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To ensure delivery of your Active Gourmet Holidays emails, be sure to add
info@activegourmetholidays.com to your Address Book or "Known Senders" list! Active Gourmet Holidays is proud to offer
some exciting new tours including options for Christmas and Holiday
getaways. Please call or email for more for more details.
 NEW! The Sicilian Gourmet - Sicily, Italy - 7 nights Experience the flavours, aromas and colours of this fully escorted tour combining gastronomy and culture. You will have cooking lessons with some of Sicily's expert chefs, go on food producer visits and wine tastings with Sicily's most notable wine producers, and also be able to wander the narrow streets of Taormina and Polizzi and enjoy a night tour of Palermo. Delve into Sicily and see why this piece of Italy is so unique. Celebrate Christmas and New Year's in the Umbrian Hills (Umbria, Italy) Spend the Christmas Holidays in the green heart of Italy, in an oasis of peace and nature. Treat yourself to a romantic Christmas and New Year's holiday in a 17th century Villa in the rolling Umbrian hills for a week of harmony and relaxation, but also a real treat for the palate with the delicacies of a talented Italian chef and the largest offer of selected Umbrian wines. Some highlights include a New Year’s Eve classical music concert for and a New Year’s Eve Gala dinner with wines and drinks included. Villa recommended by Karen Brown's Guides. Please inquire for more details. 
NEW!
Rhode School of Cuisine - Le Mas des Oliviers
- Provence, France - 7 nightsSpend a week in a luxury villa in Provence overlooking the breathtaking views of the Mediterranean on the Côte d'Azur, French Riviera. Learn how to prepare wonderful French dishes such as foie gras, frog legs and creme brulée as well as some new and creative recipes like tea sorbet with sautéed peaches and caramel ice cream on almond brittle. You will also learn about local and regional wines and famous cheeses. Available April to May, September to October - Saturday to Saturday  NEW!
Secret Le Marche -
Le Marche, Italy - 7 nights
Discover the unspoilt region of Le Marche, a well kpet secret of Italy. You will
take cooking classes from an English-born chef who has made this special place
her home. Your classes will take place in a grand 17th century ‘casa padronale’
lovingly restored by the owners and you will stay in a beautiful renovated
agriturismo, which are typical rustic farmhouses that dot the Italian landscape.
NEW!
Umbria
for Singles
-
(Options: Biking, Spa, Shopping, Wine Tours, Shorter
or Longer Stays) - Umbria, Italy - 6 nights This week has been created for single travelers wanting to experience an unforgettable week of fine cuisine, outdoor activity, relaxation and discovery. Don't keep waiting for your friends who keeps saying they are going to join you in your travels, but are never able to make the commitment. Go yourself, and join other single travelers at a luxury villa in the Umbrian hills to experience the tastes and perfumes of this wonderful region of Italy. Villa recommended by Karen Brown's Guides. Available October to May - Sunday to Saturday Looking for
a Day Cooking Class in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal? Just
browse the Culinary/Wine page and you will see what courses offer Day
Cooking Classes which will be under "Options". Choose from over 25 classes!
2007 Dates and Prices are now being posted. For questions on
specific tours, please contact 1.203.732.0771
Everyone knows someone whose passion is cooking, food and wine, the outdoors
or traveling. Why not surprise them with a culinary trip? Active Gourmet Holidays' trips are the perfect
Christmas, honeymoon, anniversary or birthday gift for the special people in
your lives.
Celebrate Christmas and New Year's in the Languedoc-Roussillon (Southeast France)  A visit to France at Christmas time and New Year's is both magical and
memorable. The Christmas market in Narbonne lines the banks of the canal du
Robine; the bridges and streets are skirted with thousands of white Christmas
trees turning this pretty Roman town into a winter wonder-land. Christmas
evolves around midnight Mass whether in a tiny village church or the grand
gothic cathedral of Narbonne.
Join your hosts for a holiday celebration at their beautiful 17th century Chateau for fabulous wines,
gourmet food, cooking lessons if you wish, and a traditional English Christmas dinner.
 NEW!
Authentic France
- Provence, France - 3 or 6 nightsFor those wanting an authentic French experience, this is the holiday for you. Stay in a beautifully restored farmhouse in the countryside of Provence, take cooking lessons from your hostess, a French-born woman anxious to show you the secrets of traditional Provençal cuisine using the freshest and most delicate ingredients that Provence has to offer. Available year round 
NEW! Dali´s and Gaudi´s Art and Gourmet tour in Barcelona and Costa Brava November 28- December 4, 2006 (Please inquire) This wonderful gourmet food and wine tour takes you to a land of outstanding beauty, visiting the most fascinating fishing villages and well preserved medieval towns in Spain's northeaster region of Barcelona by the Mediterranean Sea and southeastern wine region of el Penedés. You will not only discover a route of amazing Dali's surreal art, gorgeous villas and castles, lovely beaches and exquisite wineries, but you will also find a cuisine that is unique, imaginative and varied: Through combinations called "Surf and Turf' or fish and Meat the Catalan chefs are able to marry both worlds with a result of sophisticated dishes which would seem to have been designed by Dalí. For more information, please contact us at 1.203.732.0771. RECIPE OF THE MONTH -
SECRET LE MARCHE
This is one of the favourite ways to cook fish in Italy, after grilling. Another way is to cook it in tomato sauce with various different flavourings. ‘Pesce in bianco’, ‘Pesce alla griglia’ and ‘pesce al pomodoro’
1.5k calamari, uncleaned weight EVOO 8cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced Zest and juice of 4 lemons A large handful of basil leaves Salt and little pieces of
dried red chili if you like it Clean the calamari and cut the sac into 2 pieces, lengthways. Leave the tentacle in a cluster if you can. Rinse and pat dry. Pour a fair amount of EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) into a big, shallow pan and place it on a high heat. When the oil is very hot, add the fish and cook it long enough for the sac pieces to start curling upwards. Now add the garlic and a little salt. Stir fry just long enough for the garlic to start to colour. Take the pan off the heat and add the lemon zest and most of the juice. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add the basil just before you serve it, or the lemon juice and the heat will discolour it. Do not cook the calamari too long as it will become tough. If it does, you will have to stew it for much longer and the pieces will become soft again. Serves 6
Active Gourmet Holidays wants to hear from you!  Look for many new cycling trips coming your way for this autumn and 2007 in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal. Choose from different regions, different levels and terrains and even some combination cooking and cycling tours in Italy and France. Please call for more details and information on itineraries and locales.
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CALAMARI AL BASILICIA, AGLIO E OLIO
For wine enthusiasts, I strongly recommend the following book by
Natalie MacLean: 
Active
Gourmet Holidays has recently been featured on CNN.com
and The
New Haven Register.