THE12ITALY

Our host and teacher, Francesca was outstanding. A wonderful combination of warm and welcoming, plus knowledgeable and competent. We were celebrating the birthdays of 2 of our family members and Francesca made a special effort to honor them. Everything was organized and ready to go; so well that our cooking time felt just as easy as if we were cooking in the kitchen with a dear friend. We learned to make 2 delicious pasta dishes. We made our own pasta and sauces while happily exchanging family food and cooking stories. At the end, Francesca gave us a lovely gift of the recipes for the lunch we made. We can’t wait to pass on the traditional recipes with our friends and family at home! Thanks to Francesca for a memorable day!

We enjoyed Francesca’s class a lot. It was so much fun learning to make homemade Pici with zucchini sauce, but even more her grandmothers chicken recipe! I already made it for my fiancé back at home! It sooo delicious! Francesca is an incredible and remarkable person who is very worldly yet authentic and true to her culture! It was a wonderful evening full of laughter, learning and great story telling. Just wonderful!

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful! This experience was the perfect end to my family’s Tuscan holiday. Perfect was the setting, pale blue country kitchen with huge windows, big, perfectly set table and our host Francesca, whose warm and open-hearted personality made us feel genuinely welcome to her home. Instead of 4 hours, we stayed with Francesca for almost 6 hours, cooking, chatting, exchanging recipes. No video can get anywhere close to personal contact with the local cook, who answers all your questions, shares stories about her life, giving you such an authentic view at Tuscan way of life. The dishes we prepared were simple, yet absolutely delicious! Both my daughters, my husband and I were delighted with the presents Francesca prepared for us. Such thoughtfulness, attention to detail. I feel I can’t praise Francesca enough :) Our sincere and absolute recommendation! Bravo Francesca!

It’s hard to describe just how amazing this experience was for me and my partner. From the moment we stepped into Francesca’s beautiful kitchen, we felt at home. She treated us like old friends. When we got to her place she already had yummy appetizers and wine prepared for us, the kitchen was tastefully set with all the ingredients and little cooking stations. But this was so much more than a cooking class - we got to hear about the history and her personal connections to the dishes we were making, we chatted for hours. Francesca was SO generous in every possible way - with the food, drinks, goodie box at the end of the experience and her time (we ended up staying at her home till 10 pm). If you are contemplating getting this experience, trust us go ahead and book! This was an absolute highlight of our trip. You will never get this type of treatment in a commercial cooking class. It was filled with love, generosity and passion for cooking. We will never forget this experience.

The experience at Francesca’s cucina was absolutely incredible! She hosted us like family members would. The menu was typical to what you would expect as a Tuscan food experience. These recipes are family tradition for Francesca and it is awesome to bring back to Canada this tradition and to cook it again... hopefully as good as with Francesca! We made this cooking class a part of my wife’s birthday vacation in Italy and all the members of the family were touched by the greetings, the generosity and culinary experience in Francesca’s cucina. A-1+++

This was a wonderful experience from start to finish. Francesca is a fantastic host who made us feel more than welcome, like we were part of the family. When we messaged Francesca before the session to ask if we could bring our baby, she was incredibly accommodating and even provided a high chair and play cot - which were greatly appreciated. The food we made was excellent - the pappa al pomodoro was genuinely one of the best ‘comfort foods’ I’ve ever eaten - and it was special to know that the recipes were once belonged to Francesca’s great, great grandmother. We can’t wait to try and share the recipes when we get home. Everything was outstanding. I would definitely recommended it!

We went into the experience with no expectations but had high hopes of this being a great experience. It turned out to be one of the best and most special moments of our trip. Francesca was just lovely, down to earth and full of love for food, people and culture and did not shy back from opening up about her life, passions and values. Even before doing the cooking class Francesca was happy to help us with recommendations on wine tastings and restaurant suggestions local to our accommodation, something she did with joy and from the heart. It is so nice to be welcomed into someone’s home and learn tips and recipients passed down by generations. We left feeling we had gained not only new cooking skills but also learnt more about Italian culture and most importantly the importance of following your passion - like Francesca did - and we were able to be part of! I would do this over and over again!

Wow. What an unbelievable experience and memory for us. We were a group of 8. Simply put, this was one of the highlights of our entire 3 week trip. This was thoroughly the most special and worthwhile experience I have ever done on Cookly. Francesca made sure EVERYONE in our group felt special and had an amazing time. The food. Delicious. We came to learn how to make pasta and have delicious food. But it’s almost as if that was secondary, because we just had an incredible experience, chatted like old friends all night. However, food-wise, Francesca is determined to cook whatever you are interested in making, so don’t hesitate to ask her. We made pici and orrechiette pasta, with 3 different sauces. All were absolutely delicious. Upon arrival, we also were treated with wine and very delicious bruschettas. And something very special, upon departure, Francesca even gave us all individual goodie bags with some homemade biscotti, recipes,and handwritten letters. If you are thinking of doing a cooking class in Tuscany, this is the class. Don’t look anywhere else. Trust me. I will thoroughly remember this experience for a long time. And I cannot wait to make some of these recipes at home.