Thinking of summer: Prosciutto and melon and more.
Summer is not quite here, but it’s getting closer, and so to is all the wonderful fresh, local produce we can introduce into our cooking. Our guests at the Olive Press Kitchen are often surprised when we break out the fresh melons grown here in Tuscany. The most popular is known in English as Cantaloupe. Within a few weeks it will be served fresh on many menus throughout the region. Bright orange, dripping with flavor, it’s the perfect way to beat the coming heat. The surprising part isn’t serving a melon as an opening course to a dinner meal, but it’s the prosciutto we wrap around the melon. When we prepare it in the cooking class many are surprised by the pairing. But the two flavors blend perfectly, the salty delicate flavor of the prosciutto with the sweet, juicy burst from the melon. The best part is how easy it is to prepare prosciutto and melon. Buy a beautiful melon — ask the grower at a local farmers market to help you choose one — and also buy your favorite prosciutto, thinly sliced. Some cooks delicately wrap it around each slice of melon, other layer it on once the melon is sliced and arranged on a plate. Or do it as we do, and add our secret ingredient so you can create a triangle of tastes on the dish. Here at the Olive Press Kitchen we like to add to the plate a local fig, which is simple but adds to the complexity of flavors. Each component is distinct, each very local to our region and each adds it own balance of flavors and color. We stress in the cooking class meals that we want you to feel comfortable to make when you go back home. There is no way to go wrong on this one! And this surprising mix will usually have your guests talking about it, which means you can tell them all about your trip to Tuscany and cooking class in Tuscany experience with the Olive Press Kitchen! Enjoy!
Cooking in Tuscany has never been better
With 20 years of experience cooking in Tuscany, the Olive Press Kitchen understands the timeless excellence of the regional cuisine. This is the celebration of the region we do, every time our guests arrive at the ancient mulino kitchen to learn cooking in Tuscany and the ingredients that make it special. But we will never be fully satisfied. We are constantly redefining and elevating what it means to learn cooking in Tuscany during your time visiting Italy. Which makes 2026 so special for us, as we’re elevating our offerings to reach an even loftier standing for our guests. We have three new exciting additions to our offerings to share with you: Elevating cooking in Tuscany for 2006 Chef Giuseppe has long been more than cook, but a true enthusiast for Tuscany. He is epitome of “undiscovered Tuscany,” often off on local adventures to enjoy the culture, the history and yes, of course, the culinary delights Tuscany has to offer. This diverse and deep knowledge led Italian Life, a Lucca-based podcast and tourist consultancy to ask Chef Giuseppe to lead a week long adventure for its guests, called Tuscan Wine, Forests and Flavors from May 24-30, 2026. During this carefully curated experience designed by the Chef, participants will: Limited to just seven participants, this exciting collaboration allows for those who have first experienced learning to cook at the Olive Press Kitchen or earlier in our Lucca location to now take that love of Italian food and wine to much deeper level. Contact us to learn more! Food and wine pairings in every class The Olive Press Kitchen cooking class has always emphasized the importance of tasting great extra virgin olive oil and sampling local wines with the food we create together by hand. But in 2026, we’re adding more “undiscovered” wines to our menus and spending a bit more time explaining and teaching how to truly experience the difference of a well-made local wine. In this class experience you don’t judge a wine by its label, but its flavor, which is the only way wine should truly be enjoyed. Chef Giuseppe, as a certified sommelier and Member of the Italian Wine Sommelier Association, is a proven expert to elevate your love of wine when you come to visit the Olive Press Kitchen. New creations with local cuisine We’ve always had our favorite menu items based on the season, but local knowledge and appreciation inspires creativity. Just one example, the Olive Press Kitchen still has the stone plate long ago used to turn the regional chestnut flour into baked delights in the kitchen’s historic fireplace. Our guests may enjoy many interesting new creations based on traditional recipes and methods long trusted for cooking in Tuscany. Classes are every Thursday and Saturday and limited to 12 people. If you’re planning your trip to Tuscany, drop us a line and we can help you organize your adventure at the Olive Press Kitchen.
A Recipe for a Wonderful Day Cooking
The Olive Press Kitchen was pleased to host writer Joanne Marino Bartram of Two Parts Italy at Il Mulino for what she described as a “wonderful day of cooking!” With her permission, we are pleased to repost this article here for you to enjoy. To see her original post and view all of her amazing photos, click here. The Olive Press Kitchen (formerly the Extra Virgin Cooking Class By Joanne Marino Bartram Here is a recipe for a wonderful day of cooking in Italy: Start with Chef Giuseppe Mazzocchi (he makes the magic happen). You’ll meet Giuseppe, along with your small group of classmates, for a bit of shopping at Montecatini’s market. Here you’ll find fresh herbs, veggies, and just the right beans for soup. It’s a great way to start the day and learn about local ingredients. Next, spend the day at the historic molino (mill) where Giuseppe’s grandparents lived and worked. The mill property is over 600 years old and sits alongside a stream whose waters once powered the mill equipment. Inside the old mill you’ll find a professional kitchen with lots of workspace. Here, under the chef’s guidance, you will prepare and cook authentic Italian dishes. If the day is chilly, there will be a fire burning in the kitchen’s large fireplace. Could there be a better atmosphere for cooking? I think not! To make the atmosphere even better, enjoy some Prosecco while prepping ingredients and take a break to sample some regional olive oils and cheeses. Later, when all the work is done, you’ll share a fabulous lunch with your classmates in the beautiful dining room, the spot which once housed the olive press. Today it is a rustic yet elegant space with a table large enough for all to gather. Giuseppe will select wines that pair perfectly with the food you’ve prepared. A member of the Italian Sommelier Association, he knows his wines and happily shares that knowledge during the meal. The Olive Press Kitchen Backstory Some of you may have done a class with Giuseppe at Extra Virgin Cooking when it was located inside the historic center of Lucca. Those classes were wonderful and inspired me to write an earlier blog post (from April 2022). With completion of the mill renovations, all of the classes moved out to Il Molino last summer. New location and a new name—The Olive Press Kitchen. I was excited to experience the new location when, with a couple of friends, I signed up for a class this past October. The cooking school is in the hills outside of Montecatini. Montecatini can be reached by train along the Florence – Lucca line. Coming from either Lucca or Florence, it is about 30 minutes to the Montecatini Centro stop. Once there, Giuseppe will meet you and it is just a short walk to the market. Classes include round trip transportation between Montecatini and Il Molino. My Wonderful Day of Cooking My October class took place on a chilly, rainy day so we enjoyed the fireplace while we prepared our first course, a Zuppa Frantoiana. This is a typical fall soup of vegetables and beans drizzled with the season’s fresh pressed olive oil. We also prepared a beef based ragu to go with Gnudi, a light as a cloud ricotta and spinach dumpling. Shaping the gnudi takes practice and we all had fun learning the technique (but even more fun eating them at lunch). Fall is funghi (mushroom) season, so we also made a risotto with several types of mushrooms, including porcinis. Last, we made a wonderful classic Italian dessert – zabaglione. Rich with egg yolk, sugar, marsala wine, and whipped cream, it was topped with fresh berries. A perfect way to end our meal. Everything about classes with The Olive Press Kitchen is special. From Giuseppe’s care and teaching, to the gorgeous setting, to the small group of students, to the shared meal of authentic foods and wines. For anyone interested in food, cooking, or just good eating, a day spent at the mill cooking with Giuseppe is a fabulous experience. Classes are scheduled 3 days per week, 9 am to about 2:30 pm. All classes are in English.
The Historic Olive Press Kitchen Story
After many years in the historic center of Lucca, we are excited to be back where it all began, at the family molino of my youth. As I know care for the property of this historic olive press, my mind wanders back to my own roots, reminiscing about the unforgettable years with my family spent together at this ancient olive press along a quiet stream in Nievole, a village in a far flung valley of Tuscany. Bringing the cooking class experience into the Tuscan hillside has been a wonderful gift, one that has reminded me of culinary memories of a rural life more than half century ago. As the official start of the olive harvest fell on the first of November, the northern wind tramontana was blowing from the mountains, knocking the olives from the tree branches, turning the farmer’s fingers numb with its biting cold. Yet there was always a whirlwind of activity in the fields and around the olive press. Inside the steamy kitchen with its giant fireplace was alive with the bustling comings and goings of country wives, kids, and grandparents who would congregate at the press to socialize but more importantly, for the most exciting event of the year: The new extra virgin olive oil straight from the olive press! Dishes were simple, hearty, and ready to prepare at the fireplace or on the big stove. We honor this in the olive press kitchen classes with a version of authentic bruschetta. This simple recipe of bread and olive oil emerged out of the molinos. People would eat the bruschetta to sample the new extra virgin olive oil. The olive press is just one layer of rural history in a small valley, where the people still keep their traditions alive. Having guests come to the Olive Press Kitchen to enjoy making these recipes themselves while sharing lunch together is a passion I’ve never lost in all these years. Being back at the family molino is making it all the more special. I can’t wait to share it with you.