Meet Fabrizio...
and Lorenzio.
Both are Florentine chefs and both teach at the Tavola cooking school in Florence...
in this kitchen.
The school is on a tiny side street the south side of the Arno and operates as a professional cooking school in the day. At night it offers cooking classes for tourists interested in Italian cuisine.
I signed up for a Friday night session offering the following:
One Tuscan appetizer, two main courses, and one dessert.
Our group of 12 was aproned up and set to work within minutes. We had a lot to do in four hours. Fabrizio and Lorenzio are VERY serious about food.
Here’s what we made:
Panna Cotta: pretty straightforward and much like crème caramel—without the caramel.
Crespelle: not so straightforward. Fabrizio goes a little crazy on the crepes and if you have browned edges, holes or the wrong colour, you’re gonna hear about it.
Fortunately this crepe...
was NOT MINE because when Fabrizio saw it he emitted little shrieks of horror—and tossed it in the garbagio. Fabrizio wants your crepes very pale, perfectly round and pliable. And he wants you to stuff ‘em (roasted eggplant and ricotta filling) and fold ‘em right....
Souffle Vegetaria: these were a bit complex and had numerous stages to their preparation.
Fabrizio is also pretty fussy about the preesentationne.
Pollo alla Contadina: this delicious chicken dish was done on the stove top with large amounts of butter, olive oil, roasted peppers, onions, balsamic vinegar and rosemary. Fabrizio seasons with salt and pepper very liberally. “Theese eez Italiana cuisina” he shouts while tossing in the handfuls. He also uses entire BRANCHES of rosemary.
After four hours of sweating in the kitchen in our aprons, we had the opportunity to taste the fruits of our labours in a delightful meal in the school’s wine cellar. Bellisima!
