Culinary Travel and Educational Cooking & Culinary History Vacations

A Cook Italy 3 or 6 nights class in the countryside - just like the day classes in Bologna which are so convenient for those staying in Florence and Milan - is above all enjoyable. Serious about food and cooking but very relaxed in spirit. It is about enjoying Italy and Italian food in convivial company, a very Italian approach! On a Cook Italy week, you will have 5 hands-on cooking classes preparing three course meals using authentic regional recipes. In choosing the meals, I like to showcase the richly varied range of Italian regional cuisine and to give you the history and background to a dish, not just the recipe and cooking tips. You join in according to your mood, cooking a lot everyday or sometimes just watching, chatting, sipping wine, helping set the table or tidying up.I keep the groups very small, usually 2 - 6, never more than 8. That way you really get to do hands-on cooking and get individual attention too. The techniques are straight forward as is usual with Italian home cooking. It avoids fussiness, aiming instead to let the food speak for itself - to bring out the flavours of the food, not to impose flavours from the outside. On some weeks there is a food related tour to the producers, who are people who I have chosen for their skill, passion and dedication to their art, whether cheese, olive oil, prosciutto or wine making. The warmth of the hospitality is the other basis for my selection - it is not unusual for the olive oil or wine maker to join us for lunch or invite us to a special food and wine event, or to personally ring a restaurant to make a booking on our behalf and ensure we get the best treatment. And there is one free day for you to fill as you please, to accommodate the varied interests of the typically independent Cook Italy guest!
Cooking classes are generally held in the morning, so after breakfast we meet and start preparations of the day's 3 course lunch. You do most of the cooking from the recipe folder I give you having consulted with you before hand about the menus. I demonstrate if necessary, and give help and tips, answer questions and talk about Italian ways with food preparation, customs at table, the Italian approach to a meal..... There is a lot of laughter and a lot of photos are taken, and as the meal preparations approach completion, someone usually suggests it is time for an aperitivo or a glass of wine! We have lunch, talking about food and wine and what everyone is going to do that afternoon. Then a quick kitchen tidy before going off to relax with a book or by the pool or setting off to visit a winery or to visit pretty nearby towns of historic or shopping interest. Sometimes I may come along with you if you need my help to negotiate a special purchase. Evenings you are free to come back for a supper I prepare for you, or to eat out at your own expense.

Imagine Your Dream Vacation in Tuscany and Umbria...

Our Italian Cooking Vacations through Tuscany and Umbria are not just about what you see, but how you see it. They are all about fun, laughter and a sense of family. We reject mass tourism in favor of discovering the real Italy. After all, it's about so much more than just the sights you see, so we integrate you into the warm and friendly Italian culture at every opportunity. You will discover Italy among the Italians, rather than being wrapped in a crowd of other tourists. This wonderful and warm Italian experience is what makes it the trip of a lifetime. Look further and discover what makes us so special... and get ready to become a part of our extended family!

You can also feel confident with us. We are a well-established organization based in the United States, but operating in Italy. We are one of the most successful and well established cooking vacation operators in all of Italy, and we always welcome requests for references.
Think FAMILY. Our groups are small; always 14 or fewer people, and we all become fast friends. Our staff and our guests quickly become family, because we treat each of our guests like visiting friends and family, not clients. Our goal each week is that you leave us having a sense of home and belonging. Having found new friends in Italy. Not just us, but local villagers: The grocer, the barista, etc. We integrate our guests so that they truly feel at home, and that makes each week with us truly the vacation of a lifetime.

You will wake up each morning in your own beautiful private village home, nestled in the medieval or renaissance quarter the beautiful hill town of Soriano nel Cimino, right at the border area between Tuscany, Umbria and Alto Lazio. Each morning we meet in the village piazza at a coffee bar & pastry shop where the locals have breakfast each morning. We’ll have our breakfast at the sidewalk tables in the piazza, across from the main cathedral, looking up at the 11th century castle that was once the Pope’s summer retreat before we start our days.

If we are having a cooking class today, we will go shopping with the villagers. We’ll stop at a local butcher, the vegetable stand, a village grocer, etc. All the while, we are picking our ingredients for today’s cooking class and getting to know the local merchants. We will then head down to our villa for today’s class. If today is a non-cooking day, we will head out on one of our amazing all day excursions.

On Cooking Class Days
We typically have 4 cooking classes on our one-week vacations. On the days we have class, we normally do a half-day of cooking, then the other half we do an excursion.

Most of the classes are full five course meals, and are 100% hands-on. Everything we will eat at that meal, YOU will have made. In one class we make Pappardelle Pasta from scratch with Bolognese sauce, Panzanella (Tuscan Bread Salad), Tuscan Roasted chicken, roasted potatoes, and Tiramisu. In another we will make a wonderful Parmesan & Balsamic Vinegar Risotto, Brasato al Barolo Roast, Panna Cotta, etc. Other classes have us making Biscotti, Gelato, Limoncello, and even a night of amazing Pizza.

The cooking classes are all held in our breathtaking 700 sq.ft. teaching kitchen in our 18th century country villa overlooking the hills of Umbria, and over to Tuscany. During class we have nothing but fun; laughing, singing, kidding around… and all the wine you can handle! It is a true Italian family experience, in which all of our guests make themselves at home and simply let go.

Our morning classes result in that day’s lunch, and afternoon classes become dinner.

The other half of the day we will go on an excursion. We may visit the ancient Monster Park, or explore the ancient Jewish Ghetto of Pitigliano, Tuscany. We may visit the city of Orvieto, then go to an antique family-run olive oil mill & winery. We may head over to the walled city of Viterbo and discover the Papal Palace that was the seat of a series of Popes in the 13th century. We may visit the stunning water gardens at a Cardinal’s villa, or perhaps spend an afternoon at the breathtaking ‘Dying City’. No matter what, if we have a cooking class, we always have an excursion before or after.

If we had class for lunch, we make sure dinner tonight is something unique and special. If class is for dinner, we will have had a unique and special lunch. Our choices for restaurants in these cases are always designed to give you the best culinary experience, since our vacations are so focused on the food! That may be an amazing elegant restaurant, or simply the best Porchetta in Italy that happens to be served off.

On Non-Cooking Class Days
If today we don’t have a cooking class, we will go on a more serious excursion, and spend the day out. We may spend the day in Tuscan wine country, visiting vineyards, cheese farms, etc. Perhaps we will start the day off in a 9th century abbey watching Benedictine Monks do the Gregorian chant, then have lunch with the owners of an exclusive Brunello winery. Perhaps we will spend the day in Assisi, with a side trip to a Deruta ceramics factory. We may visit beautiful Umbrian waterfalls, then meet with a Prince at his personal castle for a private tour. On some of our weeks we may spend the day in Rome, and tour the Vatican and the ancient city.

Whatever we do, it is always something that you will never forget, and along the way we are also being introduced to the best local cuisine at each lunch, and each dinner.

During Festival and Harvest Periods
When there is a festival nearby, we are there. It may be a jazz festival that has us dining in a piazza while watching fantastic jazz and big band performances. It may be a medieval festival that has us watching flag throwers or sword fighters. Perhaps we will spend the evening having dinner on a boat in a lake as we watch one of the most amazing fireworks displays you will ever see. If it is happening within our reach, we are there.

The same holds true for the wine harvest and olive harvest. If you are with us while one of our local vineyards is harvesting, we will drop it all and pick grapes.. or crush them to make wine. If the locals are harvesting olives, we’ll not only spend some time picking them, but we will take them to the antique cold-press olive oil mill and make our own extra virgin oil… which YOU will bring home with you!

La cucina del gusto is one of the older cooking school of Sorrento.
We started in 2001 and step by step we get very succesfull. The secret of our success is that all classes are completely hands on
and clients will eat what they prepared during the class.
Daily class: about 3 hours. Students will prepare 4 dishes, starting from antipasto until dessert, making a fresh pasta such us gnocchi or ravioli.
The class can be done in the morning at 10.00 and enjoy a lunch sitting in the pagoda of the resort.
In the afternoon, at 4.00pm and enjoy a dinner in a stunning location.

6 or 4 night programm available- all inclusive

2010 Culinary programs,all year round
 
For 1 or 2 days we welcome you in

One day hands on cooking classes in Chianti or in Florence also with your children, or for a special event
or join our

Wine and Olive Oil tour and Food Tasting to enjoy the essence of wine, extravergin olive oil and Tuscan food

Market Visit + Food and Wine tasting to immerse in Italian lifestyle

Herbs,Vines and Olives walking tour, to discover the countryside

For more days enjoy our

Chianti Packages ,including cooking classes, tours and living with an Italian family for 2-5 days

or take part in our

5 Day Cooking courses
where we can offer a more complete experience

5 Day Italian language classes ,where we can teach you our language in a relaxed way

 
Classes in Chianti are held in an evocative stone farmhouse, in the hills of the
Chianti wine region,surrounded by vineyards & olivegroves

 
Classes in Florence , are in a classic apartment 10 minutes walk from the most
important museums and masterpieces by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.






Cooking with Simonetta & Paola, really fluent in English, is fun, lively and friendly and give the possibility of learning cooking secrets from long experience in cooking and teaching. We follow traditional family recipes, using fresh, organic and natural ingredients, preparing everyday a complete Italian
meal with apetizer, pasta dish, vegetables, meat dish and dessert, accompanying
by the wines wich best complement.

" Cooking in Paradise", Caribbean Culinary Tour now offers week- end Culinary Vacation Tours to Jamacia, Barbados and Antigua,, Enjoy 4 days 3 nights of Caribbean Culinary Adventure, Learn the art of Caribbean style cooking with hands- on cooking demonstrations Stay at our luxurious island villa,, tour the local farmers markets,& rum distillery, Enjoy an off Island cruise and beach picnic, Steel pan music night, visit from a local chef. and much more.
Your tour will consist of
3 days days of luxurious Island accommodations just minutes from the beach
hands - on cooking classes
Exclusive Rum distillery tour
A Local Island cruise
Visit to the local farmers market
dining at the local restaurants
Visit from a local chef
steel band music night
beach picnic
Duty free shopping

Day One
Morning hands -on cooking class with Chef Freda at the Villa, Tour the local village after Lunch and relax on the nearby beach
Afternoon local tropical cocktail tasting with a local bartender followed by preparing dinner together during afternoon class at the Villa

Day Two
Morning tour of the local farmers market followed by lunch at a local Island Restaurant . Afternoon cooking lesson with chef Freda

Day Three: Morning cooking class with local restaurant chef Spa visit, and Island shopping for duty free gifts, buffet dinner with local music

Our programmes full of fun,cooking as well as visiting the ancient sites in Turkey.Please ask for different proggrammes

You will learn the culinary secrets of a particular region of Italy, France, Spain, Morocco or Mexico in small hands-on cooking classes. Depending on the program, you may be learning from a Michelin star chef, a regional restaurant chef, or locals with generations of recipes to share. We even offer some uniquely themed programs which combine cooking with other activities, such as biking, walking, painting or writing.Whether you are taking a day-class with a market visit, or a full week of immersion, our dedication to quality and details will make your experience truly magical and informative.
Most programs are a finely balanced blend of excursions and cooking lessons. You can choose a program with a very set itinerary or a more flexible one, depending on your tastes. A typical day might start with a visit of an open-air produce market followed by a hands-on cooking class. You will eat what you have prepared for lunch (wine included). The afternoon might feature a gastronomic excursion (such as to an olive oil mill, cheese producer or winery) or a cultural excursion (to nearby towns or historical sites).

Pre-arranged, hassle-free vacation, yet, you would feel you visit friends or family. they will take you places they know, meet poeple they know, cook with a local chef and drink wine.
We promis, after a week, it will be hard to leave.
European style is simply enjoy life day by day.
Your day will start with a typical local breakfast. then in no particular order you will either go to the market, on market day, or go on a tour or meet in the kitchen to cook lunch or dinner . then you will eat, drink wine , relax and say: "life is good"

A fully bilingual gourmet culinary course far beyond what is usually understood to be Mexican food. This is seven day stay in the high plateau of Mexico at the home of Señora Estela Salas Silva who is sharing her family recipes spanning Pre-Hispanic to present day.

I format each course to the level of expertise of the student. You don’t need to be an advanced cook to learn this cuisine. The techniques are simple to learn, and you’ll be surprised how deliciously complex the flavors turn out. Though you will learn about the flavor nuances of a host of chiles, this is not a course about hot and spicy food. It is about flavors, as ancient as the Aztecs and as sophisticated as French cuisine. And of course the classes are fun.We also accept guests who do not take cooking course.
All my classes are in English, hands on and very small (usually limited to 4, maximum 6) which allows everyone to be involved. Classes are for 2 ½ to 3 hours per day depending on the recipes and enthusiasm of the students. Afternoons are free for exploring or relaxing. We have a taxi that works with us to provide afternoon trips to Puebla , ruins, and other locations nearby at various prices.

We offer a great variety of cooking tours throughout Italy: Piedmont, Friuli, Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Umbria, Amalfi Coast and Sicily.

On many tours you cook with a range of chefs and home cooks in different places so you experience slices of real Italian life. On other tours you cook with one family and really get to know these new local friends.

You also visit wineries, cheese makers, olive oil makers, go on truffle hunts, walk in markets, stroll in little towns or lovely cities, hike beautiful paths, shop or just hang out. You meet an incredible variety of local people and taste genuine Italian life.
Most days your cooking lesson is either in the morning or afternoon for about 2-3 hours. After the lesson you dine on your creations.

The rest of the day is filled with other experiences listed above. Lots of places to see and local people to meet.