Many of my students in the United States enjoy learning to make fresh pasta and drinking great wine. Since pasta and wine make up the foundations of Italian culinary culture, it would take many lifetimes to explore the hundreds of regional varieties that the country has to offer. I strongly believe that one also needs to spend time in Italy, with guides who reveal the artisan traditions that are involved in producing each individual ingredient, in order to fully understand how each dish and bottle of wine is prepared.
For that reason, we have created Pasta & Wine Immersion tours at Italian Sensory Experience. By the time someone finishes our tour - they will not only be completely captivated by the aromas, tastes, textures, sounds, and sights that "the heart of Italy" has to offer, they will also be able to master pasta-making and wine-pairing. Instead of just tasting amazing food and wine, travelers on this journey will experience them as a way of life. These tours are designed to teach the best of Italian food and wine traditions and to enable travelers to be able to reproduce them at home.
Unlike traditional tours, the Pasta & Wine Immersion tours allow us to spend the first part of each day in the kitchen, mastering pasta-making techniques. In the late afternoon, we go on excursions to olive-oil orchards, markets, artisan-cheese makers, and other exiting food purveyors. The evenings conclude at the De Luca Winery and Agriturismo, where guided tastings and pairings of the region’s world-class wines will be led by owner/winemaker Dr. Luciano De Luca. Our small group will learn how to taste and pair wine, as well as learn the story behind Abruzzo's most famous and re-emerging heirloom grapes from the noted winemaker himself who accompanies us, often along with his family, at nightly pairings and dinner.
There is perhaps no better place to learn the do's and don'ts of pasta making then Abruzzo, famous since antiquity for its wheat. The region is also home to Fara S. Martino – known as the “city of pasta.” Situated in a national park, overlooking scores of green mountains and pastures, we’ll also experience the “cascate del verde,” or “waterfalls of the green” which provided the water supply for pasta production. We’ll enjoy a guided tour of the Cocco artisan pasta making company and discover what goes in to making high quality industrial pasta.
Offered in February and March 2019, and for private experiences, our one-of-a-kind Italian Sensory Experience pasta-making extravaganza includes daily immersion cooking classes and wine tastings. Unlike my other tours, the Pasta and Wine Immersion tours in February and March enable us to spend the first half of each day in charming town of Atessa - located on top of two hills –which is home to the Fondaco dei Domenicani – our historic cooking school – an impressive historic building and former convent.
During our 5 cooking classes, we'll go over all aspects of of pasta - from commercial varieties to handmade doughs with various types of wheat. One of my favorite things about Abruzzo is that there are many healthful heirloom varieties of wheat and other grains which are currently being re-introduced and used in pasta-making, which adds to its nutritional value. We'll also be able to experience these grains hands-on.
During our 5 cooking classes, we'll go over all aspects of of pasta - from commercial varieties to handmade doughs with various types of wheat. One of my favorite things about Abruzzo is that there are many healthful heirloom varieties of wheat and other grains which are currently being re-introduced and used in pasta-making, which adds to its nutritional value. We'll also be able to experience these grains hands-on.
The focus of the first cooking class is to teach the tenants of Italian meal planning, types of pastas and pasta – pairing, and evolution of recipes in addition to the recipes being created. This class will reveal the beautiful and unique history of Italy’s regions as it relates to its cuisine today. We will explore the relationship between grandmothers and professional chefs in the Italian kitchen and the way it has shaped that nation’s modern gastronomy. Class one also explains the Italian meal planning system and explains how to integrate the dishes into busy lifestyles anywhere. Students will be given a syllabus with Italian culinary terminology and recipes used in the series.
The second day's cooking class is based on Timballos and Baked Pastas. We will transform the sauces we prepared the day before, local artisan pastas, and additional local ingredients into the edible centerpieces known as Timballi in Sicily, and other mouth-watering baked pasta dishes. This class gets to the core of what to cook when and why by explaining how Italians approach the kitchen. We will also outline how time-honored traditions provide tricks of the trade that can help today’s cooks be more efficient in the kitchen. We will explore which types of pastas are served for which occasions in Italy – and how to create them easily at home.
Day three teaches basic pasta doughs as well as how to use them to make different pasta shapes. We’ll use the pasta to make recipes such as fresh Cacio e Pepe – an ancient Roman dish that is enjoying a resurgence in popularity all over the world, and others.
Day four's hands-on cooking class os based on classic, regional Italian Lasagne dishes. Many regions in Italy have their “own” beloved Lasagne recipes – and we’ll make the Bolognese and Calabrian versions as well as contemporary vegetarian varieties. In addition, today we will discover how to pair pastas with other courses to make a complete Italian meal.
Our final cooking class is based on Stuffed Pastas – you’ll learn to make Tortellini and Cappelletti in Brodo, Ravioli, and Tortelli Cremaschi, as well as their historical significance, and the role they play on Italian menus today.
To learn more about the activities and accommodations of the 2019 Pasta & Wine Immersion Tours, click here.
To register, click here. Note that the registration deadline for the February tour is January 17, 2019.
If daily cooking isn't for you, but you'd still love to have an amazing cuisine and culture experience in Italy, check out our:
And...be sure to take a look into our new shop where you'll find gourmet, Italian-made products and gift boxes perfect for the holidays!
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