Cooking since she was four – Antonella’s lifelong passion for food

Standing on her stool, apron on and wooden spoon at the ready – Antonella eagerly watched her mother roll out the dough, flour flying everywhere.

Antonella was only 4-years-old when her mum showed her how to make fresh pasta in their kitchen in Treviso, Italy – but from that moment she was hooked.

“I loved being in the kitchen, mum taught me to cook instead of me going to kindergarten,” Antonella recalls.

Her passion for food stuck with Antonella as she moved from cooking for her family to cooking for friends at university in Venice.

After completing her degree, Antonlla pursued her business accounting career from Italy to London, where she met her husband Philip. But she never forgot her first love – cooking, and spent all her free time experimenting with recipes.

“I did courses in everything from Indian, Thai, Mexican, Chinese – I wanted to explore different ingredients and try new cuisines,” Antonella said.

While working as a financial analyst at a bank in London in 2004, Antonella decided she’d had enough and it was time to follow her real passion.

She and Philip found an 18th century farmhouse on the hillside in Veneto, Italy which they bought and restored to maintain its original charm.

“We started having friends out for holidays, I’d cook for them and it was so much fun. They adored the house and area as much as us,’’ Antonella said.

Soon Antonella began hosting her cooking classes for friends and word quickly spread. With no more than six guests per group, she started taking people from all over the world into her home and teaching them the traditional techniques she’d learnt from her mother and from her own experimenting.

From complete food novices through to Michelin star chefs wanting to learn traditional techniques, 18-year-olds to 80-year-olds; the people that go on the course are always a mix and Antonella says that is one of the biggest highlights.

“I love doing hands-on teaching and sharing my passion with others. It’s amazing watching everyone come together and getting inspired by food, having fun and really feeling at home.

“We’ve made so many friends for life now – from the couple who came here as friends then returned a few years later to get married here, to a woman who has gone on to start her own cooking courses in England, we love being a part of their stories!” Antonella said.

Want to know more?
Read a day in the life of Antonella here
Discover Antonella’s fantastic Italian cooking and wine holiday in Venice
Find out what his holiday is really like from a recent guest review
Discover some of Antonella’s popular recipes our other chef’s recipes here