Directly after a breakfast sweet breads, Umbrian ham, deep yellow yoked eggs, cappuccino and espresso we descend into the basement kitchen of the Villa Pambuffetti and meet another couple for cooking class. The class is taught by Alessandra Pambuffetti, assisted by the villa chef, Anna. We are immediately thrown into the fray. Small mounds of flour with egg whites, water and olive oil floating in the center await our mixing and kneading to make strangozzi pasta noodles. The technique is illustrated and we begin... it’s a simple procedure. We bring the ingredients together and incorporate them until they form a ball. As we begin to knead, Anna shouts “energy, energy.” We shove the dough with the balls of our hands, pull back, fold over and repeat the process, and repeat the process, and repeat the process to the sounds of “energy, energy, energy.” The dough is set to rest under glass bowls and we move on to the creation of sweet breads, cookies, bread sticks, pizza, salsa di pomadoro, stuffed zucchini and more. This is work! Soon, we have graduated to more sophisticated fare. Delicate potato crepes sauteed into golden brown disks served with a unique Béchamel sauce into which marscopone cheese, sautéed leeks and sausage have been added. It’s the Umbria version of biscuits and sausage gravy, only much lighter. We make Polpette, small meat balls rolled in bread crumbs and fried. We use the same meat mixture to make a boiled meat-loaf. We roast all kinds of vegetables, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplants, peppers, mushrooms, onions, etc. drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt, pepper and bread crumbs. Next we tackle Rocciata, an olive oil, fruit filled strudel and Ciambelline al vino e olio, oil and wine biscuits. After 3 hours of hard work we have finished and graduated. We get to keep our aprons and the food we prepared is tabled on the veranda for our lunch. It’s great. Several bottles of local wines are opened...
During a recent interview with Alessandra Pambuffetti we discovered that Italian cooking is leading the way in healthful cuisine. “Today, we use almost no animal fats and even less olive oil in preparing our traditional dishes. We rely on fresh ingredients, seasoned with herbs from our garden to bring out the flavor profile and richness of the dish”, said Alessandra. “You can have traditional flavors, healthfully prepared, by following simple steps in your preparation. Come to our cooking school and I will show you.”
Try your hand at preparing a true Umbrian Feast. Alessandra has created a complete menu for you on the next page. Or, you can take a trip to Montefalco and experience Villa Pambuffetti for yourself. You’ll thank me!
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