Sure NYC has prestigious cooking schools, Hyde Park has the CIA but why look any further than your own backyard. Right here in Saratoga Springs you can take a number of cooking classes. Now granted most of them are demonstration cooking classes like the ones held by Price Chopper and Taste of Home Cooking show but they still offer lots of information and prizes. But for me there’s nothing like a hands-on cooking class. Right on Broadway in downtown Saratoga Springs there is such an opportunity at Forno Bistro where you can learn from a real Italian Mama- Theresa Viva.
Recently I took a class on ravioli making from “Mama”
Theresa. Who knew that there was a
quality, hands-on cooking class right here in Saratoga Spring?. Mama Theresa isn’t a graduate of the CIA or a
professional chef but she is a great teacher.
She came to this country from Italy at the age of 5. She learned
pasta making from her mother and grandmother. During the class she shares tips she learned
from them, including how to use an old key to crimp a ravioli.
After Mama gives you some basic information and lots of
useful tricks then it’s time to make ravioli.
Sheets of pasta dough are handed out and lots of fillings are available
for you to make one of a kind ravioli.
Nothing limits you but your imagination!
Want to get the feel for a pasta machine? Go ahead and try it out. What to make a heart shaped ravioli that
would be perfect for Valentine’s Day? Mama
has a cookie cutter to use in that shape
and lots more. Want a foolproof method
for sealing your ravioli so that it won’t open in the water? You’ll learn that and so much more from
Mama.
The classes are informational, entertaining and most
important of all – hands-on!
After you create your one of a kind ravioli (actually you
will create at least 4 but I think we did a lot more than that) they will be
taken to the kitchen, cooked and topped with Mama’s own marinara sauce. The dining room is then set and the feast
begins! Platters of tender, savory ravioli,
fresh baked bread and wine!
So if you’re looking for a hands-on cooking class with an
excellent teacher who will teach you tips and tricks to authentic Italian food
with some out right hilarious anecdotes then you must check out the cooking classes
at Forno Bistro.
Forno Bistro is located at 541 Broadway in Saratoga Springs. Give them a call for classes and schedules and tell them you saw it on The Saratoga Traveler!