Black Friday Weekend Gift Certificate Sale... Save $10!

Here's a special Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale for that perfect holiday gift: until Monday November 26 at 11:59 pm, you can save $10 on all purchases of gift certificates valued at $120. In other words, pay $110, and we'll automatically upgrade the value of your purchase to $120, allowing the recipient to attend a more expensive class at no additional charge. The same applies if you buy 2, 3, or 4 (or however many) gift certificates: we'll add $10 to each certificate you purchase between today and Monday. You can buy the gift certificate here and we'll email it to you within hours of your purchase.

Hands-On Cooking Classes in NYC

Learn to cook a classic Milanese holiday menu featuring fresh focaccia, stuffed veal bundles, handmade gnocchi, rum-spiked tiramisu, and more at a fun-filled hands-on cooking class December 7 at 6pm!

This class sold out so quickly that we added a second date just to accommodate our waitlist! Don't wait too long to sign up... The menu for this Milanese class incorporates many luxurious ingredients that are sure to make your dinner guests feel pampered: creamy Mascarpone cheese; aged Grana Padano, Lombardy's cousin of Parmigiano; tender veal scaloppine; and the season's most emblematic sweet bread, panettone, baked in Milan since the 1400s. Our Milanese feast begins with homemade focaccia baked under a cloak of Mascarpone cheese, caramelized onions, and bacon with just a whisper of nutmeg; this is one of our favorite ways to enjoy focaccia (keep in mind we bake dozens of varieties of focaccia, so that's actually saying a lot). We'll serve our focaccia with a refreshing salad of baby greens tossed with balsamic vinegar and fruity olive oil. Next up: Thin veal scaloppine rolled around a savory cheese and Pancetta stuffing are just lovely slow-cooked with a splash of white wine and a hint of tomatoes until melt-in-the-mouth tender. We'll accompany our veal with slow-cooked spinach and handmade herb-laced gnocchi. To top it all off, a perfectly seasonal tiramisu: flavored with chocolate, layered with panettone instead of ladyfingers, this rum-spiked beauty will win a place on your yearly holiday table.

Menu, December 7:

Caramelized Onion-, Bacon- & Mascarpone-Topped Focaccia over Baby Greens
Stuffed Veal Bundles in Delicate White Wine-Tomato Glaze
Slow-Cooked Spinach with Nutmeg & Parmigiano
Chive-Scented Ricotta Gnocchi in Aromatic Sage Butter
Decadent Rum & Chocolate Tiramisu

This hands-on cooking class lasts from 6PM to 9PM. The cost is $110 per person and includes a full dinner paired with wine. Be sure to sign up here before class sells out or call 917-602-1519.

And we are also very excited about our Fresh Pasta Workshop on December 22 at 12pm... In this class, we'll learn to make three very different pastas from three northern Italian regions, and pair each with their ideal sauce. From Emilia, the heartland of fresh egg pasta, silky tagliatelle in a rich, slow-cooked ragu bolognese. From Lombardy, my mom's foolproof potato gnocchi in a decadent Gorgonzola sauce, a family favorite since I could barely talk. From Liguria, plump ravioli filled with a medley of greens, served with a creamy walnut pesto. And to round out the meal, we'll enjoy a refreshing salad and some homemade biscotti... You can sign up here for our Fresh Pasta Workshop.

We've also posted our online class calendar through February 2013 here.

Private Cooking Parties & Team-Building Events NYC

For those of you still looking for a memorable holiday celebration (whether for work, friends, or family) this season, consider a private cooking party. Parties can be held in the daytime or evening and last 3 hours, and the cost is just $162 per person inclusive of gratuity. And the best part: you get to pick the menu you want, and you can add on a wine tasting if you are really into wine! There are still a few dates available in December (though not for long!). We've even created a chocolate lover's dream event: a hands-on cooking class followed by dinner, a wine tasting, and a chocolate tasting... Call 917-602-1519 to inquire about availability for your private cooking event. Our corporate clients include A & E Television Network, Unilever, Google, Colgate Palmolive, Credit Suisse, David Yurman, Newsweek, Victoria's Secret, NBC, and many more... Click here for more on our clients and testimonials.

Here's what a client recently said about his company's team-building event at RUSTICO COOKING: "We had a great time yesterday. Your loft is amazing. Your staff is fantastic (and Gerry was a lot of fun). I wasn't really sure what to expect but you exceeded all expectations. I will highly recommend you to my colleagues and will look to visit you again. Thank you for a wonderful team building experience!" Frank M., Wells Fargo

We look forward to cooking with you soon!

Micol Negrin & Dino De Angelis

And why not forward this email newsletter to your food-loving friends? The more people around our kitchen table, the better!

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New Recipes

We've added 2 delicious new recipes to our site: a hearty minestrone from Friuli and a succulent pot roast. Let us know which dishes you prepare! These are perfect recipes for entertaining. And consult our complete recipe index here.

Here are links to this month's recipes: