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    Dana's Table

    Come cook with me in Southern Italy

    I'm hosting a culinary adventure: The Jewish Cooking of Southern Italy. We'll be at The Awaiting Table Cooking School with Silvestro Silvestori in Lecce, Italy. Each day we'll cook Jewish dishes from a different southern Italian region including Lazio (Rome), Puglia, Sicily, Calabria, and Campania (Naples).

    During our time together, we'll shop for ingredients like locals, learn about olive oil and wine, spend time by the sea, and field trip to Jewish museums and nearby ancient towns.

    So come walk in the footsteps of Jews who have lived in southern Italy in the past and learn about the current Jewish communities.

    I'd love for you to join us,
    Dana Shrager

    Book by emailing Silvestro Silvestori of The Awaiting Table Cooking School.

    BOOK NOW
    Dana and Silvestro in the piazza in Lecce, Italy.
    Meet us in this piazza in Lecce, Italy! - Dana Shrager (co-teacher) and Silvestro Silvestori (owner of Awaiting Table Cooking School)

    Dates and Cost

    DATES: Sunday, August 31 - Friday, September 5, 2025
    DURATION: 5 days and 6 nights
    PRICE PER PERSON: 2795 euros

    Future Dates

    If you can't make the 2025 date, stay informed about future dates by subscribing to my monthly newsletter. You'll get monthly recipes and be among the first to know about new dates.

    Subscribe

    If you're super interested in joining this experience in 2026, send me an email with your preferred dates because I will be arranging the next date with participant input.

    Email me
    Jump to:
    • Come cook with me in Southern Italy
    • Dates and Cost
    • Future Dates
    • Highlights
    • What's Included and What's Not
    • Details
    • Cancellation Policy and FAQ's
    • Got Questions?
    • Ready to Book?

    Highlights

    • Welcome dinner at a local restaurant with a walk around town.
    • 5 days at the Awaiting Table Cooking School featuring southern Italian Jewish cooking.
    • Learn about the history of the Jews in southern Italy and about the current Jewish communities.
    • Shop like a local at the Lecce produce market, butcher, and fish monger.
    • Olive oil and wine tastings.
    • Field trip to Lecce's former Jewish quarter and museum with a Medieval mikvah (ritual bath).
    • Displaced persons museum (post-World War II) and seaside lunch.
    • Kosher-style and vegetarian meals available.
    • Maximum 10 students: 16 years and older.
    Homemade pasta at The Awaiting Table.

    What's Included and What's Not

    The class includes:

    • 5 days at the Awaiting Table Cooking School including cooking classes, field trips with transportation, wine and olive oil tastings.
    • 5 lunches and 6 dinners. Wine included with all dinners.
    • Museum entrance fees.

    What's not included:

    • International airfare and transfers to and from Lecce, Italy.
    • Accommodation in Lecce (Email me if you'd like ideas for anything between a budget-friendly B&B to a 5-star hotel. Most include breakfast.) This allows you to book the accommodation that works best for you.
    • Passport and visa fees.
    • Travel insurance (highly recommended).

    Details

    Why come to Puglia, Italy?

    Puglia is a region in southern Italy in the "heel of the boot." This area is off the beaten path and not touristy. It's where the Italians vacation because of its unspoiled beauty, breathtaking beaches, and white-colored hilltop towns.

    The intricately carved Baroque facade of Santa Croce Basilica in Lecce, Italy.
    The spectacular carved facade of Santa Croce Basilica in Lecce, Italy.
    A narrow walking street in Lecce, Italy with Baroque carved buildings and outdoor restaurant tables.
    The golden-hued limestone Baroque buildings in Lecce, Italy are stunning against a clear blue summer sky.

    It's easy to fall in love with Lecce, Italy:

    The cooking school is located in Lecce, Italy, which is know as the "Florence of the South." It's a small walled city filled with ornately carved limestone Baroque buildings, palazzos, over 22 churches, a Roman amphitheater, a former Jewish quarter, and a university. It's a step back in time to wander the narrow, meandering streets. It's a safe city to explore with everything within walking distance. It has a lively atmosphere in the evenings.

    Silvestro at the stove in the colorful Awaiting Table Cooking School kitchen with colanders on wall.
    You'll get to know Silvestro and Anna at The Awaiting Table Cooking School. They'll feel like old friends by the end of the week.

    About the cooking school:

    Silvestro Silvestori has run The Awaiting Table Cooking School for the past 22 years and has hosted students from 59 different countries. Silvestro is a sommelier of both wine and olive oil. He's a walking encyclopedia of everything Puglia, especially the cooking. It will be a fun and memorable five days.

    What are the classes like?

    Silvestro's style of cooking is very Italian and homestyle, so it's relaxed. There's no previous cooking experience necessary. He teaches techniques and how to cook without recipes. You are free to participate as much or as little as you'd like. Just hanging out in the kitchen to chat and drink wine is definitely an option.

    Dana Shrager of Dana's Table will be co-teaching and will share Jewish Italian recipes that she learned from home cooks while researching in southern Italy.

    Dana standing amongst many choices of vegetables at produce market.
    In the mornings at the cooking school, we'll shop like the locals do at the produce market, butcher, and fish monger to select the ingredients for cooking that day.
    A green plate filled with handmade pasta shaped like hats.
    A plate of handmade fresh pasta shaped like hats which I and other students made. We improved a lot as the week went on.

    About Jewish Italian cuisine:

    Each day we'll focus on a different southern region of Italy and the Jewish food from there. We'll learn how Italian food varies by region and how the Jews brought many ingredients to Italy that are now integral to the cuisine. The Jewish food also has adaptations to fit kosher rules and holiday celebrations.

    I also want to tell you that the meals around Silvestro's dining room table are a lively party filled with excellent food, wine tastings, and interesting conversation well into the night. I can't wait to sit around the table with you there.

    Ionian Sea with rocky shore, spectacular turquoise water, and blue sky with faint puffy clouds.
    The magical Ionian Sea in Puglia.

    Field trips:

    One field trip we'll take is to Santa Maria al Bagno, a resort town on the Ionian Sea. We're going there to visit the displaced persons camp museum. It tells the story of the Jewish refugees who survived the Holocaust and were given shelter in Italy in the Puglia region after World War II until they were able to relocate (primarily to Israel).

    Then we'll have an opportunity to walk around and enjoy a seaside meal overlooking the turquoise colored sea.

    3 wine glasses lined up on a table for wine tasting.
    Tasting regional wines.

    A note about the time before and after the class
    (not included in price of this class)

    Before: Try to arrive in Italy one to two days before the class starts to get over jetlag and to be fully ready to enjoy the experience. Also, planning to arrive early will give you a buffer against unexpected airline delays.

    After: If you have the time, take advantage of being in the Puglia region and explore more of the seaside and hilltop towns. Silvestro has a section on his website for registered students with suggestions. If possible, explore the region in September after the class is over as it will be less crowded than in August.


    The itinerary is subject to change if necessary due to events outside our control.

    Cancellation Policy and FAQ's

    See Silvestro's website for information.

    Got Questions?

    Email me so we can talk, Dana Shrager

    Click to e
    mail Dana with questions

    Ready to Book?

    Email Silvestro Silvestori at The Awaiting Table Cooking School to book

    Click to e
    mail Silvestro to book

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    Welcome to
    Dana's Table

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    Dana's Table is the new home for recipes from Foodie Goes Healthy and Jewish Holiday Cooking. All the recipes you love are in one convenient place.

    I'm Dana, a recipe developer, avid cookbook collector, and food blogger since 2011. I come from a long line of amazing home cooks, and now I've been cooking up healthy-ish family meals and festive Jewish holidays for over 25 years. Grab a chair at the table so I can share my best recipes and strategies with you.

    More about Dana →

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