Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Traveling in Italy but Were Afraid to Ask - February 2nd, 6:00 – 8:00pm

Instructor Dr. Douglas Kenning

A holiday in Italy for the tourist can be a hilarious misadventure of mistaken meanings. Well, hilarious to the Italians. If you want to amuse the Italians with your charm more than with your faux pas, then arrive knowing something of the Italian way. This short primer is about all that stuff you know about Italy that isn’t really true, and about what is true that you would not have dreamed. It is about what to do and not do, and about why the crazy things the Italians do are not so crazy at all. We’ll even get in some practical advice about your trip to Italy. Come with questions.

Aphrodisiac Appetites - February 4th, 6:30 – 9:30pm

Instructor Dr. Douglas Kenning

The Greeks and the Romans knew something about sensuality.  Eating and lovemaking should both be savored.  Of course, sex can also be wildly funny, and so can cooking.  This course dips a finger into the rich pot of stories and beliefs in ancient recipes designed to make us feel . . . well, you know.  And we will try cooking a few.  Come with a date! You can report back later if they work…

Sicilian History at 500 Years an Hour: Grasping the “Golden Millennium” - February 9th, 6:30 – 8:30 pm

Instructor Dr. Douglas Kenning

Let’s meet Sicily, the glory of the ancient Greek world (well, we think so)!  We will talk about guys in togas—Sicels, Greeks, Carthaginians, and Romans—peer into volcanoes, springs, and lakes to find Greek myths, meet Cyclops, Ulysses, Persephone, and Plato.  We will learn why the Phoenicians invented negative PR and why Syracuse invented lawyers.  We’ll watch an eagle drop a rock on the head of Aeschylus, and see the Golden Age of Western Civilization get sunk in the Syracuse harbor.

Introduction to Sicilian Wines - February 10th, 6:00 – 8:00pm

Instructor Giovanni Guarneri

Sicily is one of Europe's oldest viticultural regions and offers some exceptional surprises. With its warm temperatures, hilly terrain, sea breezes and rich soil, it is very similar to the growing conditions seen in the best wineries of California or Australia. Sicily's vintage wines are a magical creation, and many of the island's traditional wines and spirits are famous far beyond its shores. While some Sicilian winemakers produce well-known varietals like Merlot, Chardonnay and Sangiovese, others believe that the world is ready to be introduced to such indigenous varieties as Nero d’Avola, Nerello Mascalese, Inzolia and Catarratto. These grapes display the character of Sicily’s winemaking tradition and are ideally suited for the vibrant flavors of the island’s cuisine.

Renowned Sicilian chef and sommelier Guarneri will introduce us to some of his personal favorites. His restaurant Don Camillo in Ortigia (Syracuse) boasts over 700 labels on the wine list.

Traditional Sicilian Festival Desserts and Confections - February 11th, 1:00 – 4:00pm

Instructor Giovanni Guarneri

Because Italy, Sicily and Greece catapulted Christianity into the known world, it is no surprise that most sweets are named for religious holidays.  Sweets were usually made by nuns who regularly used honey, ricotta cheese, pistachios, almonds and candied fruit to conjure their confections.  Chef Guarneri will bring his artistry to Viva in this 3 hour workshop demonstrating how to make fresh cannoli, something delectable with the beautiful red Blood Oranges available at this time of year and one other surprise. Bring your sweet-tooth!

Sicilian Easter Festivals: The Community on Parade - February 11th, 4:00 – 6:00pm

Instructor Dr. Douglas Kenning

Easter season is when Catholicism dresses up and goes on parade.  Every town has its own version of national and religious festivals and every town has its own patron saint to honor on her or his day.  During the period before Ash Wednesday, many towns stage carnivals and enjoy their last opportunity to indulge before Lent. Festivals in Sicily are particularly richly theatrical, lavish, beautiful, and totally sincere.  Sicilian resident Douglas Kenning will navigate us through the beauty, the ritual and its significance through lecture and slides.

Sicilian Carnivale Festival Foods - February 11th, 6:30 – 9:30pm

Instructor Giovanni Guarneri

In Italian, when someone is contented, really and truly exploding with joy, we say he's "contento come una Pasqua" (happy as an Easter Sunday). This is certainly related to Catholicism and the fact that Easter arrives at the tail end of Lent, those forty days of personal sacrifices of every sort (including those gastronomic). Few people serve a more celebratory feast on Easter Sunday than those who inhabit the Italian island of Sicily. Chef Guarneri will demonstrate how to prepare a four-course festival meal one might experience during this pre Easter season in Sicily.

Italian Regional Cuisine: Sicily - February 12th, 11:00 – 3:00pm

Instructor Giovanni Guarneri

Sicily’s flavors, scents and colors are more intense than anywhere else in Italy. Being at the geographical center of the Mediterranean, the island’s cuisine has been influenced by the Arabs, North Africans, Greeks, Romans, Normans and Argonese. Sicilians have always had a knack for adapting foreign customs to their own uses. Chef Guarneri will demonstrate how to prepare a four-course meal using the traditional ingredients and recipes of his homeland.

Seafood Sicilian Style - February 12th, 5:00 – 8:00pm

Instructor Giovanni Guarneri

Surrounded by water, the island of Sicily has a special relationship with the frutti di mare – fruits of the sea – and Chef Guarneri is particularly known in his region for his exceptional recipes and handling of seafood. Though much of the seafood available in the Mediterranean is not available off our coast, Chef Guarneri will work with our freshest finds and create three separate seafood dishes you will be delighted to discover and experience.

Sicilian History at 500 Years an Hour: Serving up the “Silver Millennium” - February 16th, 6:30 – 8:30 pm

Instructor Dr. Douglas Kenning

Out of the ruins of glory come Hannibal, Archimedes, Cicero, and the birth of the modern world. Then we see Rome grow fat and arrogant, then old and crabby, and then everything disintegrate into religious squabbles, between Eastern and Western Christians, Christians and Muslims.  We’ll have stories of giant claws, the theft of culture, bread and circuses, martyred saints, murdered emperors, massacred Frenchmen, lemons, and the Norman conquest.  Lamenting her lost youth, Sicily continued to suffer the abuses of strangers, now thirsty and naked of her trees.

Sicilian History at 500 Years an Hour: Bringing you the “Bronze Millennium” - February 23th, 6:30 – 8:30 pm

Instructor Dr. Douglas Kenning

Then Sicily exploded one vesper afternoon and Rome returned, this time in papal red, the popes stepping in to straighten out the mess.  Rule by Spain made two Sicilies, earthquakes broke the baroque, and a new beauty was born.  The Bourbons begot bandits and Italy begot herself.  Garibaldi landed in the west, Patton landed in the south, and Francis Ford Coppola landed in the east (not all at the same time).  One will finish this series of classes with the sense of a place more subtle, fascinating, wounded, and rugged than one had ever imagined.

Contemporary Art History: 3 Day Workshop - $ 200 - March 3, 4 and 5, 2006
Instructors Rosemarie Shakinovsky and Claire Gavronsky

This condensed overview is designed to give participants an opportunity to understand the major philosophies underlying contemporary art practice. Emphasis will be placed on a comprehensive understanding of how the major art movements in both America and Europe led to the present state of international art practice. Rose and Claire will trace the development of concepts of art from the mid 1950s to the present and transverse the mine field planted by both Modernists and Postmodernists alike.

The aim of this overview is to perceive the overall picture, in order to understand and evaluate the fine art production we see in our museums and galleries today. This exceptional course draws students to Florence from all over Europe and the U.S. We are fortunate to be able to offer it here at Viva.

Renaissance Gardens of Tuscany - $ 50 - March 9, 2006
Instructor Gabriella Ganugi

Unlike any other art form in civilization, an Italian Renaissance garden is a complete experience. While Renaissance gardens were outside, both in form and use, they were also extensions of the inside. They were sculpture galleries, museums, theaters, living botanical encyclopedias, and academies. Gardens functioned as sanctuaries for meditation and also as arenas for many kinds of social gatherings. Emphasis will be given to all the features of a Renaissance garden, including the “secret garden”, a small, walled-in area for privacy and romance. The lecture will end with a treat of Biscotti di Prato and Vin Santo.

Italian Regional Cuisine: “Four Seasons of the Tuscan Table” - $ 85 - March 10 and again March 11, 2006
Instructor Gabriella Ganugi

Based on her first cookbook (mainly her grandmother’s recipes) Gabriella Ganugi will present some traditional Tuscan dishes, with a contemporary interpretation. Some typical ingredients, like artichokes will be matched with a northern flavor, saffron. Pork will be cooked with fresh fruit which dates back to the Renaissance Tuscan tradition. She will also share a traditional Tuscan dessert. Participants will taste all courses accompanied by a Tuscan wine as well as receive Gabriella’s cookbook Four Seasons of the Tuscan Table.

Gabriella Ganugi is the founder of Apicius – The Culinary Institute of Florence, of which VIVA is a branch site.

The Italian Art of Eating - $ 45 - March 11, 2006
Instructor Gabriella Ganugi

The Italians’ renowned “art of eating” is intimately linked to their culture. There are specific rules and behaviors “a tavola “ (at the table) that can tell you a lot about Italians. A native Florentine, Ms Ganugi will share her expertise on how to order, the sequence of dishes, essential “dos” and don’ts”…. from “aperitivo” to “dolce”, she’ll put you in tune with the styles, fashions, traditions and latest innovations going on in the food world in Italy.

Sparkling and Sweet: The Italian Way - $ 65 - March 18, 2006
Instructor Sommelier Lapo Bartalesi

Sommelier Bartalesi will take us on a special wine tour starting from Northern Italy where the spumante wines and tradition has reached French Champagne in reputation. Moving on to dessert wines of central and southern Italy, you will learn about the climate and ancient techniques that have produced special wines renowned all over the world. Wines tasted will include Franciacorta Brut, Asti Spumante,  Moscato di Pantelleria and Vin Santo.

Olive Oil: The Elixir of Life - $ 45 - March 18, 2006
Instructor Sommelier Lapo Bartalesi

Through the centuries Tuscany and Liguria earned the reputation of producing the most superior olive oil and of having the largest expanse of olive groves.  The region of Umbria joined them in the last century. Each region in Italy produces olive oil and they are all different, depending on tree variety, climate and soil. Olive oil is matched with different dishes, based on its flavor, in order to make the most of its qualities.  For example, Ligurian Oil, which is very sweet and delicate, is best suited for boiled fish, etc. The lecture will be followed by olive oil tasting from the regions of Liguria, Toscana, Puglia, and Sicilia. 

Sommelier Lapo Bartalesi has an extensive background in restaurants in Florence, Rimini, Grosseto and Edinburgh and is currently an instructor at Apicius - The Culinary Institute of Florence.

Italian Regional Cuisine: Piemonte - $ 85 - March 17 and again March 19, 2006
Instructor Chef Claudia Crociani

Piedmont is one of Italy’s most diverse regions, with mountains, foothills and plains, producing a wide range of produce for a rich and varied cuisine. The influence of French cuisine on Piemontese cookery is undisguised, and is due to geographical proximity and the fact that Piedmont was once a part of the Kingdom of Savoy. In common with other regions of Italy, Piedmont has historically possessed two parallel culinary traditions: one, refined and exclusive for the wealthy classes and another, far humbler, relying on the use of leftovers and seasonal foods bought cheaply in local markets. The latter offered a varied and nutritious diet which, without losing touch with its simple peasant origins, gradually developed more subtlety and originality. Chef Crociani will demonstrate how to prepare a four-course meal, which participants will enjoy tasting with a typical Piemontese wine.

Cooking with Extra-virgin Olive Oil – The Cornerstone of Mediterranean Cuisine - $ 85 - March 18, 2006
Instructor Chef Claudia Crociani

Recent studies of the healthy benefits of a “Mediterranean Diet” have resulted in olive oil being rediscovered and internationally recognized as the most honored among vegetable oils.  Italy ranks second in olive oil production after Spain, yet Italian olive oil is still the most prized for its taste and quality.  Extra-virgin olive oil has in fact always been the strength of Italy’s agricultural production.  It links Italian cultural tradition to contemporary culinary choices. Olive oil has become so popular that it is not uncommon these days to find an olive oil list next to the wine list in restaurants.

This olive oil cooking workshop covers oils from several Italian regions. Olive oil will be the featured ingredient in the recipes, such as brandade di Baccala e pomodoro freddo, taglierini con vongole, zafferano e mandorle and filetti arrotolati di sogliola. Students will taste the olive oils and the food and have the opportunity to discuss the differences and specific usages of the oils in each dish.

Italian Food and Wine Pairing - $ 80 - March 18, 2006
Instructors Sommelier Lapo Bartalesi and Chef Claudia Crociani

The art of pairing food and wine can be complicated and confusing. Join our experts from Apicius-The Culinary Institute of Florence as they introduce the class to the “combination technique” of sensory and quality evaluation used by the Italian Association of Sommeliers. Students will taste and evaluate several dishes prepared by Chef Crociani with their appropriate wine matches.

Advanced Piemontese Wines - $ 75 - March 19, 2006
Instructor Sommelier Lapo Bartalesi

Sommelier Bartalesi offers this advanced level class to expand one’s knowledge of Piemontese wines. Piedmont wine standards, classifications, grape varieties and important growing regions will be explored. Piemonte ranks seventh among regions in total production; however, it has the most DOC-DOCG zones and the most vineyards dedicated to classified production. For craftsmanship, respect to tradition and devotion to native vines in their historic habitat, the Piemontese have no rivals in Italy. Barbaresco, Barolo and Nebbiolo wines will be tasted and discussed. Introduction to Piemontese Wines is recommended for this class.

Introduction to Piemontese Wines - $ 70 - March 17, 2006
Instructor Sommelier Lapo Bartalesi

Piemonte is Italy’s western most region. It borders on Switzerland and France and is hemmed in by Alps and Apennines, which explains why Piemonte means “foot of the mountain”. Sommelier Bartalesi will lead students through a visual, olfactory and gustatory examination of Piemontese wines. Piedmont is esteemed above all for its red wines, particularly Barolo and Barbaresco, but its white and sparkling wines are also highly admired. Wines such as Barbera, Dolcetto d’Alba, Gavi and one sweet wine as Moscato d’Asti or Brachetto d’Acqui will be tasted and discussed. Those interested in further Piedmont wine exploration and tasting are encouraged to enroll in Advanced Piemontese Wines.

Italian Regional Cuisine: Tuscany - $ 85 - March 19, 2006
Instructor Chef Claudia Crociani

Tuscan Cuisine, long celebrated for its focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients and simple preparation techniques, is the focus of this class. Chef Crociani will explore the cultural significance and traditions of regional cooking and cuisines while demonstrating how to prepare Carabaccia (traditional onion soup), Arista Porchettata con Carciofi Ritti  (roasted pork loin with braised artichokes), Corollo con Zabaione di Vin Santo (angel cake with vin Santo zabaione).