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After another amazing breakfast, we headed to the Abbey of Monte Cassino. The Abbey is spectacular, sitting atop a hill overlooking the town of Cassino. It was the original home of St. Benedict, who established the Benedictine order around 529 A.D. It was ransacked and rebuilt four times. During WWII, it was bombed and re-built after the war. The beautiful statue of St. Benedict is original. the craftsmanship and detail inside is a monument to the abilities of the times. At this time, only nine priests live in the abbey.

Not far away was the winery of La Ferriera in the town of Atina. The vineyards extend in many directions and provide the grapes for wines that. Were superb. We tasted two white wines, Semiato, which is a mix of Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc grapes, Dorato, made from Chardonnay grapes, and two red wines. First was Ferrato, made with Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet grapes, and the other Realmagona, a combination of Cabernet and Syrah. The original vines were brought from France and have been cultivated in this area for a long time. All of the wines were smooth, absolutely delicious and priced between 8,50 and 22,00 Euros. Of course, there were snacks to pair with each wine. Several folks in our group purchased wines that will be sent to them in the US. Lucky them…

Now, time for lunch. Just down the road we ate the Old Cantina Visocci, now restored into a sophisticated restaurant called Mantic. We started with a bruschetta with truffle pate, followed by gnocchi with either a tomato sauce or a truffle sauce, arancini, and finally a tart with pistachios and chocolate. More wine, too. Not bad!

Time for our next cooking class. Today, we are making the secondo, which is usually a protein, but not necessarily. We cut the potatoes, onions, and sausage for the rustic casserole, which was covered in olive oil and baked to perfection by the staff for dinner.

We took a ball of our semolina dough from yesterday and rolled part of it between our palms to make a long, skinny rope that we wound onto a wooden skewer. This would be the basis of our primi for tonight’s dinner with an incredible sauce. We also used part of the dough to cut into rounds and put into small cups, topped with grilled eggplant round slices, tomato sauce, and mozzarella cheese to make individual eggplant parmesan dishes. We had the eggplant parmesan as an antipasto, then the pasta dish, then the casserole covered with a generous helping of a delicious tomato sauce.

The table was set in the former olive pressing room for a unique experience in dining. At the end, we had what they called a “peach” dessert, but with no peaches. The chef baked these amazing cookies. We made the custard that went in between each cookie and rolled them in sugar. This was how they were served, along with a limoncello liqueur, if you wanted. Another memorable dinner

Tomorrow is our last full day at Casa Gregorio. We will have our pizza party and some musical entertainment to savor at the end of this excellent week.

We had our final brunch, and a very impressive one at that. Today the meal included French toast, Italian-style. I didn’t have it but I think it included Nutella! We had a short break and then attended the classes we selected earlier in the week. We had a choice of water color or acrylic painting, weaving, knitting/crocheting, jewelry, or watching a drone fly over the town while wearing VR glasses. I chose the jewelry class and Jim wore the glasses. He said it was fun to see an overview of the area and I enjoyed making a simple necklace out of copper. I may embellish it once I am home, but it was fun to work with the artisan.

In the early afternoon, Chef Luca (so adorable), walked us through making a Casa Gregorio pizza dough. It is easy and makes a delicious base for whatever you want to add. We started at 4:00 PM and by 5:00, we selected our favorite toppings to create a special signature pizza. Many in our group chose to make a white pizza, without tomato sauce. A couple were more traditional, adding tomato sauce as a starter. There were about a dozen or so ingredients to use, including rocket (arugula), various kinds of ham, Bufalo mozzarella, spicy salame, olives, grilled zucchini, peppers or eggplant. Not a pepperoni in sight. It is not used in Italy at all.

Just before making our pizzas, we adjourned to another fabulous kitchen in the Casa, to purchase aprons, fancy Italian oil cans, and many of the tools we used during the week. It was very tempting, but we had limited space and not a great need.

The “famous” Gregory, who started this endeavor fifteen years ago, was in the kitchen with us to cheer us on. He is an Italian-American and spoke Italian from an early age. His dream was to buy a villa and transform it into a cooking destination. He succeeded magnificently.

We tasted everyone’s special pizza, so by the time it was my turn to make a pizza, I declined. I was already toooo full! Jim made an awesome pizza.

We sampled so many that we couldn’t imagine eating one more bite. However, Luca made a dessert pizza that was amazing. It had chocolate, whipped cream, and sliced pears. It was heavenly. I have eaten a fruit tart pizza before and it was exceptional. Fortunately, I can play with all kinds of choices once home.

His partner Massimo, father to Giuseppe (the younger one, as there is an older one who was our driver and guide for most of our excursions), and David, entertained us in the Taverna downstairs. Decked out as a nightclub taverna, Massimo bedazzled in sequins, sang standards from the 50’s to the 80’s in English and Italian. His voice was beautiful and it was evident that he was a born entertainer. For his second set, his son, David, donning a black sequin sports jacket, joined him and they sang in perfect harmony. It was a perfect end to a lovely week.

Tomorrow, we leave for Rome, where we catch an early flight to Brindisi in Puglia (in the heel of Italy). This will start our driving trip to many incredible cities in this area of Southern Italy. The week was fantastic and we would recommend that you consider this on a future trip. You can go to edibledestinations.com for a variety of cooking classes in many countries or directly to Casa Gregorio at italyculinaryholiday.com

This is a typical breakfast at Casa Gregorio. It changes daily but we can always expect delicious choices, along with an espresso, macchiato, fresh juices, and a large variety of teas. We sat out on the patio to enjoy the vista, and great conversation.

Today, instead of going to a premium coffee roaster, we went to a shop/restaurant that specializes in curing and cutting all kinds of pork products. Plus, they have many varieties of cheeses, pastas, and truffle products. It is a very special place and Palma, our host and guide, is the fourth generation in her family to lead the business. She, her sister, and her mother head the company after her great-grandfather started the business many decades ago.

They do not grow their own pigs, but get the hind quarters from a variety of growers, where they prepare the meat, cure it, and hang it in refrigerated rooms for as long as a year or more. Some of the legs are de-boned, some are bone-in. They come from regular pigs and some from black pigs, which are much larger.

After learning about the business of making top-of-line pork products, we had a delicious lunch, creating a charcuterie plate with the many choices on the table. And just when we thought the meal could not get better, we headed to a nearby gelato store that made the most unique flavors. Of course, we still had room for gelato! Pistachio is my favorite but since Jim and I share a small cup of gelato, we have two flavors in the cup – one side with pistachio and the other with a different flavor – in this case, vanilla.

Now it was time to return to Casa Gregorio to begin our cooking class. We started making mini-meatballs for the Italian wedding soup. Then, we learned how to make a variety of pastas, which is the typical first course for an Italian dinner. We made a semolina and and an egg dough, which was made into different types of pasta, with help from an electric pasta rollers. The dough can be used for a variety of pastas, including, lasagne and fresh spaghetti. We had a great time creating these popular kinds of pasta and an even better time enjoying them for dinner. The cream puff dessert was amazing.

It was another wonderful day. Tomorrow, we will focus on wines and making the secondi piatti.

Breakfast was again an event, with many quiches, fresh fruit, and mini-sandwiches. Off to the market, which was not huge but quite busy. The veggies and fruit looked good. There was a profusion of olives, and the fish was very different than we have in Mexico. We also found lots of clothing stalls and other stalls carrying doodads for the house.

Next, we went to a local cheese maker for taste the Buffalo mozzarella and provolone they made. They raise water buffalo, which we visited behind the store. The babies were adorable, but one wanted to lick me. I had finally get away from that precocious baby! The cheeses were unique and delicious. Bufalo mozzarella is prized in Italy and a very special ingredient in all kinds of dishes, including pizza.

We had lunch at a local trattoria in Terracina. We had our choice of pasta with a tomato/sausage sauce, or a white sauce with truffles. Jim and I each got one of the pastas and did a taste test. The truffle sauce on the pasta was a hands-own winner. We had a short shop at the cathedral, which is very simple, even stark, but had its own charm.

After our many stops, we returned to the Casa for a little rest before starting our next cooking class, a variety of antipasti. Italian meals usually start with an antipasto, then a primi, a secondi, sometimes a salad (to cleanse the palette), and dessert, of course.

We made sausage-stuffed mushrooms, bruscheta, arancini (rice in various shapes and deep-fried, grilled peppers, grilled zucchini and egplant, various cheeses and eggplant. The versatile dough we used to make the pasta is made by rolling it on a gnocchi board. It made it so easy and can be used to make gnocchi. We were served all these delicious treats before we started to eat dinner. Easy and delicious.

So, what did we have for dinner this night? We had a focaccia,, a platter of the various antipasti,, our pasta in a delightful Bolognese sauce, with tiramisu to round out the meal. We ate it all!

We awoke to another beautiful morning, ready for breakfast and another day of activities. The breakfast that greeted us was awesome. There were several kinds of quiche, fresh fruit, yogurt, granola, two kinds of juices, and any kind of coffee or tea you may want.

I neglected to mention that yesterday, Giuseppe, our driver for the day, took us to some nearby ruins. They date from centuries ago. It was an opportunity to get to know the other members of our group and enjoy the beauty of the area.

Today, we went to the town of Arpino, the land of olives about 45 minutes away, where we visited a traditional family-owned olive oil mill. We were schooled on the making of extra virgin olive oil by Vincenzo, whose family has been manufacturing oil for along time. He said they are a small producer with 20,000 olive trees. He, and a large contingency of others, hand-trim the trees after harvesting in the fall so they produce the most olives per tree. The care and love shows.

Afterward, we had a light lunch at the mill, made by his mother. Everything was fresh and delicious, like a farro salad, lupini beans, bruschetta with tomato sauce, polenta, grilled onions, and cheese. Vincenzo showed us how to test the freshness of the oil by taking a small sip and swishing it your mouth to get a grassy flavor and then sniffing it to feel the spiciness in the back of your throat. He also said that olive oil should be kept in metal or dark glass containers, not in plastic, to maintain freshness. Oh well… so much for buying olive oil at Costco in giant plastic bottles. I may have to switch to smaller glass bottles of oil.

We returned to Casa Gregorio to relax until 4:30, when we had our first class. Today, we made cookies and desserts with Luca. We each have a work station with aprons. The names of the cookies/treats are posted on the chalk board and we have a QR code to download all the recipes.

It is amazing how many treats you can make with the same dough. It just takes some finesse.

We had a break afterwards to have a glass of wine until dinner. Then, we were treated to a wonderful risotto, followed by a meat loaf roll, and finally, the completed cannoli. You want to eat everything in the first course, but then you wouldn’t have any room for the second course! Fortunately, there is always room for cannoli!

Tomorrow, we head to the local farmer’s market to experience how the locals buy fish, fruit and vegetables, but more importantly, share the local gossip! We have a few stops, and then return to make antipasti for dinner.

We arrived very early into Rome from Naples to await our driver and the other participants for our seven day cooking adventure. Due to some miscommunication, we finally were connected and met Nicki and Tim from the Cincinnati area, Barbara from upstate NY, Jean Marie from Manhattan, Sue and her neighbor Lori from outside of Philadelphia. They all seemed very friendly and it was immediately obvious that wewould be a good group.

In a little over an hour, and we arrived at Casa Gregorio in the small town of Castro dei Volsci, on top of a mountain between Rome and Naples. The views are spectacular, the breezes welcoming, and the staff attentive. We went to our rooms (20, I believe), and the room was gorgeous overlooking the valley below. According to Giuseppe, we had his favorite room. All the rooms have different names. Ours is Saffron, and the colors reflected that. We also are the only room that has a shower and a whirlpool tub!

We got settled and then met for a little walk around the small medieval town center. After only a short time together, you would have thought we came as a group of old friends. The small church is unadorned but charming. There is a lookout point over the valley that provides a splendid view of the area below.

Casa Gregorio was established in 2012 for North Americans to learn about Italian cuisine in a communal, friendly environment. According to the itinerary, every day has a tour, lunch, a cooking class in the Casa and then a wonderful dinner including what we made in class. Luca, the chef, is not only adorable, but very knowledgeable, considering he has not had formal training.

He is capably supported by Dayana, Sara, Antonietta, Carolina, Letizia, and others, who keep things on track, even with our rowdy bunch. There are several kitchens in the Casa, and I am drooling at how gorgeous and functional they are. We had an early dinner in the large dining room.

We started with an amazing first course of pasta with a light sauce that was bursting with flavor. Of course, there was plenty of wine! The second was a lightly dressed plate of salad greens and a chicken roll filled with cheese and ham. Although gorgeous, we could only eat one of the rolls. And, for dessert an incredible ricotta pie.

It was a long day and after enjoying our new companions at Casa Gregorio and eating an amazing meal, it was time to get some rest. Tomorrow, we have a full day with a tour of an olive oil mill and tasting, lunch, and our first cooking class.

Today, we are going to one of the most beautiful areas near Naples. Our guide, Luigi, picked us up at our hotel and off we went to pick up two more people at the port. As I mentioned yesterday, the port area is a sea of humanity, waiting for tour buses or guides. Poor Luigi went to the meeting area but he couldn’t find them. Even phone calls to them were unsuccessful. Ultimately, even the tour company couldn’t locate them. That meant that we had a private tour with Luigi, who happens to be a trained archeologist! It seems that leading tours pays more than being a professor in Italy. That is very sad.

We made our way to Sorrento, the least expensive town on the coast, according to Luigi. It was charming and quite crowded with groups following someone with an umbrella. We were happy that we were not among them. We had an hour to explore the town, which promotes the most popular item of the area, lemons. Everything is lemon-oriented, with most shops selling bags, soaps, hats, towels, and lots of ceramics depicting lemons. I enjoy the citrus aroma of lemons, which is a good thing.

From here, we went to Positano, the high end of the area. Celebrities come here, renting homes for as much as €$30k a night! It has a small beach, with access via many, many steps. The narrow road from one town to another is frightening, especially when you encounter the large buses or tourists who rent cars thinking they will have a place to park and try to squeeze past oncoming cars and vans. Luigi told us that two people die per day on this winding road, mainly those on motorcycles, bikes, or pedestrians who maneuver between vehicles because there are no sidewalks! The switchbacks are very tight, so you have to pay extra attention as you view the houses and hotels hanging on the side of the mountains.

We walked down to the black sand beach. It was quite small, but crowded. That is supposedly the reason that people flock here. I noticed that the prices of clothing and souvenirs were much higher than in other places. And, people pay the higher price for the perceived exclusivity.

There is no crime here but some celebrities come with an entourage of bodyguards (even 20) and practically shut down the town (think Kim Kardashian), even though she was told it was unnecessary. There were many unhappy locals. Sophia Loren’s house, perched on the side of the mountain, just sold for €$2m. Sounds like a good buy until you consider that it may be 50 or 60 steps to the house!

From Positano, we drove to Amalfi. It was filled with tourists. Luigi said that after the second week of June, when the Italian schools are closed for the summer, the crowds will be double or more. There also is a beach, larger than the other, but the sand is more like black gravel. Still, it was wall-to-wall people in the water and sunbathing. 

There was gelato stand after gelato stand, some four or five in a row. Besides gelato, they serve a lemon sorbetto (sorbet slushy) in a hollowed out giant lemon with whipped cream on top. It definitely was a unique treat at only “€$10” each. We passed it up. 

We finally got some lunch and it was delicious at a local restaurant. We shared bruschetta topped with chopped tomatoes, fresh ricotta, and an anchovy. We followed this with a delicious ravioli filled with ricotta and sausage, covered in a yummy red sauce and a swath of pesto. It was just the right size to share. As we walked back to our meeting spot, the tourist crowds seemed to explode.

It was time to head back to Naples. Luigi was engaging and knowledgeable. No need for dinner later, we were still full from lunch. But, we had another very early morning flight, meaning we had to set our alarm for 3:00 AM to make our 6:40 flight (again) to Rome, where we were to meet our driver for our six day cooking class at Casa Gregorio. Our Ajijic friends went to the class last week and they are very well-traveled and discriminating. They couldn’t say enough good things about the experience. We are looking forward to the fun! Now, to bed…

We flew from Palermo to Naples on the 50-minute flight.  Our hotel is across from the main bus station, which was perfectly located. We took a shared taxi ($5 Euros each instead of a taxi at $35 or 40 Euros) from the airport to our hotel. Since our flight was at 6:40 AM, with a pickup at 4:00, we couldn’t check in at the hotel. We decided that we should get some laundry done and found a self-service laundromat nearby. An hour later, everything was ready. We took our bags with the clean clothes to the hotel and decided to pursue checking out the city until we could check in.

Being adventurous, we decided to take the subway to the port area to see if we could find some fish for lunch. Actually, navigating the subway system wasn’t too bad. Only three stops away, we had a short walk to the water, just in time to see three giant cruise ships expelling thousands of travelers who were being transported by giant buses for their day of touring the city, Mt. Vesuvius, or the Amalfi Coast. In our minds, following a tour guide with a tall sign in a group of forty or more, while wearing an earpiece or something dangling around our necks, would be torture.

There was a castle near the port, Castel Nuovo, that was very impressive… also crowded with tourists. We continued toward the water to check out the restaurants. Sadly, the one we chose had mediocre food at best and our cod selection was heavily breaded and tasteless. As we walked back to the subway, we saw some stunning buildings, like the Archeological Museum, the Piazza del Plebiscito featuring the Royal Palace, and the Palazzo Reale, just opposite the Piazza. These buildings are works of art in themselves. We did not have the time to visit any of them, but found the area one we will not soon forget.

After getting settled in our hotel room and relaxing, we decided that a taste of a “typical” Neapolitan pizza was in order. I put it in quotes because each part of Naples has its own idea of what pizza should be. No thin, crispy crust here. Because it was considered street food, a round pizza is folded twice into a wedge with layers of ingredients you can hold in your hand. Each bite feels like an entire meal. And, no pepperoni here. The closest thing to pepperoni is spicy salami, cut into strips. We tried it in our pizza, which was also covered in mozzarella and ricotta. For us, it was inedible. And, if you want a mixed green salad, you had better like arugula or iceberg lettuce. There were no other vegetables in the salad. So, even if Neapolitan cuisine didn’t suit us, it only made looking forward to our upcoming week of cooking classes even better!

Tomorrow, we scheduled a tour of Sorrento, Positano and Amalfi. It is supposed to be one of the most beautiful areas in Italy. Until then…

The drive to Palermo was easy. We arrived in the late PM and relaxed in our hotel until we ventured out for a light dinner. Our hotel, Politeama, sits directly across from Teatro Politeama Garibaldi, an impressive structure that mainly hosts concerts. The sculpture on top is stunning, and even more stunning at night.

In the morning, we met Renata, our guide for the two-hour tour of the highlights of the city. One of the most famous is the opera house, Teatro Massimo, which is beautiful. They host opera and ballet performances. Sometimes, they have tours of the interior, but we were unable to schedule the tour this time. As you can see, it is a unique blend of styles. In 1864, there was a competition to design an opera house that would be the second largest in Italy, second only to the one in Naples and the third largest in Europe at the time. It was ultimately completed in 1890.

We walked through the market and visited the Palermo Cathedral that went through many iterations, depending on who was in power at the time. Its heritage ranges from the Arab-Norman-Byzantine style to the Gothic and Baroque styles. There was much discussion that it once was used as a mosque, with no other evidence than a plaque on is one column with Arabic writing. The other unique aspect is how beautiful it is inside. You can’t help but marvel at the construction and design.

Our walk continued to the intersection of the main street with the corners of each building depicting various figures, called Quattro Canti. It is very famous, as evidenced by the many tourists taking pictures of the four buildings. It is considered the center of the historic quarter of the city.

At the end of the tour, we walked the main street, enjoyed a granita, a famous treat similar to a slushy, that is sometimes served with a brioche bun (but I can’t figure out why). This dessert is second only to gelato, which is ubiquitous in Italy.

We made a reservation at our hotel’s rooftop bar for a glass of Prosecco and a bird’s eye view of the city. It would be an early night to pack and get picked up at 4:00 AM for our 6:40 flight to Rome. Boy, we hate these early flights but it is hard to turn down a $33 flight and take a later one at $159 per person!

It was a sad time leaving Sicily but one we will remember always. I anyone wants to go on a great tour, consider using Sicily Activities through Tourradar. They have excellent guides, use good hotels, and are very responsive with any of your questions. Tell Massimo that I recommended them. Off to Naples…

It was another gorgeous day as we boarded our van to go to Agrigento, about two hours away from Syracusa. The Valley of the Temples is the sight of three amazing Greek temples, among the world’s most significant and one especially in excellent shape. The Temple of Concordia (harmony) rivals Athen’s Parthenon. It is missing the roof but has its columns in tact. The remnants of the Temple of Juno and of Heracles, gives you a glimpse of the many conquerors of Sicily. Each conquering civilization put their unique spin on the architecture and details. For example, the Romans modified the original Greek temples and then the Christians added arches to conform to the designs of the day.

The temples have six Doric columns on the east and west sides and either thirteen or sixteen columns on the north and south sides. Inside, there are three chambers with a statue of the god or goddess being honored. The entrance always faces east to welcome the sunrise. In front of the temple is an altar where animals are sacrificed to the gods. No people were sacrificed (that we know of!).

The grounds are filled with almond trees, pistachio trees, olive trees, and prickly pear cactus. The cactus plants surround the other trees so animals cannot get to the nut and olive trees. It makes sense. We also saw very unique goats with horns that curved in ways we have never seen before.

After seeing the ruins, it was on to a very nice restaurant in Agregento before our two hour drive to Palermo. The food was quite different in here. One person in our group had lamb chops, Jim had a pasta dish with broccoli and ham, and Caroline and I had a beef roll-up with potatoes.

We arrived in Palermo in the late afternoon, ready to eat another meal. Our hotel is just opposite the Teatro Massimo, a venue used for concerts.
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