Find Culinary Inspiration with ZTastyLife!
Benvenuti!
Italian food is often stereotyped, but the true soul of Italy’s culinary heritage is regional, layered, and rich with history. What if you could go beyond the familiar and taste the real, old, and bold flavors—where every dish holds a story?
In my cucina, flour-dusted counters meet ancestral memory. I come from a family of cooks and cook-book writers. Around the counter, we cook with our hands, listen with our hearts, and taste with curiosity. Rooted in my Italian heritage, I bring cooking to life through hands-on classes and market-to-table experiences.
Together, we’ll explore the full spectrum of Italian food traditions—from the humble wisdom of cucina povera, where nothing is wasted and flavor is born of necessity, to the layered richness of golden timbales once prepared for feasts and festivals.
I’m looking for curious and hungry souls—friends, couples, families, small teams—who crave more than just a recipe: they crave an immersive experience.
This is food as story.
Food as ritual.
Food as a way home.
The table is set. Come gather.
—Amelia
Z Tasty Life
P.s. Take a look at my food photography portfolio and visit my food-focused Instagram, ztastylife.eats
I. PRE-DESIGNED CULINARY EXPERIENCES
Pasta 101: The Foundations
Pasta 201: The Art of Filled Pasta
Step into the rhythm of tradition as we knead, roll, and shape two classic pasta doughs by hand—just as my nonne taught me:
- Flour + water (a rustic southern dough)
- Flour + eggs (a rich northern dough)
We’ll explore simple shaping techniques and prepare a fresh tomato sauce.
We’ll explore traditional shaping techniques that reflect Italy’s regional diversity, such as Orecchiette (Puglia), Cavatelli (Molise), Scialatielli (Campania), Tagliatelle, Fettuccine or pappardelle (Emilia-Romagna)
Then we’ll gather around the table to enjoy the meal we’ve created together.
Pasta 201: The Art of Filled Pasta
Pasta 201: The Art of Filled Pasta
Ready to deepen your pasta practice? In this session, we’ll focus on the soulful craft of filled pasta— (think ravioli or tortellini).
You’ll learn to make a delicate dough, roll it to the perfect thinness, and fill it with a house-made filling. We’ll seal, shape, and cook our creations, then pair them simply (e.g. a simple sage-butter, light sauce, or broth)
Depending on the season and our regional inspiration, we might prepare:
- Ravioli capresi (a light, summer pasta from Capri, filled with caciotta and marjoram)
- Ricotta & herb ravioli (common across central Italy)
We’ll end, of course, convivially, around the table.
Market-to-Table: A Seasonal Cooking Adventure
Market-to-Table: A Seasonal Cooking Adventure
Join me for a sensory journey that begins at the market and ends around a convivial table. Together, we’ll handpick the freshest seasonal ingredients and return to the kitchen to create a soulful meal rooted in regional Italian traditions.
Depending on the season and what we discover at the market, we might prepare:
- Spring: Frittata di erbe with wild greens (Lazio)
- Summer: Eggplant Caponata (Sicily)
- Fall: Tortelli di zucca : pumpkin-filled (Emilia-Romagna)
- Winter: Potato gnocchi with gorgonzola cream (Piedmont)
Cucina Povera: The Art of Frugal Cooking
Feast & Folklore: Recipes from Italian Celebrations
Market-to-Table: A Seasonal Cooking Adventure
Explore the beauty of simplicity with dishes born from necessity and creativity. Rooted in the wisdom of Italian nonne and farmers, cucina povera isn’t about lack—it’s about making the most of what you have. In this hands-on class, we’ll cook with intention, waste nothing, and rediscover how flavor often lives in the most unassuming places.
Depending on the season and what’s in your kitchen, we might prepare:
- Panzanella – A Tuscan salad made with stale bread, tomatoes, vinegar, and olive oil
- Pasta e ceci – A rustic chickpea pasta soup from the central-southern regions
You’ll learn techniques for reviving day-old ingredients, stretching pantry staples, and transforming humble foods into memorable meals.
Feast & Folklore: Recipes from Italian Celebrations
Feast & Folklore: Recipes from Italian Celebrations
Feast & Folklore: Recipes from Italian Celebrations
Cook recipes once reserved for festivals and feasts! Step into the celebratory heart of Italian culinary tradition. In this session, we’ll prepare dishes once reserved for saints’ days, weddings, harvest festivals, and family rites of passage—meals rich with symbolism, layered with care, and passed down through generations.
These are not everyday recipes—they’re the special ones, often slow-cooked and story-soaked, meant to be shared.
Depending on the season, we might prepare:
- Timballo (a baked pasta pie from Sicily)
- Pastiera (a citrus-scented Easter wheat tart from Naples)
- Bônet (a bittersweet chocolate and amaretto custard from Piedmont served at winter feasts)
Each dish comes with its own story. Come cook, come listen, come feast!
Nonna’s Garden: Herbs, Infusions & Everyday Magic
Feast & Folklore: Recipes from Italian Celebrations
Feast & Folklore: Recipes from Italian Celebrations
Discover the fragrant world of Italian herbal wisdom—a place where the kitchen and the garden meet, and flavor is intertwined with healing, memory, and ritual.
In this experience, we’ll explore the traditional uses of herbs and edible flowers in Italian kitchens, drawing from the quiet knowledge passed down through generations. We’ll taste, touch, blend, and brew—learning how these simple, powerful ingredients were once the heart of both cooking and care.
The session will include:
- Infusions & Tisanes (digestive, calming, invigorating herbal teas)
- Oils & Everyday Elixirs (infused oils, seasoned salts)
- Sauces, Pastes & Pestos
- Edible Flower Uses (blossoms, syrups)
This is kitchen alchemy. Garden wisdom. A return to the slow and sacred.
II. Private Custom Culinary Experiences
Let me bring the Italian table to you—tailored, warm, and delicious.
Whether you’re planning an intimate dinner with friends, a family celebration, a team gathering, or simply want to learn how to cook something meaningful in the comfort of your own kitchen, we’ll design a hands-on culinary experience that fits your tastes, traditions, and seasonal inspiration.
This isn’t just a cooking class—it’s a chance to slow down, connect, and create something memorable together.
We’ll collaborate on a menu inspired by your preferences or one of my signature themed classes
From shaping pasta by hand to tasting your way through ancestral flavors, this experience brings the soul of Italy into your home—with laughter, learning, and a meal shared at the end.
You’ll learn techniques, taste stories, and cook a lasting memory.
Iii. Fork & Cork workshops
Join us for a series of intimate food-demonstration and wine-pairing workshops where food has story, and wine has a song.
In every session, we’ll focus on a single culinary theme—be it cucina povera, the humble brilliance of stale bread, or the tomato in all its seasonal forms—and explore how to build flavor, texture, and technique around it. As the dish unfolds, so does the wine: I will guide you through the food segment and Ed will guide you through pairings, highlighting regional matches, natural wines, or unexpected contrasts.
These workshops are sensorial, designed to sharpen your instincts, and a formula you can repeat in your own kitchen. Come curious, leave nourished.
Illustrative workshops:
- Nothing Goes to Waste: Cucina Povera & the Art of Reuse
- One Ingredient, Five Ways: The Tomato as Muse
- Feasting Like the Ancients: A Journey into Roman Cuisine
- Fire Beneath the Vines: The Volcanic Wines of Southern Italy
- La Strada e la Spina: Italian Street Food & Craft Beer
Trusted partner: Ed Martin at Beverage Education Workshop Team
How the "recipe" works
Culinary Experiences and Respective Pricing
I. Pre-Designed Culinary Experiences (as per above)
Join a curated experience in my kitchen, where the flour flies, stories simmer, and every dish is made by hand and heart.
- Duration: 3 hours
- Group Size: Minimum 6, Maximum 8 guests
- Cost: $95 per person
- Includes: All ingredients, instruction, recipe cards, and a full shared meal
II. Private Custom Culinary Experiences (In Your Home or Chosen Venue):
Let me bring the Italian table to you—tailored, warm, and delicious. Together, we’ll design a hands-on class and meal that fits your tastes and traditions.
- Duration: 3 hours (not including setup/clean-up)
- Cost & Size: Starting at $600 for up to 6 participants. Add $100 per additional participant
- Includes: Instruction, Recipe cards. Ingredients not included (will be estimated based on menu)
III. Fork & Cork Workshops (In Your Home or Chosen Venue):
Theme-based food-demonstration and wine-pairing workshops
- Duration: 2 hours (not including setup/clean-up)
- Group Size: Minimum 10 Maximum 15 guests
- Cost: $110 per person, or $200 per couple
- Includes: Food, Wine, Instruction, Recipe cards
Notes:
- Extended time (beyond 3 hours): $100/hour
- High season and premium dates: add 20%
- Travel fee: outside Boulder add $100 flat travel/prep fee
- Couples: 10% discount
- Bundles: buy 3+ classes and get 10% off
