In 1994, my cousin Anne and I had a dream to open a cooking school in Tuscany, the ancestral home of our family. It was an ambitious plan for in those days very few Italian cooking schools were known in the US and many people didn't even know what to expect from a cooking school abroad. We were so determined to share our passion for cooking and passing on ancient Tuscan traditions that we said: we must - why not? After publishing several acclaimed cookbooks in the US and Italy and after having appeared in many well known cooking magazines and newspapers in the US, the adventure began. We were coming back to the land our ancestors left at the end of 1800... and from NYC, what a step! There was a monumental dose of work and patience waiting for us but we were ready and it was great fun...and sweat! Eighteen years later here I am, unfortunately without Anne who passed away in 2001. Thankfully her energy, liveliness, passion and inner voice are still with me, intact, and will never abandon me.

During the years since 2001 I have been blessed to have worked with some amazing chefs at the school and the immense support of FCI and CIA has made the school famous worldwide. Stellar names of chef friends like Mario Batali , Dieter Schorner, Cesare Casella, Gary Rhodes and Donato De Santis and wine guru Michael Green, to name a few, have come to the school or have recommended it to their friends. We have been featured in many prominent magazines and journal throughout the years that not only wrote about our authentic program but also highlighted the special weeks organized by Kitchen Aid to support the Komen Foundation and Cook for the Cure. I have to thank each one of these amazing people as they have supported us immensely. They are the reason why we are still rocking.

Family is the core of the Italian people and I can truly say, my clients who first became my students are now my family. I am in touch with all of them since 1994. They are the reason why we grew up so much and became so well known. They are the school!

Christopher Covelli, amazing chef and friend, has been with me since Anne died. Together we form the dynamic duo and working with him is just great! My son Alessio has been with us for eight years and one day he will continue this family tradition Anne and I started in 1994. Stephanie C. De Marco, my assistant, came here with her family more than a decade ago. She has been with me all these years, taking care of bookings and making sure all my students get the proper attention and care before they fly here. Our families are now a one big family.

My staff is unique: each one of the chefs you see listed on our staff page has a special place in my heart. They gave all their knowledge and time to the students and worked long hours with them, building strong relationships. Elena, my super amazing and fun tour guide, has been with us since 2001 as well. She coddles all the students from the moment she meets them on Sunday until the day of their departure. What would we do without her??

Family, tradition, love, ties, stubbornness, laughing until you cry.... these are the qualities that define Toscana Saporita Cooking School and make it unique and so special. We teach you ancient and traditional dishes, using only the freshest and seasonal ingredients. We run classes even if we have 2 students because we care and mostly because we have a commitment to all of you who book, sometimes, a year or two in advance.

My promise to all those who enter the door of the school is that you will take my passion for this land home with you. You will go back as brand new person, enriched (and stuffed :) and changed. This land can change you; the people you will meet will change you. I will change you and YOU will want to come back again and again