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Tuscan Cooking Class: Private Culinary Experience
5.0
91 Ratings
Firenze
Join Maria for a private Florence market tour and Tuscan cooking class. Learn, cook, and dine with a local Italian family. Book now!
Join Maria for a private Florence market tour and Tuscan cooking class. Learn, cook, and dine with a local Italian family. Book now!
Duration:
4 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Forno Sale Grosso - There are many cooking classes in Florence to choose from - but how many are in a stunning Florence countryside home with a delightful Italian couple! Maria is a recently retired architect and fun-loving host who picks you up from the heart of Florence and drives you to her beautiful home for an immersive Florentine cultural…
- Forno Sale Grosso - There are many cooking classes in Florence to choose from - but how many are in a stunning Florence countryside home with a delightful Italian couple! Maria is a recently retired architect and fun-loving host who picks you up from the heart of Florence and drives you to her beautiful home for an immersive Florentine cultural and culinary experience. Learn about the history of the city from your architect host during your 15-min drive. Join Maria in her kitchen for your private cooking class and learn Maria’s grandmother’s recipes for authentic Italian classics such as handmade pasta, bruschetta and tiramisu. If you’d like to add-on a market tour, Maria gives you a walking tour of San Lorenzo market. She introduces you to her favorite vendors and shows you how to pick fresh produce while explaining how these ingredients are used in Italian cooking. Maria’s menu varies according to the season and what is fresh in the market. She can accommodate any dietary restrictions, from gluten free to vegetarian, so let her know if you have any specific dietary requests. Enjoy your meal with Maria and her husband over conversation and laughter at their dining table overlooking a lovely garden.
What's Included
- Private cooking lesson and meal with your host Maria
- Alcoholic beverages
- Round-trip transport from a central meeting location in Florence
- Private cooking lesson and meal with your host Maria
- Alcoholic beverages
- Round-trip transport from a central meeting location in Florence
Meal Options
- Bruschetta -
- Spinach and cheese stuffed ravioli or tagliatelle - Handmade stuffed pasta or cut pasta in a sauce of your choice
- Tiramisu
- Local Italian wine
- Bruschetta -
- Spinach and cheese stuffed ravioli or tagliatelle - Handmade stuffed pasta or cut pasta in a sauce of your choice
- Tiramisu
- Local Italian wine
Additional Information
This is a special chance to participate in a private and engaging Tuscan cooking class in a charming Florence residence with a delightful retired Italian couple. It’s an ideal experience for those eager to connect with local culture through cuisine. The hands-on cooking class is held in a local home kitchen where Maria guides you in preparing 2-3…
This is a special chance to participate in a private and engaging Tuscan cooking class in a charming Florence residence with a delightful retired Italian couple. It’s an ideal experience for those eager to connect with local culture through cuisine. The hands-on cooking class is held in a local home kitchen where Maria guides you in preparing 2-3 traditional Tuscan dishes. You’ll acquire traditional Italian cooking techniques that can be easily recreated at home. After cooking, savor your meal with this wonderful Italian family. If you opt for a market tour, Maria will lead you on a guided exploration of San Lorenzo market, Florence’s historic food market, perfect for culinary enthusiasts. This experience includes round-trip transportation (for up to 6 guests) in Maria’s car from downtown Florence to her beautifully designed countryside home. During the drive, Maria shares captivating stories about the city. Vegetarians and guests with dietary preferences are warmly welcomed!
- Menu may vary depending on the season
- For your pasta, Maria offers a choice of sauces: Ragu, broccoli pesto, arrabbiata or butter and sage with parmesan cream. If you have a specific preference, please inform her when making your booking.
- If you are a group of 7 or more guests, Maria kindly requests that any guests beyond the first four arrange their own transportation to her home, as she can only accommodate up to 6 passengers in her car.
- Please note that, as is common in many Italian homes, this residence does not have air conditioning.
Location
Forno Sale Grosso
Via della Mattonaia
Meet your host Maria at the entrance to Forno Sale Grosso in the Florence city center. She will pick you up in her car and drive you to the market if you choose the tour + class option or drive you to her beautiful countryside home, 15 minutes away if you choose the class only option.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(91 Ratings)
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Erinmv652te
Jul 21, 2025
Maria & her home will not disappoint! - This experience exceeded our expectations. Maria was fantastic, her home was beautiful & the scenery was amazing! Her cooking demonstrations & hands-on lessons were a one-of-a-kind experience. It was a highlight of our Italian vacation!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Zachary_h
Jul 17, 2025
Maria is the best! - My wife and I spent a morning with Maria going to the market and cooking a wonderful meal. Maria‘s home is absolutely beautiful and she could not be more welcoming. We enjoyed making the pasta and enjoying some new things like fried zucchini flowers. The weather was lovely and we enjoyed a nice lunch on her patio. I highly recommend if you are in Florence, Maria even shared a bunch of recipes after the trip. Five stars!
Review provided by Viator
Jlongbons
Jul 13, 2025
An Unforgettable Evening of Sharing Food and Lives with Maria - The beauty of Tuscany in terms of the countryside, homes, food and personality came through in this incredible opportunity to cook and share a meal with Maria. We were overwhelmed with the opportunity to be invited to Maria's home and share our lives and food together. This was definitely one of the highlights of my trip to Italy!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jodycf5295zl
Jul 1, 2025
The HIGHLIGHT of our Week in Italy! - This evening was the HIGHLIGHT of our entire week in Italy! Maria was so wonderful! She taught us how to make a delightful meal. The setting was absolutely stunning and the company (cooking and eating with Maria) was simply the best. We HIGHLY recommend this experience to anyone looking for a truly unique and authentic experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Williamkv3295gb
Jun 30, 2025
A Wonderful Experience We Will Never Forget - Maria was an absolute gem! My wife and I would love to cook with Maria again and would absolutely recommend her class to anyone looking for the complete Italian cooking experience.
Maria was ready with plenty of options for us, giving us plenty to choose from to customize our experience. We ended up selecting a tagliatelle with a white sage sauce and tiramisu.
A one sentence summary of our cooking experience would be: wow, that was a lot easier than we thought! With Maria’s guidance, we whizzed through making the pasta dough and the tiramisu from scratch before we rolled out and cut the tagliatelle for drying in her stunning kitchen. The white butter sauce was simple but allowed the sage to shine through. We received many tips and tricks along the way. In the end, we had a beautiful spread with wine, pasta, salad, bread, cured meats, mozzarella with fresh tomato and basil, and tiramisu.
After many stories, laughs, tips/tricks, and helpings of delicious food and wine, we headed back to our starting point thankful for Maria’s time and opening her home to us! The next time we are in Italy, we will be sure to make time for another class with Maria!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Teethpeople
Jun 26, 2025
A Perfect Day in Paradise. - It is like going to your grandmothers house and learning to cook with her. The descriptions do not due this experience justice. The home was more beautiful than imaginable and the food was the best we have had in Italy. Definitely do this as a more relaxed day activity and get away from the busy city. If I could give it 10 stars I would!.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mobile14147928696
Jun 18, 2025
A MUST to do when in Firenze! - Our Travel Agent recommended this cooking class and we are so glad she did:) Maria Cristina was an amazing HOST and COOK! We first met at the local Farmers Market to shop for our veggies & other supplies. Cristina taught us the ins and outs of what is good to buy. Then we were driven to her beautiful countryside home just a few minutes from the heart of Firenze. This was a fun experience and we were lucky to be paired with 4 other great people. GREAT FOOD! GOOD WINE & LOTS OF LAUGHS!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Christopherjc1529jr
Jun 17, 2025
A Wonderful Day in the Florence Countryside - The day started with a trip to the Florence market near Forno Sale Grosso. Maria showed us around the open-air market where there were many different stands for vegetables, fruits, flowers, etc. And then inside the building where we purchased some cheese, coffee and olive oil. Maria did a great job showing us what to buy and translating with the shop owners.
From there she drove us to her home in the countryside. Very comfortable drive as she pointed out many things along the way. Once there, Maria started us on making the pasta, complete with tips and hands on experience all the way from mixing and rolling, to using the hand-cranked pasta machine. We also made bruschetta. And finally making tiramisu, one of our favorites. It was much easier than we anticipated, with Maria of course once again providing guidance.
Then it was time to eat! We ate outside on a patio, sitting at a beautifully decorated table. Everything was absolutely delicious! We also very much enjoyed the conversation with Maria, telling us about the house, her cat and the cowbells you could hear on the far hill.
After eating she gave us a tour of her house (that she restored), absolutely incredible, where she showed us different views of the land, artwork and vinyl record collection. And finally, she drove us back to our hotel. Many thanks to Maria! It truly was an amazing day that the whole family really enjoyed.
Also, she emailed all the recipes that we made that day, along with many others.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Fivefamilytravelers
Jun 17, 2025
Wonderful Warm Cooking Adventure - We had an amazing evening with Maria. Her home is beautiful, centered in her warm kitchen, which she opened to us with enthusiasm. We felt as if we were in our own home, except that Maria was giving us wonderful lessons on Florentine cooking. We chose the menu together and relished her instructions and stories. This evening was a definite highlight of our time in Florence.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
51fionao
Jun 9, 2025
Amazing countryside cooking class! - We had such a good time at our cooking class with Maria! From the moment she picked us up we felt welcomed. The food was delicious and the recipes were simple and easy to follow. Maria's home is beautiful and she puts such great effort and detail into the whole experience that help make it memorable. I would recommend this class to anyone, we had an amazing time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
