Chef Shares Secrets of Authentic Italian Cooking
Posted March 1, 2001 6:00 a.m. EST
MORRISVILLE — Ever wonder why the pasta at your favorite Italian restaurant tastes so much better than what you make at home?
A local Italian immigrant is sharing the secrets of fine Italian cooking. On the menu: tomatoes and fresh mozzarella, gnocchi with marinara sauce and zeppole -- homemade Italian donuts.
Three days a week, Titina Vuotto shares her cooking secrets with people who love good Italian food.
Vuotto has been cooking since she was a child, helping at her grandmother's restaurant in Italy.
"When she was very busy she call always to me 'Come, help me. Help me cut the pasta,'" she says.
Vuotto became one of the best chefs on the island of Capri. Two years ago, she and her family openedCapriFlavorsin Morrisville. They import Italian products for restaurants around the state.
Vuotto says she loves to cook and now teaches others how to prepare "real Italian cuisine."
To make good gnocchi, she says "It's important to mash the potatoes [when they are] very warm."
Vuotto's tips are appreciated by even the most experienced cooks who have signed up for her class.
"I've cooked for 20 years, and I think I know how to cook. But when I sit here in a class, I'm like, oh my gosh, what a great idea," says student Diane Mulattieri
"I am happy when they come back and say 'Titina, I made this recipe, and it was so good,'" Vuotto says.
Her cooking classescost $60, which includes a full meal when the lesson is done.
