My Granny's secrets: Making pasta in the heart of Verona

My young family went to Verona to celebrate my husband‘s and my ten year wedding anniversary. My husband knew I have been wanting to take a pasta making class for a long time and tried to book a class for us with MANY other people. They were either very far from the city center, would not allow our small children, or canceled because they didn’t have enough people signed up for the class. We were very discouraged when we came across Valli. She responded very quickly to our questions, welcomed our children, and happily accommodated our dietary restrictions. We were able to book quickly and finally take a class. While there, Valli was absolutely lovely. She was amazing with our children, keeping them engaged and excited and sparked their love of learning. She was a wealth of knowledge and patience. At the end, she prepared a beautiful and delicious meal and we truly felt by the end that we were just having dinner with old friends. Even my toddler who is usually very shy of people was playing happily with her partner, who my kids adored, and Spillo the cat, who they also adored. I cannot recommend her experience enough. If you would like to learn not just about the food but also the culture and the heart of Italy, she is the one you want.

Had an amazing evening learning to make pasta with Valli. We instantly felt at home in her cosy apartment and even got to make friends with her cat. She was a great teacher and very patient with us. We had a 3 course meal, making tagliatelle and chocolate ravioli, followed by individual tiramisus and plenty of wine to wash it down with. Her partner joined us for dinner and he even sang me ‘Happy Birthday’ in Italian! We left with our own pasta cutter and recipe and satisfied tummies. Would 100% recommend this experience.

My husband and I had been looking forward to taking this class for weeks, and Valli did not disappoint! She welcomed us into her home and taught us many of her granny’s traditional pasta-making approaches as well as some of her new and creative recipes and approaches. She gave us the confidence to make pasta from scratch for our friends and family. All in all, it was a wonderful session and we highly recommended it to others!

Our pasta making experience with Valentina and her boyfriend, Davide, was extraordinary! We were a group of 7 - 4 adults and 3 children (ages 7-10) - and we all had such a wonderful time. Valentina and Davide were so patient with our children and provided instructions that they could follow with ease. They were fully engaged throughout the entire experience and are so eager to try making pasta now that we are home. It was one of the highlights of our trip to Italy; I highly recommend this experience!