Tuscan Comfort Food Cooking Class in NYC!

Learn to make fresh pasta, succulent pork chops, creamy polenta, a moist orange cake, and more in this one time-only Tuscan cooking class on February 3 at 6pm!

This is the ultimate cooking class for anyone hungry for soul-satisfying comfort food. On a cold winter night, nothing is as heart-warming as a delectable homemade dinner paired with fabulous wines. Our menu will begin with homemade spaghetti, made from scratch and tossed with a fragrant sauce of slow-roasted fennel, garlic, and tomatoes. As a main course, we'll cook smoked pork chops with olives, fennel seeds, garlic, and white wine, just the way the Tuscan farmers have done for centuries, so they emerge tender and juicy. We'll stuff baby zucchini with a delicious mix of herbs and cheese, and slow-cook polenta to complement our pork chops. And for dessert, we'll whip up a delectable Tuscan orange and lemon cake, so delicious topped with a warm berry sauce.

Menu, February 3:

Homemade Spaghetti with Caramelized Fennel & Tomatoes
Smoked Pork Chops with Olives & White Wine
Stuffed Zucchini with Herbs & Parmigiano
Old-Fashioned Polenta with Sage & Nutmeg
Tuscan Double-Citrus Cake with Warm Berry Sauce

This cooking class lasts from 6PM to 9:00PM. 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.

This year, why not treat your Valentine to a delicious cooking class... join us for our fourth annual Valentine's Cooking Class on February 14 at 6:30pm, featuring five amazingly luxurious (and quite possibly aphrodisiac) recipes. We'll cook with asparagus, wild mushrooms, chili peppers, fresh herbs, chocolate, and more, creating a delectable meal that will leave your loved one smiling long after the last bite has been devoured. We'll begin this heavenly meal with a stunning starter: homemade pasta sauced with slow-roasted asparagus and shiitake mushrooms. Next, we'll stuff filets of branzino (aka Mediterranean sea bass) with sweet peppers and scallions, and serve the resulting bundles with a delectable pesto of our own making, lovely with a side of roasted fennel and spicy smashed potatoes. For dessert, we'll whip up the ultimate chocolate dessert: a sinfully rich molten chocolate cake. Note: This class is open to couples only... the class cost includes admission for 2 people with 2 aprons, finger foods and Prosecco wine reception, hands-on cooking, and a seated dinner with wine. (Note: Gift certificates are not redeemable towards this class.) This class is heavily wait-listed every year, so don't wait to sign up! You can reserve here for our Valentine's Cooking Class.

We've also posted our online class calendar through March 2014 here.

Private Cooking Parties & Team-Building Events NYC

For those of you looking for a memorable team-building event, bachelorette party, or birthday celebration, 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! 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, HBO, 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 her team-building event at RUSTICO COOKING: "Thank you so much. Everyone had a terrific time and we especially appreciated Elizabeth's expertise and team-building spirit. We particularly enjoyed doing things together, rather than in isolated smaller teams. The food was delicious, and thank you for making the gluten-free substitutions." Karen A., Rockefeller Brothers Fund

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 based on savory focaccia dough to our site: one topped with caramelized onions and bacon, the other with sundried tomatoes and olives. Let us know which you prepare! And consult our complete recipe index here.

Here are links to this month's recipes: