Traditional Italian cooking class in the countryside of Florence

My mom wanted to cook in Italy and we were suggested to cook with Fabio in Florence. Fabio is the nicest, most patient and creative cook. He was welcoming and loved sharing his mastery of cooking. We thoroughly enjoyed being with him and his wife Christine and chatting about all things - cats included. If you want to learn to cook an amazing meal as well as get to know more about Florence, culture and life in italy - this is the experience for you. I now need a pasta machine :) and it is not as hard as I thought.

Fabio and a family friend picked us up in Florence not far from where we were staying and drove us to his home in the country side. The views just driving to his home were AMAZING, and we were welcome with prosecco, fresh mozarella and bread with oil made from the olives on the property. We then began preparing our 3 course meal of homemade pasta and sauce, swordfish, cuttlefish, and apple tart. The cooking instruction was fun and informative, and we then got to sit to enjoy our food while getting to know more about Fabio and the area. This was one of our favorite parts of our entire 2 weeks spent in Italy!

Fabio and Kristiana are top notch hosts. From Working closely with us to develop a menu to the drive back after dessert. We enjoyed our time completely and felt like we said goodbye to new friends when the night was over. The food was interesting and enjoyable, accompanied by nice wine.

My husband and I had the most wonderful time with Fabio and his wife Christiane. Fabio picked us up in Florence and we had a beautiful scenic drive in the country to his home. He even stopped at an overlook so we could get out and see Florence below us. Once at their home, Fabio and Christiane we're so warm and friendly. We felt as if we were old friends. We loved hearing stories of how they met and their lives together. Fabio provided us with a welcome drink as we learned how to prepare a traditional Florentine meal. We made ricotta cheese and spinach gnudi (my personal favorite), peposo (my husband's favorite), stewed artichokes, and for dessert, castagnaccio. We were there on Valentine's day and Fabio put his own special touch on the cake to make it extra special. We stayed much longer than the tour time designated just eating, drinking, and having lovely conversation. Prior to coming, Fabio communicated frequently with us to make sure the menu he had planned was something we would enjoy and he had no trouble changing things that we were unsure of. Afterwards, he sent us the recipes so we could make them at home as well. We did so many wonderful things in Italy, but this was by far our favorite!

My husband and I had a wonderful experience with Fabio and his wife, Christiane. We learned some delicious recipes, enjoyed lovely conversation, and had a spectacular dinner outside in their backyard located on a beautiful estate surrounded by the most amazing views! I highly recommend this cooking class experience. It is a highlight of our travels to Italy in July 2022! Lisa & Mike

Truly the highlight of our time in Italy. We spent the afternoon with Fabio and his wife, Christiane, learning some traditional recipes including ricotta and chard stuffed ravioli and a traditional ligurian dish of salt cod with chickpeas. But the best was having an afternoon of delicious food , wine, and conversation discussing music and books in the Tuscan countryside. It felt like we were visiting old friends. Fabio provided all the recipes so that we can try again now that we have returned home.

Fabio was wonderful, generous and made this a highlight of our trip to Italy. His wife Christiana joined as well and shared her delicious homemade plum chutney and shared how they cured olives from the grove outside their house. I wish I could give them 6 stars. Thank you!

We had an amazing experience with Fabio and his wife Christiane. My wife and I were traveling in Italy for 2 weeks on our honeymoon and spent a few days in Florence. We booked this cooking class with Fabio a few months in advance and he reached out ahead of time to customize the menu/food to our preferences. We ended up making homemade pasta with a white bean sauce with bacon & peppers plus a couple sides (fried zucchini and chicken rolls). Fabio is very knowledgeable and offered all sorts of insights about the ingredients, cooking tips, etc, throughout the process. We had great local wine and were greeted with a plate of local cheese when we arrived. All of the food was incredible and as good as anything we had in Italy - and it was certainly one of the most memorable overall experiences. Fabio picked us up and dropped us off in downtown Florence. They live at the top of a mountain on the outskirts of Florence and the drive was unbelievably scenic. Their house is surrounded by gardens, olive trees and all sorts of wildlife - a very authentic tuscan countryside experience. We prepared the food in the kitchen but the weather was nice so we ate at their table outside in the garden/yard. The cooking class was supposed to be from 5:00-9:00pm but we were having such a great time chatting with Fabio & Christiane after dinner that we lost track of time and ended up staying until 11:00pm. Fabio & Christiane were such amazing hosts and were not the least bit upset that we stayed that late. They are great people clearly appreciate getting to know their guests and were hospitable from beginning to end. Your response

We had a wonderful time with Fabio and Christine. The food was fresh from a local market or from their garden. The experience was amazing, fresh food, good wine and the conversation was delightful. The day was perfect to sit on their patio for a wonderful lunch. It was so nice to get out of the city and learn about the area. Since we have been home we have made the dishes several times with confidence. We are planning a return visit and look forward to another session with wonderful teachers.

After a full day in Florence visiting museums and galleries, we were really looking forward to our personalized dining experience. Our visit to the home of Fabio and Christiane exceeded all of our expectations. In the weeks before we arrived, we communicated with Fabio several times discussing the menu. This allowed us input into our meal and Fabio did the rest, creating a wonderful 3 course lunch. After picking us up directly from our hotel, we drove to their charming home high on a hill, taking in beautiful views of the Tuscan countryside. We were greeted by Christiane and immediately felt right at home. We spent the next 2 1/2 hours in their kitchen sipping Campari, chatting about a host of topics and helping Fabio prepare our meal. We prepared and baked a delicious Apple Tart, then Pappa al Pomodoro, which we had requested and finally learned how to make home made pasta which we used to make our main course of seafood/ricotta stuffed tortelli in a creamed zucchini sauce. The meal was absolutely delicious ( our best in Florence ) and served with a wonderful local wine while seated next to a cozy open fire. Fabio and Christiane even took time between courses to explain all about different olive oils, which included sampling with his own homemade bread. Before we knew it, almost 5 hours had flown by since we started our day. Florence is a beautiful city but to really appreciate Tuscan life and the people there ( not to mention a meal you won’t forget ) we would highly recommend this dining experience arranged through the Traveling Spoon.

My husband and I had such a wonderful time with Fabio and his wife, Christiane. First Fabio picked us up in town and drove us back to his home in the outskirts of Florence - during the drive we stopped to enjoy the beautiful view of Florence and talk about the surrounding olive trees and the olive oil making process. Next we arrived at Fabio's cozy, friendly home where he had prepared the whole space to welcome us - there were welcome drinks, an appetizer and a warm fire burning in the living room. We proceeded to make homemade pasta using his antique family hand-press pasta maker (he has a modern pasta press also), gallinella (fish) fillet sauce with fresh tomatoes, squid with spinach, fried anchovies and a shortcrust pastry tart with homemade jams. The entire time Fabio was happy to answer my question and explain everything step by step, letting me be as involved as I wanted to be. (No need for ME to touch the anchovies, right?!) We had a wonderful wine that was from a vineyard owned by a good friend of Fabio's. Dinner was served on their family china and was so good! The best food we had in Italy which is defiantly saying something!! Both Fabio and Christiane speak English really well and the conversation was very engaging and fun. They are an adorable couple who clearly enjoy each other, good food, meeting new people and their wonderful home. I couldn't say enough wonderful things about this experience. You should book this experience too so it can be the highlight of YOUR trip, you won't be sorry!