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!
Discover Undiscovered Tuscany with us in 2026
You may now know we’ve started a newsletter at the Olive Press Kitchen! Featured in our first edition is our new excursions that Chef Giuseppe is hosting in partnership with Italian Life—a Lucca-based podcast and tourist consultant. We are planning three different ways for you to join us in a week-long food and wine excursion discovering undiscovered Tuscany with us in 2026. The first is coming up soon and is almost sold out, May 24-30, 2026 called Tuscan Wine, Forests and Flavors. It’s not too late to join us. Treat yourself this Easter to an authentic Italian experience. You can learn more and reserve your spot for this retreat here. Experience undiscovered Tuscany this Fall If May doesn’t work for you, we’re offering another two other experiences to join with Chef in his favorite undiscovered Tuscany adventures. These two different retreats are focused on the most brilliant time in Tuscany, the fall when we harvest wine and olive oil. We will be journeying around the Strada di Vino & Olio in Tuscany (and in other regions with incredible olive oil and wine that you may never have heard about!). In each of these three personal experiences, Chef Giuseppe will take you on adventures to the places he loves most, including wine tasting from small vineyards, visiting an olive press in full operation from olives you helped pick, touring the beautiful walled town of Lucca and so much more. We’ll visit local resturants with authentic cooking whether they are Michelin star honored or a local trattoria that the locals rave about. And of course you’ll come to the Olive Press Kitchen for one of signature classes. Simply contact Italian Life info@italianlife.co to learn more about it. Tell them we sent you! Do you want to join our mailing list for monthly notifications? You can subscribe on our website or drop us a line at theolivepresskitchen@gmail.com.
Cooking Class in Tuscany at Writers’ Retreat
It’s never easy to leave the Mulino where everything in our professional kitchen is carefully in place. But when asked by Italian Life to lead a cooking class in Tuscany at its March writers’ retreat, we couldn’t help but say, “sicuro!” And then the fun (and a little bit of craziness!) ensued. The retreat was comprised of eight writers and a writer coach, each of whom had come to Tuscany to work as a group to elevate their writing while also enjoying the amazing culture, food and experiences of Italy. They all stayed at a villa together and clearly had built strong bonds and a sense of community over the week together, all of which helped make the Olive Press Kitchen cooking class in Tuscany a memorable, lively evening together. “It was like a true Italian family meal,” said Italian Life founder Andrew Sabatini. “Everyone in the kitchen, helping out and of course Chef Giuseppe trying to organize and teach all these different people. It was so much fun!” The class consisted of a gorgeous salad full of colorful additions like beets, goat cheese and lush tomatoes. The women got serious about making the Olive Press Kitchen Nudi… one of our favorites. Many of the early attempts didn’t mean Chef’s exacting standards. “Try again!” he said, showing again how to use the two spoons to shape the mini-football like pasta. A second course of fresh artichoke risotto helped complete the meal, along with local wines, cheeses and olive oil. The highlight for everyone was when Chef joined the family meal around the big table set for 12! “It’s never easy to cook with some many people in a different kitchen,” said Chef Giuseppe, “but these women were interested, happy, asking questions and wanting to learn. It was worth the challenges, especially when we were able to all sit down at the table together and enjoy what we made.” Food and wine lovers coming to cooking class in Tuscany in May “I’m very excited about some of these new things we are offering at The Olive Press Kitchen this year,” Chef Giuseppe said. “We started our newsletter. We are expanding our exploration into Undiscovered Tuscany with lesser-known wines, new flavors in the cooking class at the Mulino and co-hosting our first weeklong food and wine retreat in May.” During the retreat, which is already filling up, is called Tuscan Wine, Forest & Flavors by Italian Life, Chef Giuseppe will host a small group of foodies experiencing the regions best of food and wine. In addition to a cooking class in Tuscany, the group will visit Chef Giuseppe’s favorite restaurants, wineries and even go on a truffle hunt. Every detail is arranged. We will be involved in both a wine harvest week in September and an Olive Harvest week in October and November. We’re looking forward to having guests come and experience these ancient food traditions in a true “hands on” fashion. Last year Giuseppe was a guest on the Italian Life podcast talking about the local regional flavors here in Tuscany. If you missed it, have a listen now and be inspired to sample these things yourself with us in 2026. Use our contact form to learn more or sign up directly on the Italian Life website.