Feast of St. Stephen
Filed Under Special Occasions, What's Up at TIK
Happy Feast of St. Stephen! December 26 is a holiday in many European countries in honor of the saint who is considered the first Christian martyr. In other parts of the world (the UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, to be specific) it is celebrated as Boxing Day. December 26 has many traditions attached to it. In Wales, the day traditionally included beating female servants with holly branches (seriously!). In… Read
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Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve: An Italian Baccalà Recipe
Filed Under Recipes, Special Occasions
Codfish is a popular dish around the world during the Christmas holiday season, and we often get asked for Christmas Eve cod recipes. In Portugal, it's a tradition that dates back centuries. In Mexico and Brazil, it also often has a place at the table. And codfish is frequently part of Italy's Italian Christmas Dinner known as the Feast of the Seven Fishes–a Christmas Eve meal that's also celebrated by… Read
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Orecchiette al Ragù di Braciole
Filed Under Destination Features, Food History, Recipes
Puglia is known for its agriculture and rural landscape; as such produce is in abundance in the heel of Italy. But their gastronomy is known for so much more too, including a pasta known as 'orecchiette,' which translates to "little ears." Take a stroll through the vibrant city of Bari during our best-selling culinary vacation in Puglia, and chances are you'll even see nonnas (grandmothers) making the ear-shaped pasta by… Read
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Five Things to See in France
Filed Under Destination Features, Travel Tips
Have you been to France? If so, chances are you've visited Paris, seen the Eiffel Tower, explored the Louvre, and walked along the Seine. But France is full of other wonders to see, and today we'll talk about a few of them that are off the beaten path that you can find on our culinary tours in France. Five Sites Not to Miss in France Verdon Gorge Perhaps it's a… Read
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Tuscan Recipe for Necci (Chestnut Flour Crepes)
Filed Under Destination Features, Food History, Recipes
The fall is one of our favorite times to travel to Europe. From Spain's Basque Country to Italy's heel (the region of Puglia), Europe is full of autumn bounty from September through November. One sure sign of fall for me is the reappearance of chestnuts, which make the appearance in a number of authentic Tuscan recipes. On the streets of Rome you can smell the distinct fragrance of chestnuts roasting,… Read
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Boles de Picolat (French Catalan Meatballs)
Filed Under Destination Features, Food History, Recipes
Boles de Picolat is also known as Catalan meatballs … and it's a dish you'll often find on our culinary tours in southern France, in particularly the Languedoc-Roussillon region. But wait, you might be wondering, isn't Catalonia in Spain? It very much is, but the northern part of the region is actually in the south of France. As such, there are some interesting overlaps in culinary traditions between Spain and… Read
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French Recipe for Ratatouille
Filed Under Food History, Recipes
The south of France is known for a number of famous meat dishes (Cassoulet anyone?) but it is also a land full of wonderful vegetables found in the local open-air markets which you can make on a French culinary vacation. And many of these vegetables get combined in one of the most famous of southern French dishes, the vegetables stew known as "ratatouille." This hearty dish is made even more… Read
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Our Favorite Cities on our Provence Cooking Vacations
Filed Under Destination Features, Travel Tips
This week we're featuring the south of France, and we thought we'd start with everyone's favorite: Provence! Everyone knows or has heard of the charms of the Provencal countryside: fields of lavender, perched rocky villages, acres of vineyards, and so much sunshine! But Provence features some really amazing cities as well, each worth exploring in its own right on our Provence cooking vacations. So what are our favorites? 1) Marseille… Read
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French Recipe for Daube de Cèpes
Filed Under Kitchen Tips, Recipes
We're finishing up our week-long discussion of hearty dishes that you can make on our cooking classes in France with a wonderful French recipe from the Languedoc part of southern France. Hearty dishes can be vegetable (or in this case mushroom) based. Of course, to be hearty there has to be fat, and here that is provided by rendered duck fat and pancetta! Browse our cooking vacations in France. Daube… Read
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Tuscan Recipe for Ribollita
Filed Under Destination Features, Food History, Recipes
It's October and the weather is making us think of hearty fall dishes. We're big fans of soups and stews in the fall, and there is none more comforting or hearty than Tuscan "Ribollita," which you can learn on our Tuscany cooking tours. It might not look appetizing in pictures - it pretty much always resembles brown mush! - but it's hugely delicious. The name literally translates to "re-boiled," as… Read
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