Holiday itinerary
This incredible cookery holiday, set in an unspoilt natural park in an alpine Andalucian desert, celebrates the culinary flavours and culture of Spain and North Africa.
You will stay in an extraordinary eco-guesthouse, while immersing yourself in creative cooking and local culture in this unforgettable cookery holiday.
Your tutor Donna is a friendly cook who will teach you traditional cooking methods of the region. Being an artist, she also puts a lot of emphasis on inventive and creative food presentation making this the perfect course for those who want their food to look as delicious as it tastes. Under her guidance you will discover the fantastic tastes of the region, as well as experiencing the local Spanish culture.
Using local and seasonal produce you will create delicacies such as paella and traditional cheese. Not to forget, you will have the amazing opportunity to make flat bread over the ‘asador’. Combined with visits to wonderful nearby villages and meetings with local food producers including visiting the village that produces Jamon Iberico you will get a unique insight to the culture of the region.
The course is designed around an outstanding designer creative eco-retreat with a warm atmosphere. As the retreat hosts other courses too, you will improve your dinner party skills as you often will cook appetizing dinners for everyone at the retreat.
Enjoy wonderful food and a creative atmosphere in breath-taking rural Andalucian surroundings, for a cookery holiday with a difference.
Suitability
- Suitable for all levels of cooks including complete beginners
- Minimum age: 10 (under 18’s are accepted only if accompanied by an adult)
Travelling Solo?
- This wonderful cookery holiday is perfect for solo travellers and in fact, most people do travel independently which makes this a great singles holiday as it is the perfect opportunity to meet like-minded people
- The retreat where the cooking takes place is dedicated to creative pursuits and there may be others there who are taking part in painting and photography holidays at the same time as well as resident artists who are working on new paintings, sculptures or installations giving you access to professional artists as well as budding amatuers which makes for a great sociable experience
- All guests will be allocated a lovely private room with well-appointed en-suite for NO single supplement
Non Cooking Partner Or Partner Interested In Photography Or Painting?
- Non-cooking partners sharing a room are welcome and will receive a discounted price, click on the costing and extras tab to see the price
- Or, if your friend/partner are interested in photography or painting, we can offer a photography or painting course to run alongside the cookery so you can both enjoy different pursuits in the same location
Cookery Holiday Start Days
- This 6 night/7 day holiday runs on request throughout the year and you can arrive any day of the week you choose
- If you can’t find the dates you want online, please email your ideal arrival date to or call us on 08456250445 and we’ll do what we can to accommodate you
- Please note that there are no minimum numbers on the course so if we confirm a date to you, it will definitely go ahead
Cookery Holiday Itinerary
Please note this itinerary is an example only and may change slightly due to time of year and the weather conditions.
Day 1 - Arrival day
- Check in any-time after 2pm (earlier arrivals may be accommodated on request)
- Later you will receive a welcome drink and an introduction to the holiday by your friendly hosts, Simon and Donna
- Take the rest of the day to settle in, relax or maybe stroll around the retreat taking in the stunning surroundings of the Natural Park
- As the retreat is situated in a very rural location, all of the resources are eco-friendly and Simon is always keen to explain the ecology systems employed at the house and will happily show you around
- For dinner you will enjoy a delicious evening meal introducing the traditional flavours of the area for your first look at the culinary delights that you’ll experience during the week
Day 2 – Meet the producers of Jamon and first cooking lesson
- Enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the morning at the retreat
- After breakfast you will make a morning visit to one of the local mountain villages renowned for its production of Jamón Ibérico to meet the local producer
- You will then visit a traditional secadero (drying house) for a chorizo and jamón Ibérico tasting and you’ll also have the chance to buy your own delicious ham to take home with you if you wish
- Lunch is not included today and is charged at an extra (budget around 20 Euros depending on how much you eat) and will be a selection of local tapas in a neighbouring ‘white’ village beneath the shadow of a magnificent Renaissance castle
- After the lunch meal you return to the guesthouse to relax after your filling lunch before starting you first cooking lesson
- You will then have your first cooking class. An example dish is
a traditional rich Spanish casserole made from garbanzos (chick peas), vegetables and enriched with jamón, morcilla or chorizo
- Enjoy the fruits of your labour tonight for dinner accompanied by local wines and soft drinks
Day 3 – Market vist and wood fired oven cooking
- Again, enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the morning
- After breakfast you will pay a visit with your hosts to a colourful local market to buy ingredients for this afternoon’s cooking lesson
- You’ll also have the chance to meet local producers at the market to learn a little more about the local food traditions
- After the morning excursion, return to the guesthouse for lunch
- For the rest of the afternoon gather around the wonderful ‘asador’ and wood burning range where you will learn to cook a variety of traditional dishes all infused with the flavours of the burning almond and olive wood
- The dishes you learn to cook today will introduce you to the North African flavours closely associated with southern Spain’s gastronomy and Donna will talk you through how these came to be
- Tonight’s dinner will be tasting the delicious wood fired oven cooked dishes you’ve learnt to cook
Day 4 – Learn about culinary herbs, preserving food, paella and cheese making
- Enjoy a leisurely breakfast at the eco-guesthouse in the morning
- Following breakfast you will meet a local Botanical expert who will share knowledge of aromatic herbs of the natural park’s Botanical Gardens (if you wish and weather permits, you can also take part in a culinary themed walk in the mountains)
- Lunch will be at an open air ‘asador’ in the forest nearby where you will dine with local Spanish families to really get a ‘taste of the place’ (lunch today is not included in the price, budget around 20 Euros)
- Returning to the guesthouse, you will have a practical demonstration and tasting of preserving olives and other foods such as lemons and pimientos
- After the preserving demonstration, the first stage of traditional local cheese making will begin and you’ll watch its progress during the week before enjoying the cheese when its ready at the end of the week
- Don’t fill up too much on the olives, cheese and pimientos as you’ll be moving onto a wonderful paella cooking class where you’ll learn to cook a traditional Paella in one big pan together, which will then be served for dinner
Day 5 – Foraging walk and Mezze cooking
- Enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the morning
- After breakfast you’ll head out for your foraging lesson as you take a morning walk around the natural park to learn about nature’s free offerings and collect ingredients for the afternoons cooking lesson
- Note: foraging may not yield too many ingredients at certain times of the year
- After your walk, return to the retreat for a delicious and relaxing lunch before spending the afternoon exploring the world of Mezze, a traditional style of food influenced by the eastern Mediterranean
- This will be a fun improvisational cooking class creating all sorts of delights to be enjoyed and celebrated for your evening meal
Day 6 – Flat bread making and eating the cheese
- Enjoy a leisurely breakfast in the morning
- Breakfast is followed by a bread making class where you will learn how to make a medley of flat bread dishes, combining ingredients such as spinach with walnuts and cheese as well as a variety of other stuffed flat breads, with combinations of cured meats, local vegetables and an array of spices to compliment these ingredients
- As well as baking these in the oven of the beautiful wood burning stove some will be thrown into the ashes of the ‘asador’ to bake and create an amazing flavour
- Lunch will be a celebration of these and extended to include the unwrapping and tasting of the cheeses made earlier in the week
- In the afternoon you can either relax or take a walk in the lovely hills nearby
- During your final night you will enjoy a celebratory farewell dinner where the wine will be free flowing and you’ll reflect on the week’s culinary journey
Day 7 – Departure day
- After breakfast, check-out of your room ready for departure taking home with you new cooking skills and an insight to Spanish culture that will stay with you long after the holiday is over
What Will I Learn On This Cookery Holiday?
- Your cooking lessons will focus on gastronomy of Southern Spain with a North African influence and as Donna has travelled extensively through India, you may also find some Indian influences throughout the cooking you experience
- You’ll fully immerse yourself in the food culture of the region through chorizo and jamón Ibérico tastings, market visits and meetings with local food producers to really get a taste for this area of Southern Spain for both a culinary and cultural experience
- You’ll cook a wide variety of dishes, such as paella, Spanish casseroles and Mezze, as well as trying improvisational cooking
- You will learn to cook traditional dishes over a fire of almond and olive wood around the ‘Asador’ and will learn how the woods can help flavour your food
- After your walk with the Botanical expert, you’ll gain an insight into the wild aromatic herbs from the area
- You’ll also learn to forage for food and to see what ‘free’ ingredients this area of Spain has to offer
- You’ll also learn about preserving olives, lemons and pimientos
- There will be a cheese making demonstration as you learn to make cheese using traditional methods
- You will be taught the art of making flat bread in the wood burning stove or in the ‘asador’ as well as making Anatolian stuffed flat breads with combinations of cured meats, local vegetables and spices
- As your tutor Donna is a trained artist, your food will look every bit as delicious on the plate as it tastes as Donna will teach you the art of gorgeous food presentation
- You will also improve your dinner party cooking skills significantly as you will cook for all guests at the retreat (typically 6-10 people)
- You will get an insight into the culinary culture and everyday life of the region
Sample Menus
Please note that dishes vary according to season, but might include:
- Spanish casserole made from chick peas, vegetables and enriched with jamón, morcilla or chorizo
- Paella
- Mezze, a traditional style of food influenced by the eastern Mediterranean
- Traditional local hand-made cheeses
- Flat bread dishes including Anatolian stuffed flat breads
- Pan con tomate
About Your Tutor And Cook
- Donna is from the UK and since moving out to Spain several years ago has continued her passion for cooking good food using local, seasonal ingredients for the guests at the eco-guest house
- She has decided to share her extensive knowledge of Spanish and North African food and the area with guests on this unique culinary and cultural cookery holiday
- During her extensive travels in Europe, India and North Africa she has learnt to cook ‘like the locals’, which will influence the cooking classes in this holiday and her style of tuition is fun, relaxed and laid back as she shares her experience and wonderful easy way of cooking
- Donna is also an accomplished artist who values the creative elements of cooking, such as the presentation of the food and you can be assured that your food will look every bit as tempting on the plate as it tastes
Eco-designer Accommodation
- You’ll spend 6 nights in a stunning designer eco-retreat set in a rural area of extreme natural beauty in the heart of the 'Parque Natural Sierra Maria-Los Velez'
- As you drive over the hill, this incredibly beautiful guesthouse will emerge almost like an oasis with almond trees to one side, beautiful poppies and wild flowers to another, verdant hills and mountains and desert scenes all encompased in this undiscovered natural park
- This really is an eco-family refuge far from the noise of any city or town set in
- Here the night sky is unpolluted by metropolitan light, on summer nights you can gaze at the stars for hours
- In the daytime the air is hot and suffused with the pungent scent of pine trees
- Skies are nearly always blue and sunlight is bountiful and with long warm days
- The 'carbon neutral' designer eco-guesthouse sitting within the national park is surrounded by 50 acres of land which is arable, almond and pine as well as an olive grove and orchard
- Heat and light from the sun, thermal winds and wood from the land combine in a system of solar panels, wind mills and fires to cook and create energy
- Rain water is harvested from the roof, waste water is managed and utilised through a system of reed beds and a grey water recovery system is used to irrigate the dry land
- However, being environmentally and socially responsible needn't compromise design and the house where you’ll stay was once 5 old farm houses, now converted into one very beautiful and luxurious eco-chic space all with the tiny touches from the artist owners that makes this really something special
- On the one hand great homage and respect has been given in its restoration to the simple vernacular architecture of the building, and on the other hand a crisp eye for detail has been employed which makes the place seem stunningly modern
- There are 6 large double rooms, 2 of which are twins and 2 with disability access, all rooms have beautiful designer en suite bathrooms with large wet rooms
- You may check in any-time after 2pm on your arrival day (earlier check-in’s are possible on request) and check out is by noon 7 days later
- As the school also offers painting and photography holidays, you can expect student from these courses to stay in the house at the same time as you
- The dinners you make during cooking classes will often be enjoyed by everyone in the retreat giving you the confidence to cook for a large dinner party sized group
Meals
- Breakfast will be typically Spanish style along with breads, tomato, cereals and fresh fruits and is included daily
- Lunch will be either at the house or at another location, such as in an ‘asador’ in a nearby forest or tapas in a neighbouring village beneath a Renaissance castle
- Please note that lunch on days 2 and 4 will be at an extra cost (budget around 20 Euros per day for this)
- Dinner will be taken at the guesthouse every night and typically consist of the fruits of your cooking classes and will be enjoyed with the rest of the retreat’s guests
- The food is simple and infused with the flavours of Donna’s travels to India and North Africa as well as Spain
- Vegetarians are welcome
- Note that if you have any other special dietary requirements these might be difficult to cater for as the retreat is located in a remote location (please add your requirements to the special request box at the time of booking)
Travel To The Eco-Guesthouse
- Please note that this retreat is in an extremely rural location of natural beauty, around 20 minutes drive from the nearest village with no public transport
- Although rural, this does add to the beauty of the place
- If you choose not to drive, we strongly recommend you pre-book the private taxi transfer
- If you would like, you can take the bus from the airport (takes 2-3 hours depending on what airport you fly into) and your host Simon will collect you from the local village 20 minutes away for a nominal fee which is to cover the cost of petrol
- You can pre-book a transfer when you book or if you want to take the public bus to keep costs low, you can contact your host Simon once you’ve booked to arrange a pick-up time and so on
Discover the tastes and culture of Spain and North Africa, while staying in a unique eco-lodge on this cookery holiday with a difference.