Casa Ombuto is a comprehensive hands-on cooking school that also offers amazing accommodations in Tuscany, Italy. About 30 miles from Florence, guests are guided through creating delicious Italian dishes (appetizers, entrees, sides, and desserts). The well-appointed guest rooms, the grounds, and the pool will surround you in relaxing comfort.
Casa Ombuto (Accommodations and Cooking School): Poppi, Tuscany (about 30 miles from Florence) / Casa Ombuto / +39 0575 146 0010
Credit: Casa Ombuto
DISCLAIMER: My husband and I have stayed in many hotels, inns, and other properties in our travels, but a few stand out above the rest — this is one of them. Although I am highlighting this property that we enjoyed while on vacation, we have not accepted free trips, endorsements, or gratuities from it. All the opinions, along with the photographs (unless otherwise noted), featured in this article are my own. I simply share this property profile because it was unique in its location, hospitality, and views, so I think others may consider staying there as well. Happy travels!
Why Casa Ombuto?
- Casa Ombuto is a well-designed cooking school led by an Italian chef who helps you learn new techniques and explains the ingredients that go into preparing delicious Tuscan meals. You don’t have to have a lot of skills in the kitchen to benefit from this cooking school. There is also a side trip or two included during your week there, so you can experience more Italian culture.
- The cooking school is hands-on. You are not watching a chef explain what to do — you are doing it! The chef guides you and gives you tips to try at home. Also, you get a cookbook that you’ll use each day there with room to take notes — so there’s a strong chance that what you try at home later resembles what you made at Casa Ombuto! We regularly use our cookbook to prepare some delicious Italian meals for family and friends.
- The chefs are patient and want you to be able to transfer what you’re learning to your own kitchen back home. We had the pleasure of learning from Chef Paola who shared her love of cooking and her keen sense of humor with the guests. This is an informal, fun way to spend a week, learning from professionals and getting to meet new people — like-minded travelers who want to learn a bit more about cooking and want to do so at this amazing Italian villa.
- Learn more about Italian wines. You have to have wine with your meals, right?
- A spouse/partner can enjoy the luxurious comforts of Casa Ombuto even if she/he is not attending the cooking school. She/he can still benefit from your labor, however, and join the group when it’s meal time. Buon appetito!
- Casa Ombuto offers a beautiful, serene setting away from busy towns. You can take a walk or hike from the property during your downtime to experience the “neighborhood” which consists of backcountry roads, rolling hillsides, and farms.
- Gorgeous accommodations in the villa and well-maintained grounds include a pool, spa, and sauna to enjoy when you’re not cooking.
Credit: Casa Ombuto
Overview
Lars Korn and Pippa Ward-Smith originally purchased Casa Ombuto as a vacation home, and then they decided to turn it into a cooking school. Casa Ombuto took two years to renovate in 1997. In 2005, they opened their second school, Torre del Tartufo, after completing major renovations there.
Set on 80 acres, the villa that is Casa Ombuto was built hundreds of years ago. Because its sits on a hilltop, there are spectacular views of the entire area. There are eight en suite bedrooms, each with either a patio or terrace.
We enjoyed relaxing with some wine on our patio, listening to the birds and other wildlife nearby, during our late afternoon break — after preparing the meal and before returning to the cantina to share the meal with chef Paola and our fellow cooking school students.
Credit: Casa Ombuto
Hospitality: Featured Recipe
When I looked through our Casa Ombuto cookbook for a recipe to share here, I realized there was a problem: too many good ones! But here’s one we’ve enjoyed several times since our visit to Casa Ombuto. It’s a family favorite.
Vegetable Tart / Torta di Verdure
Equipment
- 1 frying pan
- 1 quiche dish
Ingredients
- puff pastry
- 1 eggplant
- 2 zucchini
- 1 large red pepper
- 1 leek
- 1 egg
- olive oil
- salt & pepper
- cheese (Fontina, Pecorino, or Emmenthal)
Instructions
- Place the baking dish in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before use.
- Roll out the puff pastry about 5mm thick and lay it in a baking dish; return it to the refrigerator until ready for use.
- Prepare the vegetables, chopping them into small cubes.
- Heat oil in a frying pan and add the vegetables, salt and pepper. Fry for 15 minutes on a high heat, stirring occasionally.
- Let the vegetables cool a little. Then put them in the puff pastry shell. Cover with cheese. Decorate the top with strips of pastry and brush with a beaten egg.
- Cook for 1 hour at 350 degrees.
Notes
Things To Do in the Area
There are so many lovely places you could visit not far from Casa Ombuto. Consider adding some days before or after the cooking school in Florence, Siena, Cortona, Montepulciano, or Arezzo. Ask Pippa for suggestions based on your interests.
On this trip to Italy, my husband and I began in Florence, spent a week at Casa Ombuto, and then explored Cortona, some centuries-old hill towns including Montepulciano, and Siena. (Florence and Siena stand out as two of our favorite places in Tuscany.) There are plenty of amazing places to explore in Italy. If heading to Piedmont, check out Castello di Sinio — a 12th-century castle turned into an amazing oasis with beautiful grounds, comfortable accommodations, and modern amenities.
How to Get There
Casa Ombuto is a bit off the main roadways, in Poppi, a rural hamlet — and that’s part of its charm. Although you could use public transportation and a cab to reach Casa Ombuto, it would be much more convenient to rent a car. From Florence, it’s about 40 miles away, but because of the winding roads, it’ll take close to 90 minutes to reach Poppi. Of course, another advantage of a rental car is that you gain the flexibility to explore the surrounding areas on your own — if you really ever want to leave the property, that is.
