Cooking Class on Hvar Island: A Farm-to-Table Experience

What your day looks like

Host Bio: Kornelija and Morana, a mother-daughter duo, hope to offer simple, authentic dishes from the Island of Hvar. So that people visiting them get a feeling that they are at their Nonna’s house, tasting the very essence of the island and its gastronomic history. Kornelija worked as a HR professional in Zagreb for many years, and now that she is retired, has decided to move to the island thanks to her family roots and heritage. She is so excited to pursue her passion for cooking and hosting, in the middle of her family field in a UNESCO-protected area. Kornelija will be joined by her daughter, Morana, who is currently working as a Project Manager in the IT sector. Together they wish to share with travelers the local Hvar cuisine, introducing them to ingredients and herbs that are native to the island. Meal Description: The location for your farm-to-table meal is amidst a field in UNESCO-protected Stari Grad Plain, a beautiful outdoor setting overlooking the garden and fields. Start your experience with some herb brandy (homemade traditional Hvar brandy aged with aromatic herbs from Kornelija's field) or grape brandy cherry liqueur or elderflower juice. Then you will share a Hvar special platter so that you can get to sample some local produce - goat cheese aged for several months in extra virgin olive oil, salted blue fish, olives, capers, and/or pickled sea flowers drizzled extra virgin olive oil. You will also get to taste the family's extra virgin olive oil, served along with some homemade bread. For your mains, you might be served pasta with tomato sauce (fresh tomato sauce stewed for hours with garlic, onions, and herbs, garnished with goat cheese) and a traditional Hvar octopus stew (slow-cooked and stewed octopus with aromatic Hvar apices, served with sliced corn grits) or cuttlefish black risotto (slow cooked and stewed cuttlefish with aromatic Hvar spices, served with rice and butter), the main dish depends on the availability of fresh seafood. End your meal with a dessert such as a lemon olive oil cake (moist and fruity dessert cooked with the family's extra virgin olive oil and lemons from Dol village) and a glass of red or white wine. Cooking Description: Your Hvar cooking class starts with a garden tour, you will have the unique opportunity to handpick your own tomatoes and aromatic herbs, learning about traditional organic farming. You will be guided through the field, learning about different types of tomatoes and herbs, native to the island, part of the landscape is unchanged since ancient Greek colonization (4th century BC). Then proceed outdoors for your cooking class with local drinks, storytelling, and insight into Hvar’s rich cultural and agricultural history. It is a 1-hour class where you will learn to make Hvar salsa. The Hvar salsa will be made from scratch and will be used as a part of two additional dishes on the menu - eggplants casserole, octopus stew of cuttlefish risotto, depends on availability of the fresh ingredients. Kornelija will guide you to make the salsa using ripe tomatoes, herbs, garlic, onions, and local olive oil. You will chop and mix the ingredients to create a flavorful salsa, balancing the freshness of the tomatoes with the aromatic herbs. Through the menu, we will show how the tomato salsa naturally comes together with a eggplant casserole, zucchini noodles, slow-cooked octopus stew or cuttlefish risotto. All dishes are prepared using family recipes.