Italian cooking class! Trip advisor has been an excellent source of information for this trip, that is where I discovered information about a cooking class run by a local chef in a remote village that had rave reviews and was an absolute bargain - €38 for the class, wine and lunch, most of the classes in Tuscany and amalfi are €200 for a day! The chef moreno was a hoot, very Italian and full of great one liners. He showed us how to make tortellini from scratch, and we all had a go making the shapes. Our tortellini was filled with potato cheese and herbs and he made a simple tomato leek and thyme sauce. Next recipe light pillowy potato gnocchi in a gorgonzola sauce. Finally a perfect porcini and apple risotto. There were 16 of us, one Australian, 2 Brits the rest American, a great crowd and a fun way to spend the day. The class was in a tiny village above varenna, it was a precarious drive up and down the sheer mountain face but the views were incredible from the sleepy little village.

There was not much left of the day by the time I got back to my part of the lake, and then it was time for chef tys vegetable based dinner! The menu tonight - celery stuffed with gorgonzola and walnut sauce, black rice with eggplant, ricotta and tomato sauce, zucchini and mint quiche and a coffee opera slice covered in melted chocolate! Dinner was a large communal affair between 10 of us staying at the hotel and it was midnight when it all finished, lots of fun. All of us are moving on tomorrow but I have been lucky to have such a great group of people staying at the hotel. Cannot possibly eat or drink another thing......