Venice and the Veneto: Cooking Masterclass

The main reason for our visit to the Castel Venezze was to take the Italian cooking course, which was taught by Countess Maria and a group of local women.

The wonderful Maria pre-cooking the lasagne sheets

Maria, Manuella, Analisa, Geraldine (my mother) and Susanna

Every day we were greeted in the morning by a wonderful breakfast, the bread and biscuits were freshly made and deivine!

We were presented with aprons and ushered into the kitchen at 10.30am each day. The women would already be working away and we were invited to join in and help with the preparation of the incredible 3 course meals for lunch and dinner that we were treated to every day. It was a wonderful experience to be a small part of a real Italian kitchen - the local women spoke a little English, but most of the time would chatter away to us in Italian - we had to learn by watching and doing, which is the best way!

Here are a selection of photographs from the kitchen:

Making gnocchi

The final product - which took a while to master

Lasagne sheets

Layering the lasagne

Geraldine making the pasta dough with guidance from Manuella

Me making pasta under the watchful eye of Maria

Delicious tortellini

Aubergine, grilled and ready for the melanzane alla parmigiana 

Tagliatelle, which was served with a delicious asparagus and pea sauce (luckily for us our visit coincided with asparagus season!)

Pizza margherita

Carpaccio of cauliflower with salad leaves from the garden, fresh walnuts and a honey dressing

Ravioli - filled with spinach and ricotta

Pear and cherry tart - made with the freshest fruit

Tiramisu - which tasted better after a day in the fridge

It was a wonderful experience, Maria and her team of local women are incredible cooks and lovely people. We also had the great pleasure of eating everything we made - divine!