Una bella cena e’ importante per una buona conversazione. non si puo’ pensare bene, amare bene, dormire bene, se non si e’ mangiato bene
– Virginia WoolfBACK TO SCHOOL!
AT SCHOOL WITH Folle Casseruola:
My kitchen is a place of communal cooking and collaboration where everything happens in a light-hearted and friendly environment. It is the kitchen of my Roman villa, a spacious, sunny, and beautiful space to experiment with different ideas of “home-cooking.” My cooking school is my way of being in the kitchen and this is what I like to share with my students. Together we will cook the food and recipes I am most passionate about. There are many of them because I am a very curious cook. The courses are much more than cooking lessons. They are an Italian-style approach to food in a laid back environment. Besides teaching recipes, we tell stories, trivia, cultural anecdotes about specific dishes, ingredients, and utensils. In the courses I will share plenty of my life adventures surrounding food and the culinary worlds I’ve been exploring, both geographically and culturally for the past twenty years. The courses will give you a feeling for my home and environment. The estate where the villa is located used to be the residency of the best-selling author Luigi Barzini Jr. whose book The Italians is a perfect companion piece to any Italian culinary adventure. The kitchen is, of course, my favorite room in the villa: a closed off Roman-style portico decorated with white masonry columns, large arch windows, and a fire place. The luscious garden outside will provide many of the ingredients we’ll need for our recipes. We will hand pick fruit, vegetables, and herbs and I will teach you how to add special flavors by adding a hint of lemon balm, laurel leaves, and sage to some of our dishes. We will experience food communally, having a good time, and eating the fruits of our labor at the end of the evening along with a great selection of Italian wines. Because the experience of cooking in itself has to be a celebration!
ABOUT ME
Dear friends and “stovemates”, here I am. My name is Stefania Aphel Barzini. I’m a food writer, journalist, TV author, and home chef who has always been involved in the culinary world. I lived in Los Angeles for many years where I taught exclusive courses in Italian regional cuisine to American clients. Together with the Italian Cultural Institute, I organized events, dinners and special themed soirees. For example, I hosted a retrospective on Totò, the famous Neapolitan comedian known as “the prince of laughter” and widely considered one of the greatest Italian artists of the 20th century. For this event I prepared a Totò-themed dinner, but also discovered his relationship to food throughout all his filmography. I did the same thing with Mario Monicelli (one of the master directors of the Commedia all’Italiana) and his movies, and with many more.
Back in Italy, I started a cooking school for foreigners, near Rome, at the Castello di Ceri, a gorgeous castle in the Etruscan countryside, and managed and ran a catering business. Then fate knocked on my door and I was called alongside a great group of food-lovers and experts, to start the famous satellite channel Gambero Rosso. The TV channel bred many children and many dishes: magazines collaborations, documentaries, Food Writing courses, Creative Writing classes, events, and a long list of books–– autobiographical essays, food-themed novels, biographies, and cookbooks. In short, my world revolves around food and cooking. It always has. My soul is inextricably linked to the stove.
English-language cooking courses include:
Cooking as Romans Do:
Roman cuisine cooking lessons where we’ll cook and taste traditional Roman food: gnocchi alla romana, bucatini alla matriciana, carbonara, gricia, cacio e pepe, carciofi alla romana e alla giudia (Roman-style or Jewish-style fried artichokes), roasted lamb scottadito, saltimbocca alla romana (veal cutlets that are cooked so quickly they seem to “jump in your mouth”), torta di ricotta (ricotta cake), and much more.
PRICE: 80 EUROS – Meal and wine included.
Pasta World:
Cooking lessons where we’ll be playing with dough, making and tasting ravioli from scratch, cooking tortellini, fettuccine, and lasagne prepared in many different ways. PRICE: 80 EUROS – Meal and wine included.
Sicily, With Love:
I was born and bred in Rome, but my family comes from Sicily–– the wonderful, sunny, southern region of Italy. During these cooking lessons I’ll share with you the many mouth-watering recipes of this land, the ones my mother and grandmother passed on to me: timballo di anelletti, panelle (chickpea fritters), arancine, pasta con le sarde, caponata, swordfish meatballs, impanata di pescespada (a rich and tasty pie filled with swordfish and zucchini), eggplant parmesan, biancomangiare, cassata, cannoli, and other wonderful and decadent dishes. PRICE: 80 EUROS – Meal and wine included.
From the Ocean:
Cooking lessons focused on fish and seafood. I’ll reveal the many different ways in which Italians cook their Mediterranean fish: clams, cockles, shrimps, scampi, octopus, swordfish, squids, red mullets, sea bass and much more! Euro 90- Meal and wine included
Italian Regional Cuisine:
I also teach courses on every Italian region: you pick the region, I’ll cook the food! PRICE: 80 EUROS – Meal and wine included.
I’m open to any suggestion, we can work together to give you cooking lessons on any subject of your choice, just let me know your wishes and I’ll plan the lessons you like!
Lessons are held in English in my kitchen and usually last between 3 to 4 hours: dinner or lunch depending on whether it’s a morning or afternoon lesson. I can accommodate from 4 to 12 students. For more information and to sign on you can write to: stefia1952@libero.it or check my website at: www.follecasseruola.com. Clock to the “Courses” icon and proceed to “Booking”.
Folle Casseruola Cooking School in Villa Cassia Via Cassia 1055- Rome-Italy Buzzer: 1 Parking inside the compound
I also organize special day trips to buoyant Roman food markets and food stores.
CALENDARIO FOR FOREIGN RESIDENTS IN ROME
COOKING AS ROMANS DO
Cooking as Romans Do- Lesson 1: October 13th -6:30 to 10:30 pm
Gnocchi World: We’ll be making gnocchi alla romana, potatoes gnocchi and spinach and ricotta gnocchi. Followed by a communal dinner.
Cooking as Romans Do- Lesson 2: November 5th- 6:30 to 10:30 pm
Roman Pasta: We’ll be making bucatini alla matriciana, pasta alla carbonara, alla gricia, e cacio e pepe. Followed by a communal dinner.
Cooking as Romans Do- Lesson 3: November 10th- 6:30 to 10:30 pm
Romans and meat: roasted lamb scottadito, saltimbocca alla romana (veal cutlets that are cooked so quickly they seem to “jump in your mouth”), sweet and sour meatballs, peas with guanciale. Followed by a communal dinner.
Cooking as Romans Do- Lesson 4: November 25th- 6:30 to 10:30 pm
Roman desserts: torta di ricotta (ricotta cake), maritozzi con la panna, fritters and much more. Followed by a communal dinner.
Cost: Euro 80, meals included.
SICILY WITH LOVE
Sicily with love- Lesson 1: December 1rst- 6:30 to 10:30 pm
An unforgettable dinner:
We’ll prepare our first sicilian dinner: Panelle, Arancine, Pasta con le Sarde, Insalata di Finocchi e pistacchi, Biancomangiare. Followed by a communal dinner.
Sicily with love- Lesson 2: December 9th – 6:30 to 10:30 pm
Wheat:
A cooking lesson focused on wheat and its use in sicilian recipies; sfincione (a kind of pizza) sformato di anelletti and cassata. Followed by a communal dinner.
Sicily with love- Lesson 3: December 15th – 6:30 to 10:30 pm
Cheese:
A cooking lesson on cheese and its use in sicilian recipes: cacio all’argentiera, braciolette alla messinese, involtini di pesce spada and cannoli. Followed by a communal dinner.
Cost: Euro 80, meals included.