Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo

Experiences on this four night adventure:

• cook authentic, every day Tuscan dishes in an Italian family’s home in the historic heart of Florence so you also experience what it’s like to live in a Florentine home
• stroll with your cooking teacher through a food market to meet vendors, so you learn about the food and taste it as you go with a local friend
• discover Florence’s major sites and visit the Accademia and Uffizi with a local guide in one day so you save time and learn a lot
• enjoy lots of free time to hang out, shop and explore!

Experience cooking home-style Tuscan dishes in an Italian family’s home in Florence and dine in their home in a residential neighbourhood a 15 minute walk from the city’s historic centre. Join Paola or Simonetta for a hands-on cooking lesson on traditional Tuscan and Italian dishes made of fresh, organic seasonal ingredients. Both are excellent, fun loving home cooks and have taught and run their cooking classes in Florence and the Chianti hills for over 15 years.

classic Tuscan Brushetta with fresh tomatoes

Cook together in a friendly atmosphere in their kitchen, learn a few Tuscan cooking secrets and have fun with new friends. As you cook, you enjoy a glass of Tuscan wine and snacks. You make a four course meal of appetizer, a pasta dish, a vegetable or meat dish and dessert, accompanied by wines that complement them best.

Appetizer: bruschetta or crostini

First course:Fresh hand-made pasta, potato gnocchi, Penne agli Aromi (herbs) or Ribollita (hearty Tuscan vegetable soup)Second Course:roasted meat like Arista alla Fiorentina or stuffed vegetables Dessert: Tiramisu' or Panna Cotta

Then of course, you dine on your creations, washed down with good Tuscan wines, and congratulate yourselves on your Italian cooking talents.

Many more menus are available and we always ask you if you have special requests or any food allergies. Minimum group size is two people and maximum is five people.

a wine bar right on the sidewalk in the centre of Florence

Simonetta or Paola also take you to stroll through her favourite food market in Florence. You learn about typical food products as you chat with sellers of typical Italian cheeses, salami, prosciutto, fruit, vegetables, olive oil and more and taste as you go. Depending on what snack or mid morning drink you’d like, you stop at a typical Florentine coffee bar, bakery, gelateria or wine bar for other delicious treats. You’ll see Paola or Simonetta on two days, so they can give you “insider” tips on what to see, where to go in Florence, like local friends!

On your first day you’ll experience a long list of Florence’s major sights like Piazzale Michelangelo, the Duomo complex, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Croce as well as the hill town of Fiesole. On top of all that you’ll tour the Accademia, famous for Michelangelos’ David, and the Uffizi, stuffed with masterpieces of artists like Botticelli, Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci…and avoid the line-ups too. A wonderfully efficient way to see and learn about Florence, its history and art if you’re short of time!

Piedmont          Emilia-Romagna/Bologna          Amalfi Coast          Sicily