7 Days Italian Gastronomy and Cooking Holiday in Tuscany, Italy

Facilities

One half of the Cook Eat Discover team, Oli, is an experienced chef and trained pasta maker who will walk you through a carefully selected repertoire of dishes and share the secrets and skills you need to create vibrant and authentic Italian cuisine. These cookery lessons will form part of a varied and exciting itinerary of Italian food experiences, including demos, tours and activities.

Cook Eat Discover are passionate about connecting people with the source of their food, emphasizing the importance of respecting ingredients and the environment that creates them. Cook Eat Discover bespoke tour of the region's producers showcases those who treat food with love and patience, and do things in harmony with nature.

Cook Eat Discover believe in sustainable food and drink production that works in harmony with the environment. They aim to introduce you to producers who not only make magnificent food, but who respect nature, innovate with green energy, and put quality and integrity above profit margins.

They aim to inspire and empower food lovers who are passionate about Italian gastronomy, giving them unique access to the people, stories, and time-honored methods behind the dishes and ingredients.

Daily sample schedule

Day 1

• 14:00 - 17:00 - Check-in
• 18:00 - Aperitivo
• Take in your new surroundings with a refreshing Spritz against the backdrop of the medieval village. Meet the team, take a look at your itinerary, and get ready for the adventures ahead.
• 19:30 - Dinner
• Relax whilst your personal chef cooks you an introductory 4-course feast under the private outdoor pergola/in the private dining room (depending on weather).

Day 2

• 09:30 - Buffalo mozzarella farm tour and cheese tasting
• An insightful tour of a sustainable buffalo dairy farm and artisanal cheese producer. Make sure you wear mud-proof footwear! Taste a variety of freshly made buffalo products, there are even creamy buffalo milk cappuccinos and buffalo ice creams. Learn about how they use the buffalos' waste for renewable energy. Enjoy a brunch-style tasting of the farm’s cheeses and a little prosciutto to keep you going!
• 11:30 - Organic Tuscan rice farm tour
• Walk in the rice fields and get a tour of a working seaside rice farm. The rice is organically grown and stone processed to ensure the highest quality. You’ll pick some up for your lesson later!
• 14:00 - 17:00 - Free time. Lounge by the pool or go for wander around the beautiful old town of the village.
• 17:00 - Aperitivo, Risotto masterclass, dinner
• After some tasty aperitivo snacks and a glass of prosecco, Oli will take you through all the essential skills and secrets to perfect risotto making with the rice you picked up earlier. You’ll cook together in the well-equipped village professional kitchen, before eating your risottos (plus a few other treats prepared by your hosts) in the beautiful village square outside.

Day 3

• 07:00 - Fishing boat trip
• A fishing trip like no other! You will set sail on a fishing boat early in the morning and pull in the nets with a charismatic fisherman who's on a mission to protect the marine life of the Tuscan coast. He will tell you about his battles against the trawler fishermen, and the importance of sustainable fishing. All of this against the backdrop of the stunning Maremma national park, with stops at beautiful bathing spots (depending on season) and great food on board.
• 14:00 - Free time back in the village
• 17:00 - Evening cooking lesson - gnocchi and biscotti, dinner
• A hands-on cooking lesson with your private instructor in a professional kitchen in the beautiful old town of the local village. Together you will learn to make wonderful handmade gnocchi, and put together a delicious menu using something you picked up from the seas that morning. Your instructor will also teach you how to make traditional Tuscan almond biscotti for dessert! You can indulge in the meal you have cooked together by candlelight under the sycamore tree at the heart of the medieval village (weather permitting).

Day 4

• 11:00 - Cycle tour to vineyard
• A light ride over the hills and down through the local villages to burn off the excesses of the week, with your knowledgeable and friendly private cycling guide. The ride will take you to a beautiful vineyard on the Tuscan plains.
• 13:00 - Lunch, wine tasting and vineyard tour
• An unforgettable experience at an award-winning vineyard, you will get a real understanding of the art form that is winemaking. Enjoy a Tuscan lunch and private tasting of their Sangiovese, Viognier and Syrah.
• 18:00 Fresh pasta workshop
• After an hour or two resting up after your cycling and vineyard experience, professional fresh pasta maker and chef Oli will take you through all the basics of creating great fresh pasta, including making the dough, using a pasta machine, and learning 3 shapes - like farfalle, tagliatelle and garganelli. You'll also drum up the perfect tiramisu together. You'll then enjoy your creations with a view of the Tuscan hills and plenty of good local wine!

Day 5

• 11:00 - Stuffed pasta masterclass and lunch
• Down at the Cook Eat Discover HQ, using yesterday's newly acquired basic pasta skills, you'll take things a step further and learn to make different filled pasta shapes. With a delicious seasonal filling (e.g. spinach and ricotta or pumpkin) you'll learn to make ravioli, tortelloni and much more! You'll then enjoy your pasta as part of a delicious 3-course lunch.
• 15:00 - Pizza dough preparation
• After lunch you'll knead out some pizza dough ready to be used for the following day's dinner. Pizza dough has a much better texture and flavour when made the day before and allowed to develop!
• 17:00 - Free evening
• Relax at your apartment or enjoy one of the great local restaurants and a bit of time to yourselves on your free evening.

Day 6

• 11:00 - Honey and Brunello wine producer tour, tasting and lunch
• About an hour away is the fairytale medieval town of Montalcino - gastronomically famous for Brunello wine, and honey. Learn all about organic honeymaking, study the hives, and listen to the beekeepers. This producer also makes the famous Brunello wine - you will get an insight into what makes this wine so sought after. To the soundtrack of the bees busying away, you will lunch with traditional Tuscan dishes and honey tastings, along with some delicious Brunello.
• 14:00 - Montalcino visit
• Spend an hour or two wandering the beautiful streets of Montalcino. Grab a gelato, enjoy the impressive churches, great views, and numerous wine bars!
• 18:00 - Pizza class and farewell dinner
• Back in the village of Roccatederighi, you'll use the dough you made the day before to create real handmade Italian pizza and cook it together in Cook Eat Discover's very own wood-fired oven. Sit down with the view for one last time and enjoy your pizza as part of a 4-course feast prepared by your own private chef!

Day 7

• 09:00 - 12:00 - Check out

Please note that itineraries are subject to change due to weather, availability etc.

• Buffalo mozzarella farm tour and cheese tasting
• Fishing boat trip on the Tuscan coast
• Honey and Brunello wine producer tour
• Organic Tuscan rice farm tour
• Organic vineyard tour, tasting, and lunch
• Two-hour cycle tour to vineyard

This culinary holiday will take place in Tuscany, Italy. The Maremma is the southern most coastal region of Tuscany. While the likes of Siena and Florence are easily accessible from the Maremma, it's a hidden gem that's relatively undiscovered compared to the well beaten tourist trails of central Tuscany.

Its incredible natural beauty and medieval hill villages provide an untouched and authentic land perfect for food exploration. Things are done the old ways here, and you will find some of the finest food in the country. Cook Eat Discover is based in the beautiful village of Roccatederighi, which is carved into the rocks over 500 meters above the plains. It teeters impossibly above the flatlands and from up here you can see the islands of Giglio, Elba, or even Corsica on a clear day.

The undisturbed wilds of Maremma produce extremely fine ingredients and dishes. Stuffed pasta, cured meats, honey, wild boar, hearty soups, and chestnuts are some local specialties. The Maremmana cow is famed around the country for its steaks, the freshest fish, and seafood comes out of the nearby Tyrrhenian Sea, while the region is also blessed with excellent wine, olive oil, and cheese producers. Tuscany's other famous gastronomic centers are not far away either - the pecorino of Pienza, the Brunello wine of Montalcino, and the Panforte of Siena.

• Risotto masterclass
• Pasta-making lesson
• Filled pasta cooking class
• Pizza cooking class
• Al fresco gnocchi class
• Buffalo mozzarella farm tour and cheese tasting
• Fishing boat trip on the Tuscan coast
• Honey and Brunello producer tour
• Organic Tuscan rice farm tour
• Organic vineyard tour, tasting, and aperitif
• Two-hour cycle tour to vineyard
• All meals except one dinner
• Wine and selected aperitifs
• Transport from/to Grosseto train station on check in/check out days
• 6 nights accommodation

• Airfare
• Airport transfers
• 1 dinner

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• A reservation requires a deposit of 50% of the total price.
• The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
• The rest of the payment should be paid 28 days before arrival.