Anne's Cooking Classes in Assisi, Umbria, Italy and the U.S.

First Encounters... with Umbrian Rural Cuisine
When my husband Pino and I moved here to the countryside outside of Assisi in 1975, we both set out to learn all that we could about rural life from our farm neighbors. They taught us how to raise a variety of animals - guinea fowl, geese, chickens, ducks, rabbits, pigs, sheep, goats - and how to best serve them at table! Every winter, one of the pigs was transformed into prosciutto, capocollo, sausages, pancetta, and salami (see Zsa zsa's Story). Chiarina taught me how to find the wild asparagus for a frittata or risotto and Eva taught me how to conserve the garden's vegetables sott'olio, how to preserve figs and other fruits in a variety of ways. With Mandina, I went mushrooming and gathering wild salads.

The cooking that I have been doing ever since has been the cucina povera of her rural people, the cooking of people who ate only what they grew - with very few "intruding" elements - as their income did not permit extras. The Umbrians proudly call this delicious simple food of their rural ancestors, la cucina genuina. No other cuisine so generously combines goodness and freshness.

In my cooking lessons (both here in our home near Assisi - and in the U.S. in private homes), I now and then add a dish learnt during the years I lived in Rome - or on our annual summer visits to my husband Pino's family in Palermo, Sicily.

All cooking lessons - here in our home and in the U.S. - are fully hands-on as I don't believe that anyone can truly learn to cook by simply watching.

Cooking Lessons in our Home
Making Tiramisu in Italy

Join us for a cooking class of Umbrian rural cuisine in our Assisi countryside home. We will start with market shopping and our rounds will include a visit to the local caseificio to select freshly-made cheeses and a stop at our farm neighbor to buy fresh eggs.
Then on to our home in the Assisi countryside for our fully "hands-on" cooking class. With a bit of luck, we might even find wild asparagus and wild field greens on our land to add to our meal. Cooking preparation will take a couple of hours and the eating pleasure might take just as long! I will share gastronomical lore and rural insights throughout our class of Umbrian rural cuisine. Discover the goodness of the Umbria land while learning about the traditions of the rural people.

This class is strictly limited to 8 persons. Fee per person: 130 E - for all foods, wines and full-day experience (and you will NOT need dinner - after our "banquet"!) Check out below what past "students" have to say.
For dates of shared cooking classes in our home, see IN-COMPAGNIA page.

Cooking Lessons in Umbria
Cooking classes of any size - all in the medieval hilltowns and all with exceptional cooks - can be arranged:
* at your lodgings here in Umbria (rented farmhouse? villa?)
* in a country house near Perugia
* in a wonderful local trattoria
* in a fine restaurant acclaimed by gourmets
* in a delightful hotel.

Cooking Progams
It gives me pleasure to organize multiple-day cooking programs for groups - which can include olive-oil tasting, wine-tasting, lectures on culinary topics, visits to water-powered olive oil and flour mills, pasta shops, cheese producers, chocolatiers, etc.

New! Umbrian "Banquet" in our Home
A couple of nights a week, I offer a "banquet" dinner in our Assisi countryside home. Whether at 45 E a person (for those also touring with me) or 48 E per person (for those NOT also touring with me), dinner in our home is top value. Eat, learn and experience!
Included:
* "banquet" dinner of Umbrian rural cuisine (and I might slip in a few Sicilian dishes - influence of my Sicilian husband, Pino!)
* an "architectural tour" through our farmhouse in restoration (right next to our present home), with insights into our rural life during our years in the farmhouse and explanation of the transformation underway now

Above fees applicable for group of 6-8. Happy to accomodate smaller groups - please ask for rates. Maximum number: 8
- Reduced rates for children
- For groups over 8, dinner at the home of farm neighbors! Same fees as above.

Baking in the outdoor bread oven
My neighbor Olga will happily assist me in teaching you to make torta and a delicious Umbrian legume soup, and then we'll do pizzas in her outdoor stone bread oven - this one is always a hit with the kids. See article for further information.

Since 1999, I have been sharing the secrets of la cucina genuina (home-cooking... with foods of the land) of our Umbria through U.S. cooking events, most often in private homes. Such an event is a perfect way to celebrate an anniversary, a milestone birthday, a special event... and cooking events can be used as fund-raisers, business events, get-togethers for gourmet food/wine groups... or just as a way to gather friends together. See below what past hosts have to say.

Where and When?
This year cooking lessons (and lectures) are offered in private homes in the U.S. and Canada in February - March 2008. Requests are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. I accept requests for lessons in areas where I have at least 4 requests for events, ie, other cooking lesson requests or lecture requests.

What's necessary?
* Space in your kitchen for minimum of 12 people - groups are limited to 16 persons, including the host(s) - although cooking lessons have worked out very successfully in surprisingly small quarters.
* Very basic cooking utensils (I will send ahead the list of equipment needed).

How long does the lesson last?
Cooking lessons may take place in the morning or in the late afternoon. Meal preparation takes about 2 hours. If a morning lesson, cooking should start about 10:30 a.m. so that we can eat about 12:30 - 1:00 pm. If evening lesson, cooking would start at about 5:30 p.m. or 6:00 p.m. followed by dinner (about 2 hrs. later). Cooking lessons are fully "hands-on" and throughout our lesson, I will share with you Umbrian culinary lore and folk traditions.

What will we cook?
Our menu includes various antipastos, a pasta dish, main course, side dish(es), dessert. I send ahead a sample invitation, the menu, recipes and shopping list prior to the cooking events - so that the host can print out the recipes for the participants prior to the lesson. Hosts are asked to do the shopping prior to the class. I arrive at the host's home well ahead of the lesson to make sure that all is in order - to see if anything else is needed.

Cost of the event?
Hosts buy the foods and are asked to make a contribution of $185 towards my travel expenses. Each guest pays $85 and minimum number of 12 is required, other than the hosts (who do not pay for the lesson).

Umbrian Dinners in the U.S.
Prepared and served by me for your guests - for those who simply wish to "feast" without cooking it first!

Number of guests:  12 minumum and 16 maximum

Cost?   Hosts buy food and makes $185 contribution to my travel expenses. $95 per person (and assistant requested - of your choice - for help in preparation, please)

What time of day?  late morning or early evening

What is needed?   I will send the shopping list, menu, recipes and utensils required ahead to hosts. I will fully prepare all the meal (with assistant chosen by hosts - no previous experience needed at all!)

Optional Addition to Cooking Lessons or to Umbrian Dinners
Let's spark up the evening with entertainment! My talk on "Italian Gestures" prior to cooking classes or Umbrian dinners ("a glass of wine and..." ... gestures!) will start off the evening with gusto! (Optional addition to the evening - at no charge.)

I'd like to share with you now and then, a taste of la cucina genuina of Umbria... dishes taught me by my rural neighbors, passed on from generation to generation... which I learnt by watching, tasting - not easy to write up into recipes with precise quantities, but here is an attempt.

Pasta alla Primavera
Asparagus, Fave and Peas: Springtime Goodness... Years ago, kerchiefed farmwomen sold bunches of the wild asparagus at the morning market off Assisi's main square, fruit of hours of scrambling up and down the hills in the woods, eyes sharpened in search of the narrow stalks. The season started and ended in a couple of weeks. Asparagus (wild and garden variety), fava beans and peas are the springtime vegetables of central Italy and star in Pasta alla Primavera ("springtime pasta"). I'd like to share my pasta alla primavera (and there are many variations on this theme). Please see my related article.

Ingredients (for 6):
1- 1/4 lbs pasta (or a bit less - use 1 lb of pasta for every 5 people) - use rigatoni or penne or bowtie pasta
a bunch of wild asparagus or about 6 - 8 stalks of garden asparagus
fresh peas (about 1- 1/2 c when shelled)
fresh fava beans, if available (about 1 c. or more when shelled)
1 large onion, white or yellow
olive oil - about 1 cup
grated Parmesan or pecorino (sheep's milk cheese - sharper than Parmesan and better, I think, for this dish)
salt, pepper

Finely-chop onion and sauté til golden (do not burn!) in olive oil. Add peas and fava beans and gently simmer, adding about 1 to 2 c. of hot water so that beans and peas start to cook down, though they should remain al dente ("to the tooth", ie, chewy). Add asparagus tips if garden asparagus - and if wild asparagus, add all of the stalk (breaking into pieces of about 1/4 inch til not possible to break, ie, until you reach the "tough" part at base).

Simmer all vegetables til tender, though NOT mushy! Serve over pasta which you have cooked in salted water til al dente, remembering to save the water when draining. If sauce needs more moisture, add a bit of the pasta water and/or a bit of olive oil. Generously sprinkle with grated cheese, mix and serve.

Optional addition: zucchini, chopped into small pieces - sauté in olive oil with beans, peas - but after the legumes have cooked a bit as zucchini will cook down much more quickly.

Cooking Events in Italy

"Greetings from Texas --- The evening cooking class was so much fun at David and Benita's house -- I thought you planned a great menu! I wanted you to know that I have prepared it for two different occasions!"
Martha Stendi, TX

"I cannot begin to do justice to the culinary blessings we enjoyed while touring with Anne, including a personal cooking lesson and meal in her real Italian farmhouse. This was preceded by local shopping for the fresh ingredients at the local outdoor produce market, the local cheese manufacturer, and the local butcher. All of time spent with Anne was full of joy. We learned and experienced so much more than we would have had we relied on ourselves to guide us through the area."
Peggy Worthing, Atherton, CA

"The cooking class with Anne was exceptional and the highlight of our trip!"
Cary and Dave Hofstad, Kalispell, Montana

"I really enjoyed Anne's cooking class. Not only did I learn how to prepare lots of great dishes, but Anne's hands-on, informative approach made the whole day a highlight of the trip. We got to meet local food suppliers, learn about the ingredients and see how Italians approach the whole food experience. Highly recommended."
Robert Solodov, San Francisco, CA

Cooking for children

"Anne's cooking lesson was great! It was the funnest cooking lesson I've ever taken. We went with Anne to buy the vegetables and the cheese and the meat at different markets. We also met her neighbor who is a farmer with 32 acres and we got to taste his wine and see his cattle. Then we went back and cooked on a wood stove and made four courses. I was in the kitchen cooking the whole time which was fun. She even taught me how to keep from crying when I chopped onions. And then we ate the food and it was really good. If you ever have the chance to cook with Anne, take it as fast as you can!"
Taylor Corbett, 13 years old, Seattle, WA

Cooking in the U.S.

"We were fortunate enough to host one of Anne's cooking classes during her 2004 U.S. tour. Several attendees were former tour participants in one or more of Anne's tour groups of Umbria and were excited to be able to spend time with her again. Not only was the evening filled with learning how to cook and eat the most fabulous food, but included wonderful stories of Anne's life in Assisi and how things have changed over the years. It was definitely a 'Top 10'evening and we'll remember it forever."
Scott and Ann McClellan, Lynnwood, WA

"Anne, I had a marvelous time at Ann and Scott McClellan's home on the evening of March 1st. Your recipes were wonderful and only outdone by your own enthusiasm for the food and culture of the Umbrian region of Italy. Thank you so much for giving us a window into your world in addition to an evening of gastronomical delights."
Jan Mast , Kent, WA (March 2004)

"Our dinner with Annie proved to be one of the most lavish, decadent, and memorable parties we've ever given. All hands pitched in with vigor. Every dish, pot and utensil we owned flew about the kitchen in a crescendo of activity. Wine flowed, garlic sizzled, chocolate oozed and steam and laughter mingled overhead. At the end of the evening every guest chef sighed deeply, leaned back, settled their hands across a sated belly and gazed dreamily off toward Umbria. Magnifico!"
Terry Smith, Berkeley, CA

"We loved having you teach us a little bit about cooking the Umbrian way. The chopping, cutting, mixing, stirring, and tasting were all part of the fun. Imagine taking 12 strangers and cooking a dinner and having a wonderful time. Your mixture of food, friends and creating a full family was truly the party of the year. We will definitely do it again."
Jan and Bill Hagan, Castro Valley, CA

"We first met Anne Robichaud during a private cooking class in our home as part of her winter whirlwind lecture/cooking tour of the States. Moments after she commandeered the kitchen, we were chopping, dicing and slicing to her exacting instructions while she entertained us with stories about farm life in rural Umbria. By the time we sat down to eat she was a bonafied member of the family."
Tom and Linda Blinn, Southern CA

"For a hilarious time learning all about Italians while eating the most delicious food ever, that you helped to cook, try cooking with Annie! Its a must in my book!"
Cathleen Dorinson, San Anselmo, CA