasn’t really a last hoorah, mainly because there weren’t really any preceding hoorahs for it to follow.  Still, I dragged Alex to the farmer’s market at 8 a.m., and we spent the day cooking for beautiful dinner party.

The meal began with these little mushroom toasts — made entirely from local ingredients we found downtown.  We simmered the mushrooms with vinegar and herbs to create a delicious warm mushroom salad, which we spooned onto fresh ricotta spread over toasted rosemary bread.  Our favorite component was the micro-mesclun greens, which we found at a stand featuring so many unique and gorgeous varieties of greens.

These made a wonderful start to a cheerful hoorah, but you can serve them at other types of parties as well, or for yourself as a simple lunch or appetizer.  Also, we’ll probably take another  blogging hiatus until finals conclude in about a month, but we’re already planning a line-up of dishes to cook and share when summer’s here.

Ingredients (serves 4):
1/2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 lb. button mushrooms
1/2 lb. cremini mushrooms
1/4 lb. oyster mushrooms
1 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp flat-leaf parsely, chopped
1 tsp fresh tarragon, chopped
1 tsp grated lemon zest
salt and pepper to taste
4 thin slices rosemary bread, toasted
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
1/2 cup micr0-mesclun or other small greens

Instructions:
Heat butter and oil in a pan.  Add mushrooms and 1/4 cup water, then season with salt and pepper.  Cook covered for 15 minutes, then add balsamic vinegar, parsley, tarragon and lemon zest.  Cook for another 5 minutes until liquid is syrupy.  Spread ricotta onto slices of bread, and spoon mushrooms over top.  Top with micro-mesclun and serve.

It’s among our lifelong cooking goals to bake tofu as delicious as the tofu at the Whole Food’s salad bar (that, growing a gigantic vegetable garden, and mastering the knack of cake decoration, for starters).

This last attempt marked a definitive step forward in our attempt to capture the illusory texture that makes the Whole Foods tofu so divine.  We shifted our focus from flavor to texture, and attribute our progress to a last-minute decision to bake the tofu on a roasting pan, which caused the extra marinade to drip off and allowed the tofu to become extra chewy and crisp.

We loved the combination of tofu and rice during our last tofu bake, but decided to step it this time with rice AND lettuce and carrots.  Surely, we’ve grown too daring for our own oven mitts.

Ingredients:
2 blocks extra firm tofu, sliced into 1/3-inch pieces
1 head Butter lettuce
2 cups cooked rice
1 cup bean sprouts
1 carrot, cut into very thin slices

(marinade)
1/4 cup tamari soy sauce
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp grated ginger

Instructions:
Cover a baking sheet with three to four layers of paper towels.  Place tofu slices on the paper towels, and cover with an additional three to four layers of paper towels.  Place a second baking sheet on top of the tofu, and weigh it down with water-filled pots, law/medical school books, or other heavy items.  Let tofu press for 30 minutes, then change paper towels and repeat for another 30 minutes.  Remove paper towels, and place tofu back on the baking sheet.  Whisk together marinade ingredients, and pour marinade over tofu.  Preheat the oven broiler. Let tofu marinate for 20-30 minutes, and then place tofu on a roasting pan, reserving any extra marinade for dipping (if you don’t have a roasting pan, just keep them on the baking sheet).  Broil tofu for about 7 minutes on each side, until golden brown.  Assemble lettuce wraps with tofu, carrots, bean sprouts, rice and leftover marinade dipping sauce.