Taormina Sicilian Cooking Class with Market Visit and Wine

Meet up with your host and professional chef near Porta Messina in the historical center of Taormina and begin your day of indulging in the cuisine of Sicily. Walk around the outdoor food market, taking in the various fruits and vegetable and listening to the food sellers yell out their goods for potential buyers. Aide the chef in picking out ingredients for your meal and discuss what makes the perfect seasonal ingredient for the meal. Then walk to nearby restaurant to begin the next phase of the day: cooking. Strap on an apron and get ready to create a delicious meal. Learn about the unique landscape and soil of Sicily that breeds excellent vegetables; that the volcanic soil is the ideal fertile dirt in which to grow veggies. And learn how the waters around Sicily produces some of the most delicious seafood in the Mediterranean. Chop vegetables. Make pasta. And sear meat and fish. While the menu changes regularly based on what's in season, expect dishes like Parmigiana di melanzane (baked eggplant, layered with tomato and Parmesan) or pasta al pesto di pistacchi – pasta with a pesto sauce made from pistachio nuts. When the cooking is complete, pull up a seat to a table in the restaurant to devour your delicious meal. Wash it down with some locally made wine. The cooking and eating experience finishes after you've eaten and sampled some local wine. Before heading out of the restaurant, receive a certificate that you completed the course.