Cooking with David Rocco!

David Rocco and one of the P&G crew.

Last week I was invited to the Calphalon Culinary Centre to enjoy a cooking class with Canada's cutest celebrity chef - David Rocco!

David, who is famous for his hearty and informal approach to cooking, "Hey, I'm not a chef, I'm Italian!", has paired up with Dawn and Cascade to show that clean-up can be just as simple as the cooking. Dawn and Cascade use enzymes to power away tough, sticky messes - learn more about them here.

The setting was intimate, and we made the Risotto con Radicchio e Funghi (Radicchio and Mushroom Risotto). David praised my knife skills!

There was plenty of wine for the recipe, but not for the chefs. Hmmm, what's with that? Mama likes to tipple when she cooks.

Afterwords we all sat down at the front and tried each other's risotto. We did pretty darned good!

All in all a pretty fabulous day and, as my husband likes to take his time taking photos, I got to hang onto David for quite some time while he snapped away. That totally made up for the lack of wine. Now, how to get him to take me to Italy?

David and all his happy cooks!

Check out the teaser for Season 4 of David Rocco's Dolce Vita! You can find the show on Food Network Canada, Cooking Channel, and some local stations.


David Rocco recipes on Food Network Canada, Cooking Channel, Cascade and Dawn, his website.

David has a new show coming out in which he explores the Amalfi Coast (without me!)

Explore the Amalfi Coast with David Rocco

In David Rocco's Amalfi Getaway, David returns to Italy — this time to the Amalfi coast. Here, his journey takes viewers into the home kitchens, restaurants and farms of Amalfi to cook with the mammas, nonnas and chefs who make simple, honest, rustic Italian dishes — most in the 'cucina povera' tradition. These are the dishes that have defined the region for centuries and are sure to inspire cooks today

And check out his new cookbook  

Made in Italy

Here is where you will find the risotto recipe I got to cook with David!