The first dish I made while working for Angelo Cabani in his highly acclaimed Locanda Miranda restaurant was his special Ligurian-style fish soup. What a magical culinary experience – being taught by a great chef who opened his restaurant in the same year I was born…and I’m not so young. It is also a recipe which continues to touch my inner soul in surprising ways.

Angelo’s soup recipe I made that day is actually a variation on the famous Cacciucco alla Livornese, a Tuscan town about an hour south of my Ligurian base. The classic cacciucco is more a stew than a soup. It is filled with various types of seafood and fish and flavored with an intense fish broth, tomato concentrate, onions, garlic and a bay leaf. The traditional presentation also includes a large chunk of garlic bread at the bottom of the soup bowl, which soaks up the tasty juices.

I ate cacciucco during my first visit to Livorno last year in a modern restaurant located in the canal zone of the city. I was excited to finally taste the soup which defines Livornese cooking and reminded me so much of my working days with Angelo. But I was very surprised when the ‘soup’ arrived served on a large plate and piled over a mound of couscous.

Couscous…what was the connection?

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Immersing yourself into the food & wine culture of Italy for an entire week is an excellent way to understand and learn this incredible way of life. Whether you are just a beginner or a seasoned pro, our Culinary Workshop Week in Tuscany will provide you with a unique opportunity to experience the Italian lifestyle in a very relaxed environment.

Our workshop week features 7 nights in a wonderfully restored Tuscan farmhouse, 5 days of culinary classes, wine tastings and special excursions. Participation is limited to five for each week so we can preserve our special personal touch.

Have a look at our short video from our 2010 workshop for an inspired look at our week…

Join us in scenic and inspiring southern Tuscany in 2011 as we share our passion and professional experience with you! Here are the dates to our workshop weeks:

April 17-23 (this is the week before Easter…a great chance to extend your trip)
June 26 – July 2 (extra Saturday night stay included)
September 11 – 16
September 18 – 23

Ask us a question…or reserve a place

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I am pretty certain most people have never heard of schupfnudeln before…and I am equally confident my new pumpkin version is even more anonymous!

This lack of attention does not bother me…in fact, I rather enjoyed serving this unknown entity recently to curious friends, and I really enjoyed making them in our monthly what’s in season cooking class and watching the happy participants devour the little pumpkin dumplings. These recent food experiences were a refreshing reminder of my first encounter with schupfnudeln while working in Kaiser’s Reblaube about ten years ago, and why they remain one of my favorite recipes.

I was working the entremetier station and in charge of all vegetables and starches. I was not terribly experienced in European products at that time and I didn’t feel too confident as I checked the new menu the chef had recently posted on the kitchen white board. Schupfnudeln? What were these, I asked myself…and furthermore, how do you pronounce it? One of the other cooks told me they were a lot like potato gnocchi…just shaped differently. I was relieved to hear this news because I just finished working several months in Italy and I was quite sure I could make some dazzling gnocchi.

I quickly found out schupfnudeln were not the same as gnocchi…they were much more difficult to master. They were also incredibly popular and irresistible with the guests and kitchen staff, which meant I needed to make them every single day for a couple of months.    More...

Silvia Gautschi McNulty won the Swiss final of the 6th Concours des Ambassadeurs du Champagne competition held on the 17th of September in Geneva. She will travel to Epernay in the heart of the Champagne region to compete in the European final on October 28th against seven other finalists.

Silvia battled her nerves in Geneva and managed to deliver an outstanding and original presentation on the diversity of champagne, while expertly tasting and presenting four champagnes to a jury of four experts and a captivated audience. “Silvia represents the exact profile we are seeking for a champagne ambassador” stated Violaine de Caffarelli, Jury President and Enologist for the Comité Champagne, as she awarded Silvia the prize.

Silvia holds a level V honors diploma from the London-based Wine & Spirits Education Trust (WSET) and several advanced certificates from schools in Austria, Italy, Spain and Switzerland. She is also a member of the Swiss German Sommelier Association, a qualified instructor of Sherry Wine from the Regulatory Authority in Jerez, Spain and a regular instructor at the Zürich-based Académie Du Vin. Of course, Silvia is also partner and wine educator at Laughing Lemon Food & Wine.

During her first couple of days in the Champagne region, Silvia will have the opportunity to visit some of the top producers…and of course taste their products. The final competition will be held on Thursday, October 28 and will again include a presentation to the jury and champagne tastings. The winner will be announced on Friday, October 29 and we will announce the results on the Laughing Lemon Food & Wine Facebook page.

We wish Silvia the best of luck in her competition!

Making pumpkin rösti in Switzerland just seems like a good idea.

There are plenty of fresh pumpkins to find nearly everywhere you look – especially those starchy kabocha varieties which combine the nutty pastiness of chestnuts with the sweet earthiness of sweet potatoes…oh, and with a little pumpkin thrown in as well.

Then, there are those incredible October potatoes to experiment with - and not just any potato will do! In Switzerland, a proper rösti is only made with…eh, a rösti potato of course. You can follow my lead and look for the Urgenta or Victoria varieties if you are in Switzerland, otherwise select a potato that is more on the waxy side with less starch.

Another consideration is everyone in Switzerland seems a bit pumpkin-crazed during the month of October…and always rösti-crazed. So, as you can see, the idea to make a pumpkin rösti just works…and I have received quite a lot of requests for this recipe.

So here’s how I make enough for about two rösti:  More...

I am faced with the same question every summer, ‘I wish I could find some decent tomatoes here, where do you buy yours?’ To which I answer…and this predictably creates a confused, often contorted facial reaction, ‘The best tomatoes in Switzerland are between March and May!’

Ok, I will admit summer time is the best time for tomatoes – but only if you’re growing your own and live in an area blessed with a lot of summer sunshine. I will also admit the tomatoes I am referring to are not Swiss at all, but in fact they are Italian – and mostly from Sicily or Sardegna where the people know a thing or two about growing (and eating) tasty tomatoes.

Tomatoes need plenty of sunshine to develop their full flavor potential …and I’m not talking about the sugars which usually only account for about 3% of the total weight. No, what makes tomatoes so appealing to many are their high levels of glutamic acid – a savory acid more common to meat than plants. It is precisely this acid which creates the necessary balance of sugars and aromatic compounds. Without glutamic acid tomatoes taste…well, really bland and almost starchy.

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