Stile Mediterraneo: culinary, market and winery tours in Puglia Italy
Please read below what magazines and journalists have wrote about Stile Mediterraneo. Our text and pictures are protected by Copyrights. If you are a journalist and wish to write about us or use any of our pictures please contact us at: info.stile@gmail.com
Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School featured in the Windsor Star (Ontario), Feb. 11th, 2009
We'd come to learn about Puglia's proud and unpretentious culinary tradition, which transforms humble local ingredients into thick, brawny bean and vegetable soups and stews, slow-simmered pasta sauces and rustic breads and sweets. Who knew then that Puglia's "cucina povera," as it is called, would be just the right menu for the grim economic climate ahead? There we were one sunny week last fall, a motley group of 12 food lovers and amateur chefs from Canada and the United States, soaking up the food, wine and culture of Puglia, a region of white-washed hilltop towns, sandy beaches and ancient olive groves, that sits at the heel of Italy's boot, wedged between the Ionian and Adriatic Seas.
Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School featured in the Calgary Herald (Western Canada). Feb. 8th, 2009
When you cook in Puglia, it's not just a way to feed people, but to remember the smells and tastes of childhood," says Cinzia Rascazzo.
"Here we cook and eat to connect with the people we love. And the food is simple and pure. It's all about honouring the artisans and farmers who grew it, or produced it or made it. "
Vegetables take centre stage, making Puglia a vegetarian's paradise. At Sunday cooking class, Cinzia demonstrates her technique for preparing red and yellow sweet peppers in an agrodolce sauce, slow cooked with vinegar, sugar, capers and olives for an intriguing sweet and sour flavour.
The food is a study in contrasts. It is simple peasant fare reliant on fava beans and chickpeas, vegetables, artisanal cheeses and cured meats and the fish and seafood pulled from two seas. Simple, though, doesn't mean boring. Puglia's dishes evoke the tastes of many places, like the Middle Eastern flavours of almonds, honey and cinnamon in the local pastries and tarts.
Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School came out in the Montreal Gazette (Quebec), Feb. 3rd, 2009
Susan Semenak, The Gazette
Puglia rustica
Who knew then that Puglia’s “cucina povera,” as it is called, would be just the right menu for the grim economic climate ahead?
There we were one sunny week last fall, a motley group of 12 food lovers and amateur chefs from Canada and the United States, soaking up the food, wine and culture of Puglia, a region of white-washed hilltop towns, sandy beaches and ancient olive groves, that sits at the heel of Italy’s boot, wedged between the Ionian and Adriatic Seas.
Cinzia and Marika Rascazzo, two Pugliese sisters in their 30s who learned to cook the region’s simple, down-to-earth cuisine from their grandmother, are our hosts.
Marika is a cardiologist; Cinzia a Harvard-educated former investment banker who worked around the world for more than a decade before a nostalgic ache for home lured her back. Now, the Rascazzo sisters run Stile Mediteranneo, a cooking school, bed and breakfast and tour company. They organize classes for smaller groups in their own restored palazzo as well as week-long culinary and wine tours for larger groups in gorgeous old estates throughout Puglia.
They lead us on a romp through one of southern Italy’s best-kept secrets, sharing pasta-making techniques, visiting early-morning markets, biking down to the sea for an impromptu swim, joining the harvest to pick juicy black Primitivo grapes.
Stile Mediterraneo Cooking School in Puglia Italy featured in the Lonely Planet Newsletter
Abigail Hole - Lonely Planet Newsletter
COOK LIKE MAMA
To learn to cook just like Mama, put yourself in the hands of Cinzia and Marika Rascazzo. The sisters run Stile Mediterraneo, which offers day/week-long (€300/1445, not including flights or accommodation) cookery courses for small groups (up to six people). These include hands-on classes, visits to the best local artisans and markets, and wine tours (encompassing the grape and olive harvest in season). They started cooking when they were five years old, taught by their grandmother, and the cooking school is in a small village, famous for its olive oil and DOC wines, 10 minutes drive from the golden Baroque town of Lecce.
Stile Mediterraneo featured on Suite101.com
Rebecca Ford - Suite101.com
If you want to learn about the distinctive cuisine of Puglia – and enjoy a luxurious holiday at the same time, then check out the culinary breaks at Stile Mediterraneo. This is a beautifully restored palace, situated in the little village of Squinzano, not far from Lecce – the baroque capital of Puglia, southern Italy.
It’s run by Cinzia Rascazzo, a native Puglian with an MBA from Harvard. Cinzia returned home after years of working in New York and London, (she speaks English and French, so you don’t have to worry about language problems) determined to share her passion for Puglia. She opened Stile Mediterraneo as a luxury B&B (average price 80 euros per person, if sharing a room), where guests can experience life in a comfortable Italian home. - and take a cooking course if they wish.
Authentic Food of Puglia
Puglia is one of the lesser known regions of Italy. It’s far to the south, in the heel of Italy’s boot and has a distinctive culinary tradition – the legacy of waves of occupation by Turks, Greeks, Romans and Spaniards. The cookery classes that Cinzia runs are designed to offer an authentic taste of Puglia. She was raised by her grandmother, who taught her how to cook, while her grandfather taught her all about making wine. If you come here you’ll be taught how to make the traditional family dishes that local people cook in their own homes, rather than the more formal dishes they’d eat when out in restaurants.
Visit Local Producers
All the classes are private and tailormade to your requirements. Cinzia is quite happy if you prefer to stay at another hotel, rather than Stile Mediterraneo. Her ethos is that you should be relaxed and enjoy your time in Puglia.
Fava Beans and Chicory
Traditional Puglian dishes are simple, and based on lots of fresh vegetables, fish and pulses. In your culinary class you might learn to make orecchiette pasta. This is eaten with a tomato sauce and the local sheeps’ cheese, cacioricotta, in Lecce – and with broccoli and anchovies in Bari. Then there’s the ancient dish fave e cicoria, a traditional meal for the poor. It’s a high protein puree of fava beans (broad beans) which is served with chicory and Puglian olive oil. Other traditional dishes include tiella - which is baked rice with potatoes, mussels and courgettes (zucchini) – and ciceri e tria, a hand-made tagliatelle with chick peas.
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