Villa Florentine™

Tie on your aprons with our Michelin Star Chef in the heart of Maremma, Tuscany. Nestled between rolling green hills, vineyards, and olive groves, the property has every amenity imaginable. In the kitchen, learn how to prepare authentic Tuscan recipes like panzanella, a medley of Tuscan bread, tomatoes, basil, and extra virgin olive oil, or zucchini flowers stuffed with whipped ricotta. Handmade pastas include: pici pasta served in a creamy garlic and tomato sauce, spinach ravioli and Tuscan gnudi, round pasta dumplings. Second courses follow and include such delicacies as scottiglia, or delicious vegetarian ribollita, a slow cooked vegetable soup served with toasted Tuscan bread. For dessert, follow the chef in making cantucci, twice-baked almond biscuits, or dolce mascarpone, a sweet cream garnished with fresh berries and paired with Vin Santo, the blessed wine of Tuscany.

Following each cooking class, everyone enjoys the food made during the class while sipping Chianti or Brunello, the region’s renowned red wines. Professional hands-on cooking with a Michelin Star Chef are the perfect ingredients for an unforgettable culinary experience.

Tuscany Cooking Classes – Michelin Star

Your Michelin Star cooking classes will have you preparing classic recipes starting with antipasti. Learn how to make torta salata, a savory flan, crostini toscani, toasted bread garnished with either fresh tomatoes and herbs or fegatini, Tuscan chicken liver. Roll out pasta and prepare delicate sauces using seasonal ingredients. Tuscan main courses include: bistecca fiorentina, a special cut of meat from the white cow chianina, pollo alla cacciatora, hunter’s chicken prepared with tomato and herbs. Vegetarian options such as eggplant lasagna or cici Toscana, chick beans prepared with onions and local herbs. Dessert specialties include: bongo, Tuscan pastry puffs stuffed with sweet cream; bomboloni, sweet dough rounds that are flash-fried and dusted with sugar; and cantucci, twice-baked biscuits dipped Vin Santo, sweet dessert wine. Tuscan desserts are truly endless – from stracciata alla fiorentina, a sweet pizza to torta di mele, an apple pie and pinocchiati, pine nut crisps.

Your second cooking class is all about Tuscan pasta! Learn how to mix, roll and shape various types of pasta. Starting from pici pasta, served with aglione, a garlic tomato sauce, to gnudi, pasta rounds garnished with Tuscan ragù, a slow cooked meat and tomato sauce. Discover the art of making testaroli, triangular shaped pasta pancakes garnished with fresh pesto.

Tuscany

Step into dreamy Tuscany where emerald-colored cypress trees line small winding roads and grapevines stretch across infinite green fields filled with sunflowers.  Take in the views of stone farmhouses, medieval villages and winemakers frozen in time.

Explore Grosetto – where in the heart of the city lies the Dante Alighieri piazza – a special area dedicated to the Florentine writer. Wrapped in 2,900 meters of medieval walls, you’ll pass through tiny streets while taking in the ancient architecture including six bastions which are angled parts of the city’s fortress and gates dating back to the 14th century. Discover the Cathedral of Saint Lawrence, refurbished in the 19th century in a neo-Romanesque-Gothic style. The square is also a pleasant place for a stroll or an aperitivo. You can immerse yourself in any one of the many artisan shops, wine bars or caffes.

There’s something for everyone this region of Tuscany. Wine lovers can indulge in a wine tasting tour in Montecucco and Morellino di Scansano, while beach lovers can lay on the sands in Marina di Grosseto or Castiglione della Pescaia – an area bordered by a peaceful countryside and pine forest offering a bit of shade for an Italian picnic.

Siena

Discover Siena! This ancient town of best-known for its historical horse race, the Palio di Siena, held every year at the Piazza del Campo on July 2 and August 16. Ten horsemen ride bareback dressed in original, colorful costumes to celebrate and compete for the win. The tradition began in 1656 in honor of the miraculous apparition of the Virgin Mary and has been celebrated since every year.

Siena is also filled with churches, museums and food and wine shops.  Visit the Cathedral of Saint Catherine, a medieval church that was first constructed as a Roman Catholic Marian church and is now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. It was the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena in the 15th century.

Tuscany Accommodations

Discover a luxury villa set in the peaceful Tuscan countryside. A refined atmosphere and spacious sunlit rooms and suites combine for a relaxing setting. Each rooms combines a designer’s palette of earthy colors – from grays and beiges, ochre, crimson to white. Beds are modern and comfortable and include fine Italian linens. Amenities complete each room with ensuite private bathrooms, a Tuscan stone fireplace, LCD television, safe, WIFI, CD and DVD player.

The estate spans 500 hectares which represent the variety and biodiversity of the Maremma landscape – plains and slopes, vineyards and olive groves and beautiful Mediterranean greenery. When you are not exploring the estate, join a yoga class, indulge in a spa treatment or take a swim in the swimming pool.

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Tuscan Olive Oil Making

The property’s olive grove is an ancient treasure with hundred-year-old trees producing prized extra virgin olive oil using Leccino and Moraiolo olives. The trees are carefully taken care of and produce excellent olives that are harvested by hand from October to November using a cold pressed method.

Itinerary: 5 Days, 4 Nights

Day 1: Arrival & Chef’s Welcome Dinner

• Arrival and check in at the villa.
• Meet your host and enjoy your Cooking Vacations welcome bag with Prosecco and Chef’s apron.
• Later in the evening, enjoy a Michelin Star Chef’s four-course welcome dinner at property including traditional Tuscan classics such as panzanella made with Tuscan bread, lobster tagliolino, hand-cut ribbon pasta, peposo, Tuscan stew made with red wine, and vegetarian – upon request. Wine not included.

Day 2: Cooking Class 1 & Tuscan Wine Tour

• Tuscan breakfast is served.
• Following breakfast, tie on your aprons for a hands-on cooking class with our Michelin Star chef. The chef pays tribute to the beautiful land of Tuscany following classic recipes of the region starting with antipasti like torta salata, a savory flan or bruschetta, toasted bread garnished with black olive or chicken liver pate. Learn how to make handmade pasta such as ravioli or tagliolini with seasonal sauces using pumpkin, porcini mushrooms or truffles. Secondi, main courses, include: scottiglia, a traditional assortment of rabbit, chicken and veal prepared with bay leaves and vegetables or ribolita, a Tuscan vegetable stew. Vegetarian options are available upon request Learn how to prepare Tuscan desserts such as bomboloni, Tuscan doughnuts, tiramisù con vin santo, tiramisù with Tuscan “blessed” sweet wine, or castagnaccio, a chestnut and pine nut confection prepared in autumn. Following the cooking class, everyone enjoys lunch, which includes the food that was prepared in the cooking class.
• In the afternoon, discover the secrets of Tuscan wine making during an in-depth wine tour with tastings at the property’s vineyard. Walk through the vineyard and cantina, followed by swirling and sipping the property’s wine.

Day 3: Discover Siena & Food Lover’s Tour

• Tuscan breakfast is served.
• Following breakfast, meet your driver and depart for Siena. Drive through the countryside lined with cypress trees and Tuscan vineyards until you arrive in Siena. Meet our English-speaking guide in Siena and discover this ancient city that is home to the Palio. During your tour, learn about the food, wine, history and culture of Siena with tastings along the way at artisan food shops. Siena is the magical town the Piazza del Campo– home to the famous horse race, the Palio, held each year in July and August. Following the tour, return to the property with your driver.
• Evening free. Enjoy dinner at the property.

Day 4: Tuscan Pasta Cooking Class 2 & Spa Treatment

• Tuscan breakfast is served.
• Following breakfast, aprons on for a specialty cooking class with our Michelin Star chef. In this hands-on cooking class, learn how to prepare fresh Tuscan pasta and seasonal sauces. Our chef will teach you how to mix, roll out and cut tagliatelle and pici, or stuffed ravioli. Then, learn how to prepare simple and delicious seasonal sauces such as porcini mushroom or pumpkin with sage – and when in season, truffles. Following the cooking class, everyone enjoys lunch with the food that was prepared in the cooking class.
• Following your cooking class, take time to relax on the property.
• Suggestion: wind down and relax with a nutrient-rich spa treatment. The property offers professional spa services such as facials and blissfully aromatic massages. Check with the spa manager to see what may be of interest to you.

Day 5: Check Out & Arrivederci

• Tuscan breakfast is served.
• Check out and arrivederci!
• Transfer from the property to the train station.