Things To Do In Puglia | Italy cooking Courses

Food and Arts in Lecce and Puglia in May 0

Posted on May 13, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

There is no better month to savor the wonderful Mediterranean cuisine of Puglia than May. It’s almost summer and there is so much variety of fruit and vegetables, colors and flavors.

However, Puglia is not just good food and wines. It’s also a place with lots of history.

If you are in Puglia this week in May there is a wonderful Arts event you should not miss: the Cortili Aperti (Open Courtyards) taking place in Lecce, next Sunday May 16th, 2010. This is the 16th edition.

All the historical palaces in the old town of Lecce, belonging to the local aristicratic families and usually closed because privately owned, open their big doors to visitors and tourists.

Only their gardens and courtyards can be visited, unless you know someone in the family running these palaces (which have beautiful frescos inside!).

Most of these palaces were built in the 1600s from the local pietra leccese stone. The influence of the Spanish, ruling the area, is evident in the architecture.

For the whole day, lots of events take place in the wonderful courtyards and gardens: from classic to jazz music concerts, to exhibitions.

There are 23 historical palaces and 4 churches (San Leucio, San Giovanni di Dio, San Sebastiano, San Francesco della Scarpa) open to visitors.

There are thousands of people who come to Lecce to attend this event, happening evey year, only for one day in May. Best would be to arrive early in the morning!

And of course when you are in Lecce don’t forget to taste the wonderful local food and wines from Puglia!

For more infomation about our gourmet tours in Puglia Italy please write at info.stile@gmail.com or subscribe to our newsletter.

Tags: Puglia food tours
Category Puglia, things to do in Puglia

2010 cooking classes and wine tours in Puglia 0

Posted on February 19, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

Bordered by the Adriatic sea to the East and the Ionian sea to the West and with a landscape with millions olive trees and vineyards, Puglia is an ideal location for a gourmet holiday.

The local Mediterranean cuisine has an emphasis on durum wheat pasta, seafood, vegetables, cheese and extra virgin olive oil. Recipes are simple, but still very tasty because based on fresh ingredients.

Puglia wines are made from indigenous grapes and taste the equilibrium between the sun, the wind, the sea and the soil.

Please join our 2010 cooking and wine workshops in Puglia

June (12-19) & October (2-9): cooking workshops in a 17th century castle in Puglia
April-December: 1 day, 4 day and 7 day cooking classes in Puglia
April-December: wine tours and olive oil tastings in Puglia

For more information visit our calendar or contact us at: info.stile@gmail.com.

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Tags: Italy Cooking classes Italy wine tours Puglia cooking schools
Category Italy Cooking classes, things to do in Puglia

What to do on a rainy day in Puglia 0

Posted on February 10, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

It has been raining for all the past week in Puglia. This is not very exciting, since in Puglia we are sun-dependent, being able to enjoy a sunny weather most of the year!

Yesterday I, Marika, our Mom and our two cuisines went to visit our Nonna.
Of course the whole conversation was about the rainy weather.

It was getting a bit depressing! We were the 6 of us sitting around the kitchen table and by the big fireplace, complaining about the fact we never had such a rainy Carnival in Italy before.

Suddendly, our Mom stood up and said: “dai su! è Carnevale, facciamo le chiacchiere!” (it’s Carnival time, let’s make the chiacchiere pastries!”).
She did not have to say twice. I and Marika started assembling the ingredients. Our Grandmother (who is usually a bit deaf) got really excited (she loves sweets!).
It was the most wonderful day!

The chiacchiere never tasted like this before! Of course the secret ingredient was the fun we had hand-making those pastries all together!

INGREDIENTS
500 gr flour
80 gr sugar
2 whole eggs
pinch of sea salt
3 tbsp liquor
1 grated orange zest
40 gr extra virgin olive oil
icing sugar (to decorate)

PREPARATION
Mix all the ingredients together with your hands as if you were making fresh pasta.
Let the dough rest for at least 1/2 hour. Make several rectangular sheets of dough. Use a pasta machine to make the sheets very thin.
Cut them into strips or small rectangular using pasta cutters (or a knife).

Deep fry in extra virgin olive oil (or bake in pre-heated oven at 350°F for about 15-20 min).
Sprinkle icing sugar on top.

There are many different recipes to make the Chiacchiere. Do you have any to share?

Enjoy the Carnival in Puglia!

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Tags: Italian pastries Puglia recipes
Category Cakes & Desserts, things to do in Puglia

Carnival for foodies in Puglia in February 2

Posted on January 25, 2010 by Stile Mediterraneo

If you come to Puglia in February, you should definetely not miss one of the Carnival celebrations which take place almost everywhere in Puglia.

The Carnival in Putignano is one of the oldest, dating back to the end of the 14th century. It became very famous because it was the longest, starting on December 26th and ending on the Shrove Tuesday, in February.

This year there will be lots of concerts, exhibitions and events almost every day from January 31st until February 21st. However, the parades are the main attractions, which take place every Sunday and on Tuesday Feb 16th (Martedì Grasso). Masked people dance in the streets following huge trucks where famous politicians made of papier machè throw sweets at kids.

Anther beautiful, and less “crowded” (only locals know about it!!), Carnival parade is the one taking place in Gallipoli. This year there will be two parades on Feb 7th and 14th in the main streets.

In addition to the parades, one of the best parts of the Carnival celebration in Puglia is tasting all the delicious sweets which are only made during this holiday. The most traditional Carnival sweets are a kind of Confetti, called “Ricciareddi“, made of almonds and sugar, with a very funny curly shape and in many different colors. You can only find them at Carnival time!

Also, very traditional are the “Chiacchiere“ fried or baked pastry strips, covered with icing sugar; and the “Struffoli”, fried little balls covered with honey.

All these sweets are supposed to be for kids, but they are so good that it is impossible to resist!!

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Tags: Italy culinary vacations puglia holidays
Category cuisine, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Hiking in the Porto Selvaggio natural reserve 2

Posted on November 08, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

One of the most beautiful experiences you should not miss when you come to Puglia is going hiking in the Porto Selvaggio Natural Reserve. Today the sun was shining after two days of heavy rain. I and Marika decided to go to Porto Selvaggio. It was beautiful! And of course we took so many pictures that we are now happy to share.

Porto Selvaggio natural reserve is facing the Ionian sea, a few miles north of Gallipoli.

Lots of pirates in the 16th and 17th centuries tried to invade Puglia from this part of the coast. Therefore there are many towers that were built to defend the coast. Lots of these towers are still very well preserved!

Today, my and Marika’s objective was to hike from the “Uluzzo” Tower going South toward the “Madonna dell’Alto” Tower.

You can choose among different paths (with different levels of difficulty) to go from one tower to the other.

During our walk we could not stop taking pictures of the amazing daisy flowers and myrtle plants.

There were many other plants from clover leaf, to wild rosemary, wild sage, figs and prickly pears.

It is impossible to describe how beautiful and intense the smell of all these plants and flowers was….together with the sea salt from the Ionian sea.

After a two hour walk, we found a little hidden beach where we stopped for lunch.

Even if it is November…..it was a pity not to have our bathing suit!

For more information about things to do in Puglia and Stile Mediterraneo cooking classes and wine tours in Puglia Italy please write at info.stile@gmail.com

Tags: best places to see in Puglia Porto Selvaggio
Category things to do in Puglia

Memories from one of our best cookery tours in Puglia 0

Posted on May 09, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

Savory strawberries at the market in Locorotondo

I and Marika are back from our cooking and wine tour in Puglia.
It was a memorable week: we cooked, ate, drank and … laughed a lot! Some guests even complained that the food was TOO GOOD and the wines too delicious!
After sharing so many memorable experiences, it is very sad when our guests (now new friends) go back to their homes…even though they left with the promise to be back in Puglia again (but only after following a strict diet!!).
The best part of a culinary tour is to meet so many interesting people who enjoy traveling and getting to know a place through its food, culture and the local people they meet.
These are just a few highlights of our week.
A good start of the day with one of the best Italian ice creams at the local seller:

Visit of a village which was ready for the Saint Patron celebration:

Lots of poppies and olive trees in the countryside:

We meet our fishermen friends in Gallipoli:

One of the fishermen invited us to his house to show us his collections. This was an experience that all our guests enjoyed a lot, since it was totally unexpected…and since no tourist guide books even mention it!
Collection of big shells caught in the sea and old nets used to fish:

Collection of other ancient instruments used in the house:

Collection of 12 little characters (below the Saint frame). Each character represents an old profession in the village. Starting from the left, we have: the fisherman, the carpenter, the builder, the shoemaker, the taylor etc. Every year, on the Holy Friday, local people wander around the village wearing the colored gouns and hoods.

We think this sort of little unexpected surprises makes our tours unique! Click here for more pictures about sea and beach in Puglia.

What was your favorite unexpected adventure in Italy?

Contact us at: info@stilemediterraneo.it

Tags: Gallipoli Italy cookery tours puglia markets
Category Food markets, Italy Cooking classes, Puglia, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Best things to do in Italy: living the dolce vita in Lecce 4

Posted on April 18, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

My friends traveling to Puglia to visit Lecce, often ask me what things they should see, which travel guide book they should buy, from where they should start visiting… and so on. My answer is always: non ti preoccupare (don’t worry!). You don’t need any planning….just come here soon (arriva presto)!

Southern Italians, we are famous for not planning enough! We say we enjoy life (non-Southern Italians say…we are lazy!). Of course I support the first interpretation…..

I think it’s great to take it easy when you come to Lecce and Puglia. Where else can you have such a wonderful opportunity to walk around an historical center which is just an outdoor museum?!

The historical center is just amazing with all his baroque style and architecture. You enter into a very narrow street, you think you are about to get lost……and suddenly you have this beautifully decorated Santa Croce Cathedral. You can only stare at it. You try to take pictures, but the street is too narrow, you just can’t take a full size picture!

You walk along the main Vittorio Emanuele street and you are just astonished by all the beautiful palaces with their handcrafted balconies, reproducing angels, lions, horses etc.

At night, you cross the main Sant’Oronzo square and suddenly you find a Roman amphitheatre (a much smaller version of the Colosseum in Rome!) where a dance ballet company is performing.

However, the best thing I usually suggest to my friends, is to mingle with the locals and live like the local Leccese people do……at least for one day! I promise you start with one day and then… you get addicted! (it’s worst than chocolate!). I have some friends who moved to Puglia from the US and the UK and are now so well accustomed to the Leccese way of life……!!

So how do people from Lecce spend their regular day?

The day starts at about 9:00am (in Lecce when we say 9, we actually mean 9:30). Of course we first need to read the news (i.e. weather forecast, horoscope, Lecce soccer team, night events). So we go to the bar in the main Santo Oronzo square for an “Espressino” and “Pasticciotto”: nobody who is a true Leccese would order anything different than this….I think it’s a breakfast written in our DNA. Espressino, which literally means little espresso, is actually a sort of espresso macchiato, served in a small glass coffee cup: 1 shot of coffee, with milk foam and bitter cocoa powder on top. Pasticciotto is a pastry filled with lemon cream that is one of the most typical pastries from Lecce (you don’t find it anywhere else in Puglia!).

Then, it’s time to work!! You ride your bike or vespa to the office, check you emails, Facebook and Twitter and then ….serious and hard work. After about two hours, the clock tower announces it’s already Mezzogiorno (Midday), time for the pre-lunch aperitif!
So you take your vespa or bike again and go to another bar (Raphael bar, near Mazzini Square) where you have an aperitif based on: rustico and crodino. Rustico is a salty pastry filled with mozzarella, béchamel and tomato sauce. You can only eat it in Lecce!
You meet your friends, check what they are doing at night and then back home for lunch with your family.

You may stop for some food shopping first or may be to buy some spring flowers at the beautiful market behind the big Castle.

Lunch time is from 1 to 4-5pm (it depends!), which of course includes the siesta. Yes, it depends because some shops open at 5.30 pm. Going back home for lunch and having a siesta is a religion which is respected more than anything else. If you walk in the streets at that time of the day you don’t find one single person. If you don’t know about the siesta, you may think Lecce is a desert town….but then at 5 (I mean ….at 5.30) life goes back again. People fill the streets, walking in a hurry to go back to work!

Well, in the afternoon a typical Leccese works until 8.30pm (yes, we do work long hours!)….then gym, shower and ready for the Leccese movida: pizza at 10.30pm and then a drink at the piazzetta behind the Duomo Cathedral. The night life goes on until 2am!….
I know life is too hard!

Please contact us at: info@stilemediterraneo.it

Tags: Lecce Lecce best things to see pasticciotto rustico
Category Favorites, Puglia, cuisine, lifestyle in Lecce, things to do in Puglia, traditions, travel tips

Best food and wine tour in Puglia Italy 2

Posted on March 26, 2009 by Stile Mediterraneo

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Tags: Italy cookery holidays Puglia wine tours
Category Favorites, Food markets, Italy Cooking classes, Puglia, Wines & wineries, things to do in Puglia

Christmas events in Lecce Puglia 0

Posted on November 30, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

Don’t miss the amazing live nativity chrèche in Tricase (Puglia/Apulia) from December 25 to January 6th, 2008. This is a unique event which takes place since 1976, on top of a small hill (monte Orco). All the people living in Tricase take part to the nativity crib.

Tags: Italy holidays Lecce vacations Puglia Christams events
Category Puglia, lifestyle in Lecce, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Olive oil festivals and fairs in Puglia 0

Posted on November 30, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

The “Panare di Santa Vittoria” festival is a special event held every year in Spongano on the 22nd of December. This tradition is also part of the rituals used by farmers to wish a good harvest.

It is linked to olive growing that here is particularly productive. The oil mills make this special kind of big “panare” (local dialect expression that refers to baskets). The panare are filled with “sansa” (the residual product left over from olive grinding) and then decorated with garlands, flowers, fruit and palm branches.

All the people living in Spongano take part to the procession carrying the panare to a place where they are burned. After this, celebrations in the square begin with fireworks, display, music and dancing.

Tags: Extra virgin olive oil Italy olive oil tours Puglia olive oil
Category Puglia, Puglia Extra virgin olive oil, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Olive harvest in Puglia Southern Italy 0

Posted on November 07, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

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Attend the olive harvest in Puglia which takes place from November to December every year. Walk through secular olive trees. Visit ancient olive mills. Taste delicious extra virgin olive oil.

Although the extra virgin olive oil produced in Puglia is not very famous yet, its quality is very high. So you might be surprised by just how good it is.

Just in the Lecce area there are more than 10 million olive trees and most of them are centuries old. Other important areas are those around Foggia, Brindisi and Bari. In the area around Ostuni and Fasano or Bisceglie there are many secular olive trees with more than 500 years.

The whole region is one of the most important olive oil production areas in the world and the quality of its golden oil s considered excellent!

It is healthy because the fewest possible plant treatments are carried out. Extra virgin olive oil is very good for your health because full of antioxidant substances and its taste is so light that does not cover tastes. There are many local varieties: from the sweet which tastes fruity to the stronger but more delicate.

While exploring the region, you will see signs of ancient olive mills. Most of these mills are underground ones and their machinery is quite rudimental and primitive. The heavy grinding millstone used to be pulled by animals in the mill. The presses were usually made with a long screw fixed at it base by a pit dug into the stone. When you walk into an old olive mill, you will have the feeling you have traveled back in time. However, these oil mills were used up to fifty years ago.

For more information contact: info@stilemediterraneo.it or visit the website STILE MEDITERRANEO

Tags: Italy olive harvest olive harvest Puglia olive oil tours
Category Puglia, Puglia Extra virgin olive oil, things to do in Puglia

Lecce best things to do in January 0

Posted on October 19, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

The “Focara” fire celebrations – Novoli, Lecce. January 16 – 17, 2008.

In Novoli the fiesta in honor of the Patron Saint Antony is celebrated around a focara, which is a bonfire made with vine branches from the plants that have just been pruned.

This mountain can be more than 25 metres high. Religious symbols are placed on top. This ritual takes place every year on the night between January 16th and 17th.

Fire is very often used during rituals in the Salento area. This is due to pagan culture where it symbolized purification and rebirth.

This tradition has been passed down for years and years in Novoli and the bundles of wood are put on top by using very long ladders.

Every year thousands of people and pilgrims come to Novoli to see the last firework light up the mountain making it burn.

Tags: Focara festival Lecce lecce things to do Novoli
Category Puglia, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Papier maché in Lecce Puglia 0

Posted on September 27, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

Craftsmen in Lecce make wonderful hand-made objects out of leftover materials. Artisans add wire, straw, materials, glue and chalk to old paper and create wonderfully sculpted and coloured figures.

Papier machè art has ancient origins in the Salento area and is popular worldwide now because of Leccese artists’ creativity and inspiration.

This art has been passed down from father to son. Artists produce Madonnas, Saints and little statues all over the year, which are displayed during the Presepe (the crib) period at Christmas time.

Craftsmen make a structure out of wire and straw and then cover it with several layers of paper soaked in water that is then glued together by mixing water and flour.

Clothes are done with papier machè (cartapesta) while faces, arms and legs are made out of terracotta (earthenware). Then the statues are put in the oven and then painted.

Tags: Italy Christmas holidays Lecce papier machè Things to do in Puglia
Category Puglia, things to do in Puglia, traditions

Cisternino and Valle Itria traditional cuisine 2

Posted on September 11, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

Cisternino, ranked among the most beautiful small villages within Italy, is a small hilltop town with a spectacular panorama of the countryside. The streets are narrow and maze-like, whitewashed like in Greece.

Cisternino is an enchanting medieval village surrounded by fertile fields of Olive groves and vineyards, some of the most abundant in Puglia. Its historic center is characterized by its architecture of the 16th and 17th centuries. Visitors will undoubtedly be struck by the predominance of white buildings. This small village is the classic example of “spontaneous architecture,” designed not by architects following a preestablished plan, but rather by human relations to be fit together, among whitewashed houses and narrow streets, the tiny courtyards and outside stairs, the arches and flower-filled balconies: spaces to appear at, look and lean out from, where people can meet and gather; shared spaces, both public and private.

In the unreal silence of summer afternoons, when the drowsy village abandons itself to indolence before the coming to life again in the evening, it is nice to walk down the chianche (stone-paved streets) among the play of light and shadow created by the narrow streets, the arches, the underpasses. Dazzling white walls and blue sky: this is the poetry of the south.

There’s no better place to savour the regional Puglian cuisine than Cisternino which is dubbed a town of gastronomy. Restaurants and trattorias are here at every turn and set their tables out in the narrow whitewashed streets and piazzas. You have to visit the market and buy locally-produced ingredients such as pecorino cheese, local sausage, fresh capers and scarlet peppers. …but also olives and famous bread.
Cisternino also has an irresistible lamb meat tradition: you personally choose your own meat from the butcher shop and have it barbecued at the attached restaurant!

At night the historic heart of town wakes up and musicians of all ages play traditional music.

Tags: Cisternino durum wheat Puglia bread Puglia traditional cuisine
Category Puglia, cuisine, things to do in Puglia, travel tips

Lecce: the baroque capital of Puglia 0

Posted on September 11, 2007 by Stile Mediterraneo

Lecce, the baroque capital of Puglia also known as the Florence of the South, is city of Baroque, city of poets, architects, artists, cathedrals, arches, narrow and tortuous alleyways, palaces and aristocratic houses belonging to the local noble families. Lecce can really be described as a mix of cultures, people, styles and historical eras.

Baroque art is in every corner of this small city and all the buildings are linked by a common architectural language. There are lots of palazzi, churches, and squares, all richly decorated with swirls, putti, and other ingenious sculptures on window frames, balconies, and portals. Lecce Baroque dates from the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, and is much like Naples Baroque, but infinitely more so.

You may try walking around Lecce, discovering all its little hidden alleyways, while sipping an “espressino” (typical coffee Leccese people drink) and while angels and strange creatures look down on you from the buildings.

The Basilica of Santa Croce is the greatest expression of Lecce’s Baroque style, with its stunning Baroque facade with a splendid rose window in the centre.

When you go to the Duomo square at night time, street lights reflect onto the pietra leccese creating a magical and rarefied atmosphere.

Right next to the Charles V’s Castle you have the Politeama Greco, Lecce’s main theatre where you can listen to opera.

The Church of San Francesco della Scarpa is where the Tito Schipa Concert and Orchestra Institution is based and organize concerts.

The Ex Convento dei Celestini is another beautiful place where concerts and exhibitions are organized.

Lecce is particularly wonderful at night, with much lumiere (but no sound) bathing the golden stone of the buildings.

Tags: about Lecce about Puglia baroque style puglia holidays
Category Puglia, lifestyle in Lecce, things to do in Puglia