Shopping & Cooking like locals
Cooking ClassesDuration: 1 hour for shopping - 3 hours for the cooking class + time for lunch
Rates
BUY THE BEST INGREDIENTS AND PREPARE YOUR MEMORABLE LUNCH
Do you want to help us doing the shopping for your Tuscan cooking class? This is now possible! In the company of our guide, you will do the shopping of the food you need in the local little shops in one of the hilltop towns near the cooking venue. After that we will move to the cooking venue to prepare an unforgettable meal!
Local shops in hilltop towns
Together with your guide you will move to a typical hilltop town in the area. It could be in Peccioli, Lajatico, Terricciola or Palaia. In this way we will also support the local small communities of Tuscany. You will meet local people, speak to them, ask them for advice on what to buy, smell the fruits and the vegetables, choose the perfect cut of meat, or the best piece of bread, just like all locals do. You will be part of the community!
Let’s cook together!
After the shopping we will drive to reach the cooking venue in the countryside. Here you will meet your local chef, you will wear your kitchen apron to prepare a lunch made of 3 dishes. Together with our local cook and your guide you will learn the most typical family recipes. At the end class, a lunch will be served with the dishes prepared and matching wines.
Buon Appetito!
This is a list of specialties that you are likely to sample as part of the program of this class. Please, note that the specialties of the menu prepared at the class may vary according to the season and the availability of the products in the day of the class.
In our cooking class we like telling you a lot about Tuscan farms and farmers' cooking traditions, introducing you to Tuscan people with their personal stories, careers and characters.
You will have one of our guides as a language assistants and coordinator with you during the whole class. Please, see below all the guides and language assistants who can be with you.
During this experience you will also meet one of our Tuscan cooks who give you the cooking class. Please, see below which cooks you are likely to encounter.
Ciao, I'm Silvia, the youngest among the cooks at Arianna & Friends. I'm a cook, this is my passion and I like to cook any traditional dishes for the toursits, and I love baking pizza, but also I like a lot to try at home innovative food and special contemporary techniques. Since I've been working with this company I met an incredible team of collaborators and with them I finally feel joy and serenity in what I do. I love my job very much and I enjoy a lot to be in contact with people.
To introduce me even better I can say I love the sea, being at the beach, I have a passion to travel and being in the company of my friends is the best thing. I could define myself as a "free spirit" and I have a passion for... hats !!!
Any time I work as cook I breath air of freedom and this makes me happy.
Looking forward to meet you again, so that we can cook together, and you'll try our best traditional food and enjoy our wonderful countryside. 
Ciao, I'm Ester, one of the cooks of Arianna & Friends'. I've been working with them since the beginning of their adventure.
I love cooking together with people from all over the world, especailly with young kids.
What I prefer to cook is pasta dishes, pizza and desserts, like for example the stunning cake is what I made to celebrate my 50th wedding anniversary.
I live, like the cook Licia (we are good friends), in the little village of Lajatico, birthplace of Andrea Bocelli and from my home I can hear his voice and see something when Teatro del Silenzio takes place in July.
I live in a farm and I have chickens, rabbits, a large vegetable garden; I make my own olive oil and wine together with my family.
I hope to be able to cook with many of you in the years to come to teach you a lot of our typical Tuscan food. 
The total rate for this activity varies according to the number of people in your party.
Check rates in the table below.
SHOPPING & COOKING LIKE LOCALS– RATES 2023 – |
|
|---|---|
NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN YOUR PARTY |
TOTAL RATE |
| 2 persons | € 490 |
| 3 persons | € 540 |
| 4 persons | € 590 |
| 5 persons | € 640 |
| 6 persons | € 690 |
| 7 persons | € 740 |
| 8 persons | € 790 |
| Extra Adult | € 50 |
| Extra Teenager (12-17 yrs) | € 40 |
| Child (4-11 yrs) | € 35 |
Rates include
- A private local chef at your disposal
- A private English speaking assistant and story teller at your disposal. Available also in German, French, Spanish and Russian
- 1 hour shopping in town
- private cooking class
- all food an materials
- lunch or dinner after the class
- personal apron as souvenir
- booklet where to take note
- tax
Rates do NOT include
- transportation
This cooking class takes place in the rural area of central Tuscany, among Pisa, San Gimignano and Volterra, 10 km from Selvatelle
MEET-UP LOCATION:
Unless differently specified, the meeting point with the guide is at our office in La Rosa or at an agreed meeting point
DURATION:
This program takes 5 or 6 hours: 1 hour for shopping, 2 to 3 hours for cooking and the rest for dinner/lunch and relaxation. Time for transportation not included.
AVAILABILITY:
Available all the year through, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Timing is flexible. After a morning class lunch is served. After an afternoon class dinner is served.
LANGUAGE:
This class is available in English, German, French, Spanish, Russian or Italian with no surcharge.
DIFFICULTY LEVEL:
Easy
CHILD FRIENDLY:
Ideal for children
CLOTHING:
No particular clothing required.
FOOD RESTRICTIONS:
The foods served during this cooking class might contain gluten, lactose, nuts and alcohol. If you have any food restriction, please inform our personnel during the enquiry process.
TRANSPORTATION:
This program and its rates do not include transportation and are set on a self-driving base. For further information see the box "transportation options".
The destinations reached during this activity are in the Tuscan countryside, in areas off the beaten track that cannot be reached by public transport. We highly recommend renting a car or a scooter in order to reach them. As an alternative, we can offer a valued service by chauffeured car, van or minibus. Any cost of transportation is to be added to the rates displayed on the rate table of this page.
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