Our Personal Experience from Cooking Class in Catania

When we planned our Catania trip we simply felt the need to escape the Czech winter – the cold days, endless fog, and that heavy December atmosphere that slowly drains your energy. We wanted sunshine, warmth, and a place where life feels a little more alive.

Sicily quickly climbed to the top of our list, and for several good reasons. We hadn’t been to Italy in almost a year, we wanted a destination that didn’t require weeks of detailed planning, and flights from Vienna were surprisingly affordable. But most importantly, Sicily offers something we both deeply love, an irresistible mix of culture, food, and raw, beautiful nature.

We started our trip by getting into Catania, spent our first night and day in Syracuse, and then returned to Catania for the rest of the trip. Over the following days, we explored several towns, discovered natural landmarks and soaked up the sun. It didn’t rain until our very last day. 😀 

In this article, I want to focus on one of the most important things Catania has to offer – food.
Sicilian cuisine was one of the main reasons Filip was so excited about this trip in the first place. Cannoli, arancini, pizza, ravioli, wine… In Catania, and Sicily in general, going hungry is simply not an option.

That’s why we were genuinely excited when, on our last day, we were offered the chance to join a cooking class. We found it through Cesarine, and because we only started arranging it two days in advance, we especially appreciated the flexibility. 

Angela’s Home Cooking Class in Catania 

After we confirmed the cooking class, we received the address of Angela, who hosts the experience in her own home. That alone made it feel incredibly authentic. We were asked to arrive just before lunchtime, as the classes usually take place around midday, allowing you to enjoy everything you cook as a proper lunch.

When we arrived at the building, we were genuinely excited about what was about to come. We rang the doorbell, Angela opened the door, and we stepped inside. The apartment was spacious, typically Italian, and slightly older, with high ceilings and a beautiful sense of character. It was thoughtfully furnished and had a very special atmosphere.

Angela welcomed us warmly and invited us to sit in a large living room connected to the dining area. Almost immediately, she treated us to her own version of bruschetta, prepared according to her original recipe. It was topped with gorgonzola, butter, pear, raspberry, and pepper – and if I forgot any ingredient, I owe Angela an apology. We were also served good wine and water.

It was the perfect way to relax, slow down, and ease into the cooking class.

Preparing our Meals at Cooking Class 

Once we finished the bruschetta and our glasses of wine, Angela invited us into the kitchen, where we began preparing our meal. Together, we agreed on two dishes: pistachio ravioli and cannoli.

I’m vegetarian, so we arranged everything in advance to be fully vegetarian, which is also an option you can find directly on the Cesarine website.

We started by preparing the dough for the ravioli. We added flour and water into a bowl, mixed everything together, and then rolled the dough out. Angela showed us a special little trick, but in reality, it was much simpler than it looks. Once the dough was ready, we let it rest for a moment and moved on to preparing the cannoli filling.

For the filling, we simply mixed ricotta, sugar, and chocolate chips and put it together with small cannoli shells into a glass and everything went into the fridge.

After that, we returned to the dough, rolled it out again, cut out small circles, filled the ravioli, and sealed them together. The filling was simple and absolutely delicious, pistachios, ricotta, and parmesan. Very Italian, and very good.

The ravioli cooked quickly, in about two minutes. Once ready, they were topped with butter, parmesan, and crushed pistachios. Pistachios are a well-known Sicilian specialty and are used in many local dishes. 

Eating at Cooking Class 

Once everything was ready, Angela plated the food beautifully and invited us to sit down at the table. The dishes looked stunning and tasted even better than they looked. We asked Angela to join us for lunch, but she laughed and said that if she ate with every guest, she would quickly ruin her figure. 😀 

We poured ourselves another glass of wine and enjoyed a truly lovely and unhurried lunch together. It felt like a proper date, calm, present, and full of good food.

After lunch, we said goodbye to Angela and headed back into the city center for one last short walk through Catania before continuing on to the airport.

To finish, one thing worth mentioning is that all the ingredients we cooked with were organic, fresh, and made in Italy. You could taste it in every single bite.

If you’re looking for more than just restaurants and sightseeing in Catania, a cooking class like this offers deeper experience. For more information, you can easily book your own cooking class at this website  and enjoy it by yourself.