Italy Traveller
The secrets of authentic Amalfi Coast cuisine.
A state-of-the-art outdoor kitchen on a terrace in Ravello, one of the pearls of the Amalfi Coast, provides the setting for this unique experience: a Mediterranean cooking lesson with Mamma Agata. Agata’s love affair with the pots and pans began at the tender age of thirteen when she went to work for a wealthy American lady who, struck by the young girl’s culinary talent, put her in charge of preparing banquets for the likes of Fred Astaire, Anita Eckberg, Jacqueline Kennedy, Elisabeth Taylor and a stream of other celebrities including Humphrey Bogart, who gave her the nick name Baby Agata.
Today Mamma Agata shares her culinary expertise with all those wishing to learn about the traditional cuisine of the Amalfi Coast. Lessons start with a trip to the organic kitchen garden situated beneath the terrace, occasion in which Agata’s husband Salvatore, teaches students about the seasonal fruits and vegetables grown here.
During the cooking lesson, Agata shows her pupils how to prepare appetizers, bread, pasta, vegetable side dishes, second courses and delicious desserts, including her legendary Lemon Cake. All the delicacies prepared during the lessons are then served to participants in a convivial banquet, accompanied by the excellent wines of the Amalfi Coast and, of course, a glass of Limoncello.
Maintaining the link between the vegetable garden and the dining table, by request, Mamma Agata’s family kitchen transforms in venue for dinners in which Agata expresses her gastronomic genius to the full.
