A Week with the Tuscan Chef at the Villas of Vorno - BEST SELLER

A 7-Day International Kitchens tour starting from $3,750

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Starting Price: $3,750 Printer Friendly Page
Tour Length: 7 Days
Countries Visited: Italy
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More Information About This Tour:
Tour Type:
 Speciality Tours
Tour Category: Italy Tour
Tour Operator: International Kitchens
Tour Code: IKTUSCANCHEF
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Cities Visited:
Florence, Lucca, Chianti, Pistoia, Fiorentina,

Discover a little piece of Tuscan heaven and savor the very best in Tuscan living gathered together in our kitchen and around our table. The Tuscan Chef is based in one of a number of wonderful private villas in the area near Vorno, a small town outside of Lucca. Your week might take place at the Villa al Boschiglia, while other weeks may be held at the charming Casa Matteucci or another equally wonderful private villa. The villas are all of the same caliber, surrounded by wild and stunning olive grove terraces or fruit orchards reaching out over Monte Pisano with views across lavender and lemon scented Italian gardens towards the enchanting walled town of Lucca. They each feature a small selection of wonderfully outfitted rooms (usually only 6 to 8 rooms) with private en suite bath or shower facilities. Your cooking classes are held in the charming Tuscan kitchen of your villa, with meals served in the elegant dining room. During your free time you can enjoy the lovely grounds or the gracious Italian living areas.

 
Itinerary
 
 
Sightseeing
 
 
• Six nights accommodation with en-suite bathroom in private villa
• Seven hands-on cooking classes with Chef Valter Roman
• All food & house-wine
• Cost of pre-arranged restaurants
• Transfers to and from Pisa or Florence Airport, or Pisa, Florence, or Lucca Train Station
• Transport for all arranged outings, guided tours & entrances to museums as arranged
• Wine tours/tastings
• On arrival, each student will be presented with a course guide, a cookbook of course recipes & an apron
• Graduation certificates
 
Day One - Sunday
• Transfers from Pisa or Florence airports or train stations (or from Lucca train station) for arrival at your accommodation on the outskirts of Lucca around midday for a welcome buffet lunch prepared by your Italian chef for the week, Valter Roman.

• Buffet lunch - meet your hosts & cooking colleagues with time to settle in and relax before the first hands-on cooking lesson.

• Hands-on cooking lesson with preparation of dinner:
o Fiori di zucca ripieni & fritti con cestini di parmigiano - Deep fried, ricotta filled zucchini flowers with oven crisped parmesan baskets
o Gnocchi di patate con pesto Genovese - Potato gnocchi with a basil, olive oil and pine nut sauce
o Tiramisù – A little “pick-me-up”
o Cantucci di Prato – Almond biscuits from Prato
• Welcome aperitivi and orientation before dinner.

Day Two - Monday
• Breakfast available.
• Join us for a leisurely morning stroll around the ancient walls of Lucca.
• Pasta and its Sauces - a specially themed cooking lesson.
• Tagliolini al pomodoro ciliegino & basilico – Long thin pasta with a cherry tomato and basil sauce
• Ravioli di asparagi selvatici con una salsa tartufata di stagione – Wild asparagus filled ravioli with a seasonal truffle butter
• Maltagliati con funghi porcini & niepitella – Bad cuts of pasta with a porcini mushroom and calamint sauce
• Torta di formaggio – Chef’s summer cheesecake
• Lunch al fresco followed by a short guided tour of Pisa & its Leaning Tower.
• Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of dinner.
• Melanzane alla Parmigiana - Oven baked layers of eggplant, tomato and parmesan
• Risotto ai carciofi – Artichoke risotto
• Torta di ricotta con grano & aranci - Orange & grain ricotta tart
• Limoncello di Nonna Maria - Grandma Maria’s lemon liqueur
• Aperitivi and dinner.

Day Three - Tuesday
• Breakfast available.
• Depart for a Chianti adventure stopping off at an enchanting market town as well as renowned vineyard for wine-tasting and lunch followed by a further vineyard and distillery visit.
• Leave Chianti and return home for an informal pizza supper in the lively village trattoria, just a short walk from the villa.

Day Four - Wednesday
• Breakfast available.
• Chef’s tour of the bustling market town of Pistoia to choose fresh produce for dinner followed by a kitchen challenge where students and chefs work together to prepare a buffet lunch with items found at the market.
• Lunch followed by free time to relax and enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the villa.
• Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of a special wine-tasting dinner.
• Pappardelle con cinghiale & finocchio selvatico – Pasta ribbons with wild boar and wild fennel
• Tagliata Fiorentina con funghi porcini & rucola & fagioli zolfini – Florentine steak dressed with a porcini mushroom sauce or rucola topping and served with zolfini beans
• Pesche agli amaretti con gelato di cannella - Amaretto peaches with cinnamon ice-cream
• Introduction to the wines of Tuscany followed by dinner with wine tastings to accompany each course.

Day Five - Thursday
• Breakfast available.
• Guided tour through Lucca followed by a specially selected tasting menu for lunch at Valter’s restaurant, The Gazebo at Locanda L’Elisa. After lunch there’s plenty of time to discover Lucca for yourself with great shopping along Via Filungo or to return to the peaceful haven of the villa for an afternoon of relaxation.
• Hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of dinner.
• Crema di fagioli con gamberi al guazzetto - Cream of cannellini beans with pan-seared prawns
• Pesce in cartoccio -Fish in a bag
• Sorbetto di limone & salvia - Lemon & sage sorbet
• Preparazione panna cotta – Panna cotta pudding preparation
• Aperitivi and dinner.

Day Six - Friday
• After breakfast, your hands-on cooking lesson specializing in pastry and dessert techniques.
• Lunch is followed by an afternoon at leisure to either relax and enjoy the villa, spend some last-minute shopping time in Lucca and/or join Valter at Enoteca Vanni in Lucca for an olive oil tasting session.
• Return to the villa for your final hands-on cooking lesson and preparation of your final dinner.
• Crespelline Fiorentine – Fiorentine spinach & ricotta crepes with a walnut sauce
• Ossobuco alla Milanese con riso pilaff – Beef shanks in a citrus vegetable sauce & pilaff rice
• Torta di pere e marzipane con salsa di cioccolato – Pear & marzipan pie with chocolate sauce
• Farewell drinks, graduation ceremony and celebratory dinner.

Day Seven - Saturday
• Breakfast available and transfers to Florence or Pisa airport or Florence, Pisa or Lucca train station. Goodbye, until the next time!
 
         
Touring Date
Land Only
Land + Air
Single
(Land Only)
Single
(Land + Air)


No Departure Date Information was found for this Tour. This could be due
to our website undergoing an update.

Please call a tour specialist at 1-800-942-3301 for personalized assistance.

 
Note: Departures appearing above in green are guaranteed to operate by the tour operator.
         

Airfare Disclaimer
A NOTE ABOUT AIRFARE: We encourage you to buy your airfare from the tour operator, because if your tour cancels then your airlines tickets will be covered. Purchasing flights separately at a lesser rate and incorporating it with a Non-Guaranteed Departure Date can result in loss of total cost of your flight investment. Depending on the fare rules, flights may be Non-Refundable and/or Non-Transferable. Neither the tour operator and/or Atlas Cruises & Tours will be held responsible for loss if a tour is cancelled for Lack of Participation. If you would like to check for discounted fares on Guaranteed Departures or for competitive pricing on air and hotel packages, we invite you to follow this link.

Documents
TRAVEL DOCUMENTS: Necessary Travel Documents such as Passports and Visas is the responsibility of the traveler. Passports must be valid six months from your return travel date.
ABOUT THE COOKING LESSONS:
Our hands-on cooking courses are under the guidance of professional Italian chef, Valter Roman, one of our top collaborators for many years! If you asked Valter what he wanted to do when he was a child, he would have always said "be a chef." Like, many, he began his "studies" at the side of his mamma and grandma learning the traditions and kitchen culture that are today the essence and basis of any successful Italian chef. Valter studied professionally at the Instituto Alberghiero di Casargo, which led to many successful positions in renowned restaurants throughout Italy and the world. His mentor, Ugo Amato, trained him in London in the art of pastry where he created some of the most sought after pastries and cakes and even supplied the British Royal family. He has also studied with the formidable Tuscan chef Alvaro Maccioni and after three years of study has achieved his sommelier status to accompany his vast kitchen knowledge. Craving the "bella vita" life of Italy, Valter returned to Tuscany with his English wife, Julia, where together they have teamed up for the last ten years to create the ideal cooking vacation.

Featured in The Italian Magazine as "One of the finest Tuscan cookery courses in the world," August 2007, Pathfinders Travel Magazine July/August 2007, United Airlines Hemispheres magazine, "World on a Plate," July 2006 and Condé Nast Traveler April 2006.
 

2011 Price Per Person

  • US$3750 per person based on double occupancy

  • US$450 single supplement

  • non-cooking participant, please inquire


    • Please note: this program requires a US$1500 per person deposit

     
     
     
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