Presenting Puglia
Corigliano d’Otranto, Puglia

Special Italian Language Immersion Week, July 11-17, 2010.
Featured sweepstakes prize of Ste. Michelle Wine Estates, 2009.

About the location: Known as “the heel of Italy,” Puglia (also known as Apulia), is one of the first parts of Italy inhabited since ancient times. Due to its temperate climate, it is a highly fertile region, producing the largest amount of olive oil and wine in Italy, and boasts a year-round abundance of fruits and vegetables. Lecce and Bari are two of the region’s larger and more lively cities.

Approximately half an hour from Lecce lies the wonderful Baroque city known as the “Southern Florence“— the small village of Corigliano d’Otranto, just a few minutes from the unbelievable beaches of Otranto and the location of the Masseria Appidè. In ancient times, the Saracen pirates often attacked this land, and as a result, people lived in small farms protected by walls, which were called masserie fortificate. Masseria Appidè is an 18th-century rural estate located in the heart of Salento. The word “Appidè” derives from the Greek, used in this Hellenic area to describe the local wild pear trees, which grew spontaneously in the area. Today the Masseria Appidé is a deluxe complex in which the past goes on living, alongside with all modern comforts and amenities, including a lovely outdoor pool immersed in verdant gardens.

About the cooking lessons: Your hands-on culinary courses will be led by Chef Leonardo Spagnolo, who has been the head chef of Masseria Appidè for over 16 years. He claims the secrets to his success are few: the rediscovery of ancient recipes of the Apulian tradition, religiously prepared with the best and freshest ingredients, reinterpreted with a creative touch, and served in an artistic manner. The bounty of a particular plate for Chef Spagnolo lies exclusively in the quality of the products used to prepare it, and a prefect cuisine exalts the flavors of simple Apulian ingredients such as the famous extra-virgin olive oil, while being enhanced by pairing with the intense local wines. A mix of colors, flavors and aromas, Chef Spagnolo’s classes focus on typical regional recipes that his students will be able to replicate at home: simple, fresh preparations that are faithful to the local culinary traditions, but bear the chef’s delicate and imaginative innovations.

You will discover the magic of traditional Apulian homemade pastas (sagne incannulate, maccheroni, orecchiette, ravioli), which are usually prepared with a simple sauce of fiercely flavorful local tomatoes and fresh sheep’s-milk cheese. The traditional second courses are succulent meat dishes, followed by regional desserts such as pasticciotto (a type of cream-filled shortbread) and fruttone (shortbread with chocolate, marzipan, and candied fruit). Chef Spagnolo will teach gourmets and gluttons alike how to recreate a little corner of authentic Puglia in their own kitchens.