Cooking Class | Tuscan Christmas Culinary Experience

Gaia’s Cooking Lab was such a fun experience and the highlight of our girl’s trip to Tuscany!! If you are looking for a private cooking lesson in the country side where you can learn in her family kitchen with Gaia, her mother, and grandmother…book this experience. Gaia communicated with me several months prior to our trip to arrange all the details. We planned the menu and she offered a wine list to go along with our meal. She truly thinks of everything. It was so fun to meet her family and all the pets on the farm…furry friends, bunnies, and chickens, all on a quaint farm. She extends gracious Italian hospitality and even serves olive oil from their olive grove. We made Tiramisu, Pesto, Ravioli, and Tagliatelle from scratch! Then we enjoyed our meal alfresco under an olive tree. Fantastic!!

From the moment we arrived, we were welcomed like family. Gaia, her mother, and her grandmother (the Queen!) opened the doors of their beautiful home and immediately made us feel like lifelong friends rather than guests. We gathered around a long table that was already prepped for us, put on our aprons, and got right to work. We started by working the dough for two different pizzas, prepared the sauce for a classic Margherita, and sliced fresh zucchini for the second. Every step was hands-on, and like the ingredients the recipes were simple, authentic, and approachable for all levels. Next, we learned how to make fresh pasta completely from scratch. We mixed the dough by hand, kneaded it and each took turns feeding it through the pasta machine before cutting beautiful ribbons of fresh pasta. Gaia and her family were incredibly patient, making sure everyone had a chance to learn while sharing little techniques and tips you would never get anywhere else. What made this class so special wasn’t just learning the recipes, it was the experience of being welcomed into an Italian family’s home. There was no rush. We laughed, asked questions and truly felt like part of the family. After all of our hard work, we sat down in their gorgeous garden beneath the olive trees to enjoy the fruits of our labor. We shared the pizzas and fresh pasta we had made together, paired with a wonderful white wine, before finishing the meal with sweetest watermelon for dessert. The setting couldn’t have been more perfect. Surrounded by golden Tuscan fields, olive trees, and friendly farm animals including chickens, ducks, rabbits, turtles, the dogs Whiskey and Frida, and the sweetest little kitten. The warmth, generosity, and genuine hospitality shown by Gaia, her mother, and her grandmother made this one of the most memorable experiences of our entire trip. If you’re anywhere near Cortona, don’t even hesitate, book now!!!! You’ll leave with recipes, new cooking skills, full stomachs, and memories you’ll treasure forever. Thank you, Gaia and family, for opening your home and your hearts to us. We can’t wait to recreate these recipes back home and remember this incredible day in Tuscany. Five stars simply aren’t enough!