An Italian Culinary Retreat with The Effortless Kitchen

The Ultimate Foodie Experience

Our group of 16 with the town of Carunchio behind us and the Palazzo at the very top of the hill!

I had this idea to join my love of travel and food and create an experience for people to go on a culinary trip with me. My goal was to bring a group of people to a region of Italy and explore that area’s food and food culture through cooking class and food excursions. I thought that we could connect based on this shared experience and common goal. All of this happened and more!

My dream became a reality in November 2022, when I brought a group of 16 foodies, including my mother, to Abruzzo, Italy for a 6 night all inclusive culinary retreat. It was better than anything I could have envisioned.

We met at the Rome airport and introductions were made. Most people did not know each other except for the gathering we had on Zoom before the trip to meet and cook my famous bolognese together. We were picked up by our driver and were whisked away to Abruzzo which is about 3 hours east of Rome, very close to the Adriatic Sea.

Our bus made its way up to the top of the small hill town called Carunchio to the Palazzo that would be our home for the next 6 nights. We were greeted at the door by the owner, Massimo, and we gathered around the main floor for our debriefing and ice breaker. I could tell in that moment that Massimo is a great host and group facilitator and that we would be in good hands. He showed us to our rooms and we got settled in before dinner. We were all staying on the second floor in spacious rooms with high ceilings and renovated en suite bathrooms. 

We went downstairs to the dining room for dinner and with little expectations were blown away by our first meal. Massimo explains each course as it is served and educates on local ingredients used. Truffles and mushrooms were on the menu and it was a decadent and delicious 3 course meal with all the red wine we could ever want to drink. Sitting around a large table and having conversations about life and food was exactly what I wanted. We were off to a great start and I was happy know that the chef who cooked our dinner would also be teaching our cooking classes. I was already planning on heading back here with another group in July 2023, but just one meal and I knew I made the right decision. 

With a daily agenda on the chalkboard we knew what to expect every day. On our first full day we sat down to a family style breakfast and incredible cappuccinos. We hopped in the vans and headed out to the olive grove and olive oil factory. Before we left town, we stopped at the bottom of the hill to take in the view of the town of Carunchio, the palazzo at the top of the hill and the view of the mountains in the distance. These were things we could not see upon arrival in the dark the night before. Most rooms at the palazzo have incredible views too!

At the olive grove we saw how olives grow on the trees, we learned how they are harvested and pressed into olive oil and then we had a tasting. It was way better than any olive oil I have had before and we were all pleased we could shop there to bring some home. We headed back to the palazzo to enjoy a 3 course lunch. This was a special lunch. We were introduced to the locally grown dried pepper called pepe trito which would make an appearance more than once during our stay. On this day, it was infused with garlic and oil and tossed with spaghetti and topped with buttery breadcrumbs. So simple and epitomizes the beauty of Italian food. We then had a wild boar dish and the crowning glory dessert of a chocolate tart and a wine poached pear which was out of this world good. 

We had some downtime for the afternoon and some people went to their rooms for a nap, some when for a walk, some relaxed outside taking in the gorgeous view and others scattered around the various sitting areas to read. 

This night was our first cooking class and we eagerly went down to the enormous teaching kitchen in the basement and met Chef Dino. Tonight’s menu was peasant food- prosciutto and arugula rollups to start, stuffed eggplant for the main course and amaretto cookies with lemon sorbet for dessert. Our class was a combination of full participation hands on instruction and demo based instruction with one or two of us helping. Dino has a huge personality and a huge love of food and food history. He not only taught us how to cook the dishes but talked about the history of the dish and local ingredients. Once we were done cooking we gathered around the large table we used to prep the ingredients and had a lovely three course meal made by all of us!

Our gnocchi lunch dining al fresco

The next day was a morning cooking class after breakfast. THIS was the most favorite class for everyone in the group. We made gnocchi with a sausage ragu and tiramisu for dessert. The gnocchi were not as hard to make as everyone had anticipated and were so light and flavored by that delicious sauce. The meal was enhanced by our dining spot outside with a view of the mountains. We were fortunate to have mild weather for our week. The wine and conversations were flowing and people were starting to make real lifelong connections.

We were very full and were treated to a free afternoon to wander around or do whatever we wanted. Some opted to have massages at the new spa connected to the palazzo. We were gearing up for our wine lesson in the evening. I think we were all surprised to find that Massimo was our instructor as he is a certified sommelier. After our wine education we remained around the dining room table for dinner. We had bruschetta and frittata followed by a traditional mushroom soup. Have I mentioned that the food is outstanding?!?

That night we stayed seated around the table and had more red wine while my mother led a game of trivia. She came prepared with index cards of questions she had used for a women’s lunch earlier in the year. It was a great and really funny way to end the day and brought the group even closer together. When one of the questions is “Which country has the largest festival dedicated to the penis”, you know it was a good time. 

The next day was our outing to Vasto. Vasto is a town right on the Adriatic Sea with an area that is seasonal for Summer beach goers and the main town where the locals live. We arrived shortly after breakfast and since Massimo grew up in Vasto, he gave us a great guided tour of town and one of the many churches. After the tour, we had an hour to walk around and shop before we headed to a restaurant overlooking the Sea for a three course seafood lunch. All was delicious but the pasta with shellfish was incredible and you could not beat the view. 

Back at the palazzo, we had some downtime before dinner. Massages, walks, naps etc were happening. I opted for a massage and it was so worth it. Highly recommend if you join me on the next retreat. 

The palazzo has a nice little bar where we can gather before and after dinner and a separate room with couches and games to hang in at night. Carunchio is a small town and there is not much to do at night so we were the “party”. It was great to be able to chat about the day, but also be able to head to your room for some down time or an early night. As the week went on the bar became more crowded as we realized those limoncello martinis were not to be missed. 

A day trip to Vasto with our swag bags a new found furry friend!

On our second to last day, we had our third cooking class. Another peasant food specialty of cheese balls in a pepper and onion broth and biscotti Abruzzesi. Those cheese balls were another group favorite, were not hard to make and were ridiculously good. The pepper and onion broth they were cooked and served in made them a little soft and reminded me of matzo balls, just very flavorful matzo balls. This is the dish the group chose to recreate when we had our reunion Zoom cooking class. The biscotti were so good and tender that more than a couple of us were stuffing our pockets and bras (well just one of us) to eat later in the day. This meal was eaten al fresco on a beautiful sunny day!

Afternoon downtime and massages were followed by dinner of a risotto appetizer and a wild boar entree and plenty of red wine. 

The unforgettable Bell Foundry tour

Our last day was an outing to Agnone to tour a cheese factory and then a bell foundry. We saw how the mozzarella is made by the machines and packaged, tasted mini mozzarella balls and saw the refrigerated cheese room where the caciocavallo cheese is stored. Next stop was the bell foundry where we learned about how bells are made and where they end up, some at the Vatican and churches all around the world. Everyone loved this tour as we had never seen anything like it. We finished the excursion with sausage and swiss chard sandwiches and beer/wine at a local shop. We were all eager to return for the pizza party that night.

The pizza party was a huge surprise and an amazing send off. Not only did we each get to make a pizza with custom toppings and taste it all….incredible, but we got serenaded by the family and multiple musicians. It was fun and festive and a great way to end the stay at our retreat. It made us not want to leave such a warm and inviting place. 

Unfortunately it was time to leave. The next morning, we loaded onto the bus after finishing our breakfast and headed back to Rome. A few of us spent the day in Rome and had a delightful dinner at my favorite restaurant before flying out the next day. I will have a blog post coming about this restaurant and manifesting.

This trip was so incredible for everyone who decided to go with me. We all had fun, made connections, ate great food and saw a region of Italy that we had never seen before. The shared experience made it that much better. I have heard all sorts of rave reviews including  “10 out of 5 stars”, “trip of a lifetime”, and “outstanding, well planned experience”. It was so good that I am heading back there again in July with another group of hungry foodie travelers. Here is the link to the trip so you can see the details and read the testimonials from the last trip. I hope you will join me on this fun and delicious adventure. Whether you are traveling solo, with a partner, parent, son/daughter, sister or friend, you are going to have a good time.

See you in the kitchen or on a food adventure!

Debbie