We are sitting around a 12-foot trestle table in an ancient Tuscan farmhouse. I have just finished folding egg whites into the gelato. My husband, Jim, is wielding a mezzaluna against a pile of basil and garlic for the pesto.
When we decided to learn to cook authentic Italian cuisine, it seemed like the perfect excuse to travel to Tuscany. Oh sure, we could buy a cookbook, read it carefully, and follow the recipes exactly. But what fun is that?
It is more fun to rent a villa outside of Gaiole-in-Chianti and learn from four Italian women whose love for cooking is matched only by their warm hospitality and sharp sense of humor.
Six years ago, Mimma Ferrando, Lele Vitali, Simonetta Palazio and Marisa Forcheri decided to do something more interesting than simply cook for their husbands and baby-sit their grandchildren.
All four had retired from careers in such far-flung locales as Brussels and Zambia, returned to their native Italy, invested in crumbling stone farmhouses scattered in the hills surrounding Radda-in-Chianti, and set about renovating and modernizing the buildings and reclaiming the terraced hillsides.
Through it all they shared with one another their family recipes and love of cooking. To impart their expertise and introduce the delights of Italian food to visitors to Tuscany, they established a three-day cooking experience called Tutti a Tavola (“everyone to the table”), which is the call to dinner in every Italian household.
Tutti a Tavola moves from farmhouse to farmhouse as the women guide up to eight guests in the proper way to prepare Tuscan fare. Designed for the average enthusiast, not professional chefs, the course replicates what each woman would serve to her family for Sunday dinner or to a group of friends on a special occasion.
Jim and I and two other Wheaton couples, Jay and Edie Fitts and Jim and Bonnie Gauger, arranged a one-week rental of a three-bedroom villa, La Casa, from Forcheri and her husband, Sandro. The stone villa built into the side of a hill boasts all the comforts of a modern home, complete with a lovely patio and pool. Each of the women offers accommodations ranging from La Casa to a bed and bath in Palazio’s home.
The rocky soil of the Chianti region doesn’t sustain vegetables as crops, though each yard contains a faithfully watered plot of tomatoes, peppers and herbs. The soil is perfect, though, for flowers, grapes and olives.
The views from our villa bear this out: Row upon row of trained vines and small gray-green olive trees undulate into the distance. Oleander, lavender and roses line the patios and surround the pools. We breathe deeply the perfume of yellow broom in the fields and jasmine climbing the stone walls.
The classes
Each afternoon at 4 we gather around a large trestle table in one of the chefs’ beautifully decorated kitchens. We don our personalized aprons, and the cooking, eating and laughing begins.
“In cooking a complete dinner, we always begin with the dessert,” Vitali says. “That way the kitchen is free of onion and garlic flavors that spoil the dessert’s delicate flavor.”
Our first dish, gelato with a citrus sauce, turns out to be my favorite of the entire course. Assembled and placed in a regular freezer, it will be ready by 10 p.m., when our sumptuous meal comes to an end. As I fold in the egg whites, Vitali reminds me, “Always use eggs at room temperature.” My note to myself: “Buy a lemon zester.”
We are given printed menus and recipes that our teachers immediately convert from grams and liters to American teaspoons and cups.
Each of us is assigned a different task: folding in egg whites, chopping basil, seeding tomatoes. My husband becomes our expert with the mezzaluna (“half moon”), a two-handled, semi-circular blade preferred by Italians for chopping onions, garlic and herbs.
“We prefer to crush dried ingredients and chop fresh ingredients to using a food processor,” Forcheri says, “as the processor tends to make a mixture a bit mushy.”
None of the recipes is too complicated or time-consuming, suggesting that they will be easily replicated in our home kitchens. The teachers focus on fresh ingredients and herbs readily available in American as well as Italian markets.
“The object in Italian cooking is to find a balance between soft and crispy, sweet and bitter,” Ferrando says.
After we make dessert, the lesson continues with the antipasto, then the primo piatto, a first course, usually pasta. A contorno, or vegetable dish, accompanies the secondo, or meat course.
After two hours of chopping, cutting, kneading and blending, we begin to pour the wine and take a break to admire our efforts and the views from each patio. Along with the antipasti, we nibble on slices of fresh pecorino cheese dipped in honey or green tomato jelly. Fresh pecorino is only available from November to June and has the consistency of fresh mozzarella.
At 7 p.m., we sit around a huge dining room table and pass the large platters. Traditional Italian meals include second helpings; certainly no one goes away hungry. We finish, groaning with pleasure.
The next evening we make our way to the Palazios’ home. Though only a few miles as the crow flies from Radda, we count 44 curves on the gravel road before arriving in the tiny Etruscan-founded hamlet of Adine. Tucked into a lush valley, their home, one of five in the village, is built on a foundation more than 1,000 years old. After a dinner that included trenette pasta with pesto, chicken rolls and generous pourings of vin santo, the Tuscan white dessert wine, we carefully wend our way home back along those 44 curves.
The market
The following morning we join our teachers’ friend, Riccardo Cuneo, for a tour of the weekly farmers market in nearby Montevarchi. After cappuccino and chocolates, he leads us into the massive market.
Picture a summer farmers market in America. Multiply it by 10. Add the scents of salamis, lilies and, yes, pizza. Italian men and women haggle over the price of mozzarella, prosciutto, eggplant, basil . . . .
Here each grocer sells a packaged battuto, a mixture of a small onion, two carrots and four ribs of celery with the leaves left on. Chopped and sauteed in 2 tablespoons of olive oil for flavoring stews such as chicken cacciatore, the battuto gives the Italian kitchen its “perfume,” Ferrando says.
Most Tutti a Tavola courses include a three-day stay, but we opt for a full week’s rental, giving us several days to explore Tuscany. We enjoy visiting Siena, the art treasures of Florence, and several medieval hill towns such as San Gimigniano, Panzano and Greve.
We stop now and then at small vineyards offering tastings, along with samples of fresh pecorino cheese and unsalted Tuscan bread dipped in local olive oils.
On our final evening, we gather at Forcheri’s home. We begin scooping peaches for pesche agli amaretti, peaches stuffed with almond cookie crumbs. Ferrando demonstrates how to stuff squash blossoms. We fill tomatoes with bread crumbs to go with spaghetti course.
Then, during our break, we nibble on olives and toast our new friends with glass after glass of the local Chianti classico.
Ah, friends, great wine and delicious food. This is la dolce vita.
Italians bring love to Chicago
The four instructors of the Tutti a Tavola cooking school in Chianti will visit Chicago in February for these events:
– The four will prepare a special Valentine’s Day dinner, featuring foods to emphasize the romantic side of the holiday. Dinner is $65 per person, at 6:30 p.m., Feb. 14 at Corner Cooks, 507 Chestnut St., Winnetka. Reser-vations are necessary; call 847-441-0134.
– They will share “advice for life and cooking” as well as demonstrate recipes at Gallery 37. $20. 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Feb. 16, 66 E. Randolph St. To register, call 312-742-8497.
– They will demonstrate a Tuscan menu at a class sponsored by the Chicago Culinary Guild. $65 for members; $70 for non-members. 6 p.m. Feb. 15 at Lexington College, 310 S. Peoria St. Suite 512. For information, call Kristy Kempner, 847-234-0777.
Other sources
– For more information about other cooking vacations in Italy, look for “The Guide to Cooking Schools” (ShawGuides, $25).
– Epiculinary specializes in cooking vacations in Italy and elsewhere in Europe: Write to Epiculinary, 321 E. Washington Ave., Lake Bluff, IL 60044; 888-380-9010; www.epiculinary.com.
Tomato, pepper and olive relish (Peperonata)
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 18 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
This makes a lot of vegetables, which can be served cold as an antipasti or hot as a vegetable dish with meat. It is also good the next day as a sauce on pasta with cream added.
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 medium onions, peeled, cut in half, sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 each, seeded, sliced: red, green, yellow bell pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 large clove garlic, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 cup green or black olives, pitted, chopped
1 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon capers, optional
Freshly ground pepper
1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add onions; cook until soft, about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add peppers, salt and garlic; cook until onions are light brown, about 8 minutes.
2. Lower heat to medium-high. Stir in tomatoes; cook until tomatoes are slightly soft, about 4 minutes. Add olives, parsley, vinegar, capers and pepper to taste; cook until heated through, 2 minutes. Adjust seasonings.
Nutrition information per serving:
95 calories, 48% calories from fat, 5 g fat, 0.7 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 445 mg sodium, 1.8 g protein, 11 g carbohydrate, 3 g fiber
Prosciutto rolls with ground beef and ricotta (Arrosto al prosciutto crudo)
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 25 minutes
Yield: 5 servings
These ground beef-and ricotta-stuffed rolls can be a main dish or slice them for appetizer rounds.
1 pound ground beef, browned, drained
3 eggs, beaten
1 container (15 ounces) ricotta cheese
1 cup each: grated Parmesan cheese, chopped parsley
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
20 thin slices prosciutto, about 10 ounces
1 tablespoon each: olive oil, butter
1. Mix beef, eggs, ricotta, Parmesan, parsley, salt and pepper in a medium bowl until well combined; set aside.
2. Place 4 slices of the prosciutto on wax paper or foil, edges slightly overlapping. Place 1/2 cup of the beef mixture in center; roll up prosciutto tightly, tucking edges in. Repeat with remaining prosciutto and filling.
3. Heat the oil and butter in large skillet over medium high heat; brown rolls on all sides in 2 batches, 3 minutes per batch. Return all rolls to skillet. Cover; reduce heat to low. Cook until filling is cooked through and set, about 20 minutes. Slice rolls into 2-inch pieces to serve.
Nutrition information per roll:
645 calories, 62% calories from fat, 44 g fat, 21 g saturated fat, 310 mg cholesterol, 2,045 mg sodium, 56 g protein, 4.5 g carbohydrate, 0.5 g fiber
Spaghetti with tomatoes gratin (Spaghetti al gratin di pomodoro)
Preparation time: 35 minutes
Cooking time: 50 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
This unusual pasta dish uses baked and grilled stuffed tomatoes both as a sauce and as a garnish.
10 plum tomatoes
1 cup chopped parsley
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon salt plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more to taste
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound spaghetti
1. Heat oven to 200 degrees. Cut tomatoes in half lengthwise. Scoop out insides of tomatoes and place contents in a medium bowl. Place tomato halves cut side up on lightly greased jellyroll pan.
2. Add parsley, garlic, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes to tomato mixture; stir to combine. Toss bread crumbs with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in small bowl. Fill tomatoes with the parsley/tomato mixture; top with bread crumbs. Bake 30 minutes.
3. Cook pasta in salted water according to package directions; drain. Toss with remaining 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and salt and pepper to taste in large bowl.
4. Meanwhile, heat a grill or grill pan over high heat; grill tomato halves until lightly charred on bottom, about 10 minutes. Reserve 4 of the tomato halves. Chop remaining stuffed tomatoes; toss with cooked pasta. Garnish with reserved tomatoes.
Nutrition information per serving:
490 calories, 30% calories from fat, 17 g fat, 2.4 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 840 mg sodium, 13 g protein, 73 g carbohydrate, 6 g fiber
Veal rolls with sage (Involtini alla salvia)
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
1 pound veal scaloppini, about 6 slices
6 tablespoons cream cheese
12 fresh sage leaves
1 tablespoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons each: flour, olive oil
1/2 cup white wine or marsala
1. Pound veal slices between 2 sheets of plastic wrap until 1/8-inch thick. Season with salt and pepper on both sides. Spread each slice with 1 tablespoon of the cream cheese. Place 2 sage leaves on top and roll up, tucking sides in as you roll. Secure with 2 toothpicks. Coat each roll with flour, shaking off excess.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add rolls; cook, turning to brown on all sides, about 25 minutes. Place veal on oven-safe serving platter; keep warm in a 250-degree oven.
3. Add wine to pan; cook, scraping up brown bits from the bottom of the pan, until slightly reduced in volume, about 5 minutes. Pour over veal rolls.
Nutrition information per serving:
125 calories, 71% calories from fat, 10 g fat, 3.9 g saturated fat, 20 mg cholesterol, 1,210 mg sodium, 2.9 g protein, 4.9 g carbohydrate, 1.7 g fiber
Vanilla ice cream (Gelato alla crema)
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Chilling time: 4 hours
Yield: 12 servings
Here’s a rich, creamy gelato that is great served with a tangy citrus sauce (see recipe below). This recipe uses raw eggs. Some cases of salmonella have been traced to raw eggs, although this is rare. If this concerns you, look for Davidson’s Pasteurized eggs, which are starting to appear in Chicago-area supermarkets.
5 eggs, separated
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 cups (1 pint) whipping cream
1. Place an 8-inch square metal baking pan or large loaf pan in freezer. Beat egg yolks in large bowl. Beat in sugar and vanilla until smooth; set aside.
2. Beat egg whites and salt in bowl of electric mixer until stiff peaks form; set aside. Whip cream in bowl of electric mixer until soft peaks form. Fold egg whites into egg yolk mixture. Fold in whipped cream. Transfer to chilled pan. Cover with foil. Freeze at least 4 hours or up to 3 weeks.
Nutrition information per serving:
235 calories, 63% calories from fat, 17 g fat, 10 g saturated fat, 140 mg cholesterol, 65 mg sodium, 3.4 g protein, 18 g carbohydrate, 0 g fiber
Citrus sauce (Salsa di agrumi)
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 55 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 cups
2 oranges
1 lemon
6 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons Cognac
1 tablespoon lemon or orange liqueur, such as Limoncello or Cointreau
1. Cut orange and lemon peels into strips, cutting away any white pith. Squeeze juice from oranges and lemon; reserve. Place peels in small saucepan; cover with water. Heat to boil; simmer 30 minutes. Drain; return to saucepan.
2. Add 3 tablespoons of the sugar to the peels. Cook over low heat until golden, about 10 minutes. Add juice of oranges and lemon and remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar. Cook over medium heat until reduced by half, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Add Cognac and liqueur. Refrigerate until chilled. Serve cold over ice cream or cake.
Nutrition information per tablespoon:
20 calories, 1% calories from fat, 0 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0.2 mg sodium, 0.1 g protein, 4.9 g carbohydrate, 0.3 g fiber
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About the school
The Tutti a Tavola cooking school in Chianti runs April through June, and in September and October. The three-day courses are conducted in English and cost $390 per person. Menus, recipes and aprons are provided. Given advance notice, the school will change the menus to suit the dietary restrictions of guests: vegetarian, low-sodium, no pork or shellfish, for example.
To receive information or to make reservations, send e-mail to: info.tat@iol.it.
Web site: www.tutti-a-tavola.com
