Giovanna is a warm and gentle retired history and philosophy teacher who has lived in Bologna for over 60 years. She lives in an apartment in a large villa with her daughters, Francesca and Laura. She learned fish and vegetable recipes from her mother and grandmother, originally from the Marche region, and learned traditional Bolognese cooking from her husband’s family. She loves cooking for family, friends and guests and particularly enjoys widening her culinary repertoire with new dishes she learns on her travels. Giovanna is proud of Bologna's heritage; Bologna’s nicknames include “la città dotta” (the educated city) and “la città grassa” (the fat city) and its gastronomical history is tied to the city’s university which is the oldest in the world. Since the Middle Ages, the university has attracted students from many different countries and cultures which she believes has enriched the city’s culinary scene. Join Giovanna for a seasonal Bolognese meal that starts with typical Bolognese snacks like crescentine or tigelle, a pastry breakfast mountain farmers made with flour, water, pesto, lard, rosemary, parmesan, traditionally pressed with two bricks and two chestnut tree leaves. You will then enjoy salumi and cheeses like squacquerone and parmigiano-reggiano before tasting seasonal, oven-roasted vegetables including delightful pomodori, Italian tomatoes, or seasonal lettuces and garden vegetables served in the local "pinzimonio" (crudite) style. The central pillars of Bolognese cooking are pork meat and egg pasta and you will enjoy a pasta such as tagliatelle al ragù or the local Gramigna, Bolognese pasta with "salsiccia" made in the surrounding countryside. Second courses include the famous cotoletta alla bolognese (veal with ham and parmigiano), bisteccone (steak) or cotechino in galera and polpette con umido con piselli (meatballs with peas). Giovanna usually combines meat dishes with potato purèe, verdure con besciamella (vegetables with bechamel sauce) or friggione (a slow-cooked dish made with onions and tomatoes). Desserts vary seasonally and are usually tied to traditional festivals, such as the certosino bolognese for Christmas, le raviole for Saint Joseph, pinza (filled with Bolognese mostarda) or torta di riso, a rice cake which families make for the festa degli addobbi. Giovanna also offers an optional cooking lesson option during which you will learn to make a traditional pasta from scratch, a side, and a dessert. In additional, Giovanna offers and optional market tour add-on for a private tour of a local Bologna market.