When in Rome: Learning How to Make Pizza and Pasta

I was looking for an activity that would make my Rome visit memorable, and came across this Rome pizza making class (and pasta class)! Follow along my journey to make the best authentic Italian pizza I have ever had in the eternal city.

What to do when you’re in Rome, Italy?

My feet was tired and aching after walking through the Colosseum and Palatine Hills, and I was pretty much museum-ed out after visiting so many iconic museums in Paris and Florence. I already hit up the restaurants I wanted to visit (Osteria da Fortunata was worth the hype, I can confirm 😋) and indulging myself in scoops of gelato was already off my list (want some recommendations?).

What’s left my Italian bucket list? Cooking classes! I am always up for a unique foodie experience and learning Italian cuisine.

This pizza AND pasta class in Airbnb Experience had good reviews. I quickly signed myself up to this culinary experience, nabbing their last slot for the next day.

Wanting to make my own pizza, I was eager to learn from a real local chef. Might as well learn two essential Italian food dishes at once, was my thought at the time.

The Journey 🛣️

The class itself was located on the suburbs of Rome. I had to use the metro from central Rome to the Laurentina station and they picked us up from there.

They warned my beforehand that they won’t wait for any latecomers in order to keep the class running smoothly. After a 15-minute ride, we finally reached the venue!

It was surprisingly cozy and cabin-like, and Chef Giuseppe’s dog was ADORABLE! You know I had to greet this good boy, he (or she?) had the silkiest hair known to man. Giuseppe, the owner, and the rest of the chefs were very friendly and warm, but still super passionate about their food.

At this point, I feel like most Italians are! 😂 The previous class was still having their meal in the common area, but our small group could proceed with the pizza-making class in the first cabin.

Pizza Class 🍕

You’ve got to get the basics right before moving onto the bells and whistles! In this case, the dough is the foundation of texture and. The professional chef mixed 1 kg of flour, 700g of cold water, some salt, and fresh yeast to create the perfect dough.

The best pizza doughs use specialty flours; of course, they have specific flours for pizza! We can go into the gluten-y world of flours, but then this post could go on forever 😂

The mixer they use to knead the dough was a professional mixer. What’s the difference, you ask? The placement of the motor! Most commercial mixers have their motors positioned close to the bowl, and this can affect the dough temperature. The professional mixer they use, on the other hand, has its motor installed in the back, as far away from the mixing bowl as possible.

This will keep the perfect pizza dough from overheating, which will affect the fermentation!

They prepared the dough we use the day before, so that it can double up and develop a wonderful flavor overnight in a cold fermentation. The pizza chef said that they let the dough ferment for 10-12 hours for maximum flavor and easy digestion.

Have you ever been bloated after eating bread?

Have you ever gotten bloated from eating bread? The longer the dough gets to ferment, the less heavy it will be for your stomach! The yeast will do the hard work of breaking down the wheat flour, resulting in a less starchy dough.

Types of Pizza

There are two types of pizza that are popular in Italy: Romana and Napoletana! Roman pizza is thin and crispy, with 50-55% dough hydration. They are flattened using a rolling pin and cut into squares to enjoy.

Conversely, Neapolitan pizzas have thicker crust, higher hydration (~70%), and shaped into rounds. These are the typical “pizza” that is famous all over the world!

Fun fact! ✨
There are two types of pizza in Italy: Neapolitan and Roman pizzas 🍕

As we were making Neapolitan pizza that day, we carefully stretched out the soft and fluffy dough balls by hand. It was a lot of fun to play with the dough.

We made indentations to create a vessel for the sauce and toppings. Sadly, no throwing spinning pizzas that day for me! I think it would have ended up on the floor; a skill to practice for another time 😆

Is the Secret in the Sauce?

It’s time to add the sauce 🍅. Chef Giuseppe told us that they only use San Marzano tomatoes, some olive oil, and basil to make the homemade sauce. He also said that more sauce would need to be added for the home oven, because it won’t be as hot as his blazing professional oven!

If you don’t have a professional oven like in authentic pizzeria, do not worry. You just need a longer baking time for pizzas made in the home oven. 

Adding Toppings!

After adding the sauce, then it’s my turn to get creative with the toppings. I chose my favorite toppings: cheese (of course!), mushroom, pepperoni, onion slices, and red pepper flakes.

There is a little secret they add to their pizzas, the pièce de resistance, if you will: a slice of lardo (cured pork fat)! This just melted in the oven, giving a rich flavor and aroma to the rest of the toppings. Next is oven time; I was nervous because I’ve never used wood-fired ovens before.

I then had the chance to move my precious creation to the pizza oven, leaving it in there at 420 Celcius for 7-8 minutes. The result? Seriously good, I’m craving a slice just thinking about it!

Imagine this, crunchy crust with an airy interior, covered with basil and tomatoes, melted cheese, and crispy pepperoni. The mushrooms burst with juiciness and the red pepper gave a little heat where it’s needed.

This delicious pizza was one of the best things I have ever eaten. The ultimate layer of flavor, though, was the slice of pork fat. It was divine, let me tell you! 👼🏻 I was nibbling on my own crust when they called us to continue on to the pasta class.

Pasta La Vista! 🍝

After a little break to enjoy our respective pizzas, it was time for pasta. We down into the second cabin with expert chefs, where we had some flour and water set up in front of us.

Some of us were making water-based pasta, and some were making egg-based pasta! With a few tools, we made around 10 different kinds of pasta.

This was a simpler process compared to pizza, since it did not need to be fermented. It was just a mixture of 1 part flour to 0.5 part liquid. We kneaded the dough until it was smooth.

We then practiced making fettucine, penne, soppressata, and other pasta shapes before finishing the lesson. They would then cook the fresh pasta for our next meal!

Pesto and Cacio e Pepe Pasta 🍃

They made two pasta dishes for our small group. The fresh cavatelli pasta was cooked and mixed with green pesto, while the fettucine was made into cacio e pepe (cheese and pepper) pasta. I can’t lie though, it was not that good 😅

The pasta was kind of gummy and the pesto sauce just didn’t have good flavor. I much prefer the pizza!

To end the meal on a sweet note, they served us some tiramisu and limoncello. Boy, was that limoncello strong! Not sure what the alcohol percentage was in the limoncello, but it felt stronger than some vodkas. The tiramisu was good, it was a good balance between the bitterness of the coffee and sweetness of the mascarpone cream.

I honestly enjoyed most of my meals in Italy. The quality of the produce there just creates a really good base for all meals. The fruit, the vegetables, the cured meats… I dream about it at night 😋 Anybody from Italy can send me some Prosciutto? Pretty please?

I hope this post showed you what it’s like to take a cooking class in Italy. Please do try a cooking class while traveling, it was such a fantastic experience. I had such a great time and had so much fun. The fabulous pizza tasted even better because I could pick my own toppings!

P.S. = If you are traveling to Italy, check out my must-see sights in Florence! It was frankly the most romantic city I have ever been to 💞 Also download these useful apps before you travel, you won’t regret it!

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