TOUR REVIEW
Italian Cooking Lessons in Tuscany
By Maura Prendergast
If you’re the kind of person who longs to know the difference between parmesan and pecorino, between basil and oregano then the Italian cookery course in Tuscany’s Villa Casagrande is not for you. If on the other hand, you can picture yourself up to your elbows in flour as you roll out sheets of pasta under the watchful eye of an Italian mama wielding a three-foot rolling pin, then Villa Casagrande is just the place.
When I spotted an advertisement in the Irish Times for a four-day Italian cookery course in sunny Tuscany I promptly signed up and persuaded my friend Róisín to come along with me.
The villa, tucked away in the sleepy town of Figline Valdarno, is where we headed to learn the rudiments of Italian cooking – along with fourteen strangers who were so well matched one would be forgiven for thinking the travel company had hired an FBI profiler to get the mix just right.
The cooking, and I say cooking because there are no prim demonstrations here, takes place in the ancient kitchen of the 14th century villa. As our nervous group of sixteen descended the stairs into the kitchen that first afternoon we were greeted by the smell of olive oil and baking Cantuccini di prato (biscotti) and by two delightful Italian ladies. As we stood around the large wooden table taking in the battered old cooker, the chunky dressers, the pots so big and old they could have been used to feed Mussolini’s army, we were a bit apprehensive.
Paola (the cook) and Daniela (her assistant/translator) were quick to put us at ease. “We will start with a Leettle drink,” Daniela said as she handed out aprons. After two glasses of the villa’s wine we hardly blinked when Paola announced that, amongst other things, rabbit stew and liver crostini were on the menu. Paola was in charge – although the term ‘in charge’ is somewhat misleading as she hadn’t a word of English and a tendency to improvise as she went along. Daniela did her best to translate, the rest we picked up from Paulo’s exuberant gesticulations.
Before we knew it, we were chopping and dicing and stirring. “Fine, Fine” (Feenay, Feenay), Paola laughed as she insisted herbs, and just about everything else, be chopped finely, finely. Meanwhile, George, one of only two men on the course, took charge of the wine. He topped-up our glasses with the efficiency of a top sommelier and so the noise levels in the kitchen rose until Mama had to shout to be heard. In this way we passed a delightful afternoon cooking and chatting and laughing while the sun shone outside and the temperature rose in the kitchen.
The recipes were of the hearty variety where everything is thrown into a pot, lashings of olive oil are added and the lot is left to bubble and simmer for half the day. This is food from the days when Mama had the luxury of spending hours at the stove and could hop out into the garden for a sprig of rosemary (the secret ingredient in Paola’s ragu).
Amidst the chaos we somehow managed to produce quite a feast which we ate that evening in a room off the kitchen at long tables. The amount of food we produced came as a surprise even to me - who had been so actively involved in its preparation - apparently there is not an inverse relationship between copious drinking and productivity!
The meal started with crostini Neri (canapés with chicken liver pâté), bruschetta alla pomodoro and puff pastry rolls stuffed with smoked salmon and ricotta. These were followed by ribollita - a vegetable and bread soup providing the kind of sustenance only required by oil riggers and South Pole explorers. Then came the maltagliati (pasta strips – cut by my own hand) with ragu sauce and then just when we thought we couldn’t eat another bite, the rabbit alla cacciatore arrived.
After that we barely had enough energy to dip our cantuccini di prato (biscotti) into the villa’s vin santo, but somehow we managed and as we sat in the courtyard swapping traveller’s tales of altitude sickness in Peru, of being held at gun point in Jerusalem, of French weekends cooking and making preserves, we couldn’t have been more content. Our little group of strangers had become firm friends and when we did eventually retire for the night it was with vows to drink less and concentrate more the following day…ah, the best laid plans…
At the Villa Casagrande the cooking lessons don’t start until four in the afternoon so there is plenty of time to explore the crumbling towns of Florence, Siena or Arezzo. All are within a forty minute train ride and there is a station very close to the hotel.
You would not be disappointed however if you never left the Villa. A historical gem built by the Serristori family in the 14th century, it has always been a magnet for artists and philosophers. The original structure, enclosed by the medieval town walls, was built around a cloister. It is a warren of cool terracotta-floored corridors with artefacts at every turn – enormous stone fireplaces and mirrors so old they might once have reflected the image of Catherine de Medici herself (in fact Lorenzo the Magnificent was so impressed with the place when he visited many moons ago he gave the Serristori family permission to add the Medici symbol of three balls and a lily to the family crest).
The villa houses a museum of the family’s art treasures, paintings, sculptures and furniture. There is a second museum of sorts – one of agricultural implements. Old wine and olive presses can be seen dotted around the courtyard and in the wine cellar. The villa has always been attached to a working farm and today it produces its own wine and olive oils. There is a very strong sense of history here, of continuity. Over the years the villa has branched into agri-tourism. As well as the cookery classes, it offers pottery classes, a spa and amazingly - a plastic surgery clinic…so there is little time for boredom.
Nevertheless the pull of Florence was too strong so Róisín and I ventured to that great city on our second morning, but not before we had croissants and coffee in the cloister to the sound of church bells tolling. Aah! If only one could bottle that sunny perfection. Other members of the group went to Siena and Arezzo and spent pleasant hours wandering around the sleepy towns and indulging in magnificent lunches. As a result the second day’s cooking was a bit more muted. Tired from sightseeing, we weren’t as eager to chop and stir and roll, so we pulled up chairs, filled our glasses and let Paola do most of the work. We made a feast equivalent to that of the previous day and spent another lovely evening chatting and laughing having by now totally embraced La Dolce Vita.
Alas all good things must come to an end and the following morning we had just enough time to visit the local market before boarding the coach and heading for the airport. As we reluctantly said our goodbyes we were all agreed on one thing - it had been a wonderful few days, surpassing all our expectations. I came home determined to introduce a little of the sweet life into my frantic existence. And as for reproducing the recipes…well with a good translator and a little perseverance I just might swing the ragu.
The four day Cookery course at Villa Casagrande was organised by GTI Travel. It consists of three nights B&B, a wine tasting, and two afternoons/ evenings cooking. Cost - €750 including flights (from Dublin) and transfers.
Group Travel International - www.gti-ireland.com. Tel: 01 843 4734
www.villacasagrande.it |
