ISTITUTO MONDO ITALIANO
  • About
  • NEW! Virtual Tours of Italy from Italy
  • Cooking classes (ONLINE)
  • Italian Film Festival 2021
  • ADULT ITALIAN CLASSES (ONLINE)
  • CILS exam/Dual Citizenship
  • Translation/Interpretation
  • LA DOLCE VITA Boutique
  • GIFT CERTIFICATES
  • Italian Bookstore
  • NEWS from La Befana/CHILDREN
  • Bilingual Storytime
  • CHILDREN ITALIAN CLASSES
  • Birthday Parties/ROOM Rental
  • Category
  • About
  • NEW! Virtual Tours of Italy from Italy
  • Cooking classes (ONLINE)
  • Italian Film Festival 2021
  • ADULT ITALIAN CLASSES (ONLINE)
  • CILS exam/Dual Citizenship
  • Translation/Interpretation
  • LA DOLCE VITA Boutique
  • GIFT CERTIFICATES
  • Italian Bookstore
  • NEWS from La Befana/CHILDREN
  • Bilingual Storytime
  • CHILDREN ITALIAN CLASSES
  • Birthday Parties/ROOM Rental
  • Category
Istituto Mondo Italiano
7604 Charleston Avenue
Pittsburgh PA 15218
tel: (412) 478-2681

2021 COOKING CLASS (Online)
Come and cook along with us in the comfort of your own kitchen!

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SPECIALTY COOKING CLASSES with Chefs in Italy

Pasta Master Class - "Sfoglia Emiliana" with Rina Poletti (from Italy) Saturtday March 6th at 12:00pm

$35.00 - $55.00

First of a series of three Pasta Master Classes with Rina Poletti, "Let's roll with it" is ideal for people coming into pasta making wanting to learn the TRADITIONAL WAY, no Kitchen Aid nor pasta machine "allowed" but flour, eggs, and a 2.5 ft long rolling pin (available for purchase here).

Whether you are an amateur or in the fresh pasta business, Rina Poletti, connected directly from Italy, will show you all the foundations of making "sfoglia emiliana".


Our rolling pins are all MADE IN ITALY.by Tagliapasta.

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Dinner in Orvieto with Chef Lorenzo (LIMITED SPOTS!) April 24th@3pm

$55.00

A short introductory video will illustrate the main sights of Orvieto, including the magnificent Duomo, its piazzas, alleyways and medieval and Renaissance feel. Then Chef Lorenzo, a true local with international experience, will show us how to prepare two dishes using recipes from the local tradition and chat about the ingredients, culture, folklore and much more as you prepare the dishes alongside him in your kitchen.


FUN FACT#1: Orvieto is like a Swiss cheese. Full of holes, tunnels and wells in its underground. They were excavated since Etruscan times, around seven centuries BCE. Archaeologists have counted 1200. So far…

FUN FACT#2: Spelt (Farro) is one of the oldest grains in the world, cultivated since 5000 BCE. In Orvieto and Umbria, it is the base for many hearty soups and was one of the main food staples even in Etruscan and Roman times.

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 SPECIALTY PASTA - Sundays 

Pasta Making (Multiple dates) ONLINE

$35.00 - $65.00

Always wanted to know how to make homemade pasta like "nonna"?

In this class you'll learn how to prepare beautiful, fresh pasta the old-fashioned way accompanied by our "secret" red sauce and freshly made pesto. You will learn different techniques and shapes beyond the usual fettucine! Then, we will enjoy the fruit of our labor together.

Buon appetito a tutti!

This class typically lasts between 2-2.5hrs depending on the size of the class.

List of ingredients and zoom link will be sent closer to class date.

Multiple class dates available. Choose between: Jan 10th, Feb. 7th, Mar. 7th, April 4th, 2021

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Fusilli, Farfalle, and Sorpresine Making (Multiple dates) ONLINE

$35.00 - $55.00

Always wanted to make delicious homemade pasta and learn additional pasta shapes? This class will bring out the "Pasta Grannie" inside you!

Try your hand with these fun pasta shapes!

Class dates: Jan 10th, Feb. 7th, and April 4th, 2021

Ingredients and zoom link will be sent upon registration.

Class Sold out? Send us an email at: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and we will add you to our waiting list and/or notify you about additional class dates.

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RAVIOLI Making (Multiple dates) ONLINE

$23.00 - $55.00

In this class you'll learn how to prepare beautiful ravioli with two colored doughs and different filling. Then, we will enjoy the fruit of our labor together.

Buon appetito a tutti!

Class dates: Sunday Jan. 17th, Sunday Feb. 21st, Sunday March 14th

Ingredients list and zoom link will be sent upon registration.

Want to make always perfect ravioli? Considering adding our BEST EVER RAVIOLI TRAY to your shopping list!

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VALENTINE SPECIAL! GOLDEN CARAMELLE PASTA - Feb. 14th at 3pm

$35.00 - $55.00

Wouldn't you want to give your sweetie all the GOLD in this world! Well, today you can with this pasta class where after making out filling and our caramelle, we will decorate them with some gold dust!

Don't miss this opportunity as we offer this class only twice a year! (next Dec 31st!)

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GNOCCHI Making (Multiple dates) ONLINE

$35.00 - $55.00

In this class you'll learn how to prepare beautiful fluffy potato gnocchi and if in season, we will make a second batch with purple potatoes. Then, we will enjoy the fruit of our labor together.

Buon appetito a tutti!

Class dates: Jan 24th,, Mar. 21st, Apr. 18th, 2021

ingredients list and zoom link will be sent upon registration.

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Orecchiette Making (Multiple dates) ONLINE

$35.00

"Orecchiette" or "Little ears" is a specialty from the region of Puglia. Learn how to make them along with "strascinati" like nonna does! This pasta does not contain eggs.

Class dates: Jan 31th, April 11th, 2021

Interested in a class but schedule doesn't work? Send us an email to: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net.

We offer small groups and private classes

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Making TORTELLINI (Multiple dates) ONLINE

$35.00 - $55.00

True to the tradition of Emilia, these meat-filled tortellini will have your guests ask for second, third and even fourth.

After making our Tortellini, we will enjoy the fruit of our labor!.

Class dates: Feb. 28th, March 7th, April 11th

Class Sold out? Send us an email at: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and we will add you to our waitling list and/or notify you about additional class dates.

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Italian Street Food (Multiple dates) (ONLINE)

$35.00 - $55.00

Come and celebrate with us two wonderful regions: Sicily and Lazio with their popular street foods: Arancini and Suppli. Which one will be your favorite?

Every participant will make and enjoy their culinary creations.

Class dates: Feb. 14th, Mar. 14th.

Ingredients list and zoom link will be sent upon registration

Class SOLD OUT? No worries. Email us at: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and will notify you about our next class!

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SWEETS TRADITIONS

Making Tiramisu' (Multiple dates)

$30.00 - $50.00

During this hands-on class, all participants will make their own Tiramisu' while learning about the origins and the variations of the most loved Italian dessert.

Class dates: Jan 24th, Feb. 14th (Valentine's Day),

Class sold out? No worries! Send us an email to: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and we will notify you about cancellations or future class dates!

Like the TIRAMISU T-shirt? Order it from our online store!

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Making CANNOLI - Sunday Mar. 21st at 11am

$35.00 - $55.00

Nothing tastier than home made ricotta to be enjoyed right away and freshly made cannoli!


During this class, there will be a demonstration of how to make fresh ricotta but we recommend to purchase ricotta for the class, as the freshly made ricotta needs time to set.

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Making PIZZELLE - Ask us for a date

$25.00

During this hands-on class, all participants will make their own pizzelle while learning about the origins and the variations of the most loved Italian "waffle cookies".

Buon appetito!

Class sold out? No worries! Send us an email to: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and we will notify you about cancellations or future class dates!

Class is BYOB

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Making STRUFFOLI - Ask us for a date

$35.00 - $55.00

Getting ready for the Holidays? Then, you already know that it is also "Struffoli" time.

Whether you enjoyed them as a child or whether you want to carry on this family tradition, this class will teach you everything you need to know to make wonderful and colorful struffoli.

List of ingredients and zoom link will be sent upon registration.

Multiple people cooking together IN THE SAME KITCHEN (1 connection)?

Choose the number of cooks in the Ticket option.

For any questions, email us at: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net

(Expected class duration: 1,5-2hrs based on the number of participants).

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VALENTINE'S  & MOTHER'S DAY SPECIALS

COOKIE DECORATING (Feb. 13th at 11am)

$25.00 - $85.00

This class is SOLD OUT but we are taking names for WAITLIST.
Join us to learn mixing and rolling dough and cutting out sugar cookies. We’ll put together colorful royal icing, and decorate our cookies.

Recipe and zoom link sent upon registration.

To be put on the WAITLIST, send an email to: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net

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Italian Street Food (Multiple dates) (ONLINE)

$35.00 - $55.00

Come and celebrate with us two wonderful regions: Sicily and Lazio with their popular street foods: Arancini and Suppli. Which one will be your favorite?

Every participant will make and enjoy their culinary creations.

Class dates: Feb. 14th, Mar. 14th.

Ingredients list and zoom link will be sent upon registration

Class SOLD OUT? No worries. Email us at: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and will notify you about our next class!

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Making Tiramisu' (Multiple dates)

$30.00 - $50.00

During this hands-on class, all participants will make their own Tiramisu' while learning about the origins and the variations of the most loved Italian dessert.

Class dates: Jan 24th, Feb. 14th (Valentine's Day),

Class sold out? No worries! Send us an email to: mondoitaliano@earthlink.net and we will notify you about cancellations or future class dates!

Like the TIRAMISU T-shirt? Order it from our online store!

Shop

VALENTINE SPECIAL! GOLDEN CARAMELLE PASTA - Feb. 14th at 3pm

$35.00 - $55.00

Wouldn't you want to give your sweetie all the GOLD in this world! Well, today you can with this pasta class where after making out filling and our caramelle, we will decorate them with some gold dust!

Don't miss this opportunity as we offer this class only twice a year! (next Dec 31st!)

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"MOMMY&ME" COOKIE DECORATING (Saturday, May 8th @11am)

$35.00 - $68.00

Mother's Day is just around the corner so why not having fun together making and decorating cookies together?

We’ll put together colorful royal icing, and kids will practice decorating various shaped cookies.

This class is ideal for 1 parent and 1 kid

Got more than 1 child cooking? Choose the right pass from the dropdown menu.


Recipe and zoom link sent upon registration.

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PASTA TOOLS and more!

Professional Rolling Pin (80cm) Made in Italy

$40.00 - $90.00

Professional rolling pin in beech tree wood for fresh homemade pasta. 

Length cm 80

Diam. cm 4,2

Professionals, to roll the dough and prepare the egg fresh pasta, use this beech-wood rolling pin.

It is equipped with a rounded tip and a single handle, for simple hanging after use.

Join our Pasta Master Class with Rina Poletti on March 6th at 12:00pm to learn the insides-outs of making traditional Sfoglia Emiliana.

Rolling pin ships only to continental USA.

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BEST RAVIOLI TRAY EVER!

$23.99

This ravioli tray will consistently produce beautiful ravioli. Try for yourself!

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BRASS RAVIOLI STAMPS

$39.00 - $160.00

With these individually hand-crafted in Italy brass stamps, you will be making beautiful ravioli in a cinch!

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RAVIOLI STAMPS (SET of 4)

$45.00

This box contains a set of 4 stamps for cutting Ravioli.

The set includes:

star-shaped stamp

sun-shaped stamp

flower-shaped stamp

heart-shaped stamp

Made in Italy

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GNOCCHI BOARD

$10.00

Make always perfect gnocchi with our gnocchi board!


(Shipping will be refunded for any orders that you pick up!)

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TIRAMISU' (Fitted T-shirt)

$25.00

The one and only TIRAMISU' Tshirt.

Ti Amo/I love you

TI-RAMISU'....well, no need for explanations here!

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Bow Tie Silicon Pot Holders

$22.00

These Bow Tie Silicon Pot Holders are the cutest kitchen accessory you'll ever have. you will start cooking just to be able to show them off!
Get one pair for you..and one for a friend.
each package contains 2 pot holders.

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SILICONE Bread Mold&Bowl - ALL in ONE!

$29.99
  • This versatile bread mold & bowl all in one is SO practical. NO more extra bowls to wash, no heavy cast-iron pots to carry and you can even fit 3 of them in the over for multiple loaves!
  • Shaped as a partially closed bowl, the bread maker allows steam to circulate inside, making the dough moist and preventing the bread from drying out
  • The side openings allow hot air to circulate inside the Bread Maker giving bread a crusty, golden texture
  • Includes easy recipes to enjoy the taste and smell of traditional homemade bread
  • Suitable for microwave and dishwasher safe; made of 100% platinum silicone to withstand high temperatures of up to 428ºF (220ºC)

Color Brown

Item Weight 1 Pounds

Material Silicone

Capacity0.6 Liters

Item Dimensions LxWxH11.02 x 9.06 x 5.12 inches



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Knitted Cannoli

$9.00 - $60.00

These knitted cannoli are so cute that you might want to eat them! The perfect gift for all the cannoli lovers.

Mondo Italiano also offers a Cannoli making class. Buy them together!

Handmade.

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Fashionable Aprons

$18.00

Wearing an apron doesn't get cuter than this!

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SPICE UP your kitchen!

$8.99

These cute little spice jars (spices included) will flavor your dishes as well as decorate your kitchen.
Each sold separately.
0.16oz

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Recent News - A Taste of Italy right here in Pittsburgh_

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A Taste of Italy Right Here in Pittsburgh

By Emma Paulini 
From Asian markets in the Strip District to German food in Deutschtown, Pittsburgh is a cultural hub where people from all over the world visit, work, and live.  Young people are also able to experience a little bit of Italy at Mondo Italiano Centro di Cultura Italiana.  On August 17, campers attended a half day Italian cooking class in Edgewood to create mozzarella and mozzarella based dishes together.  Throughout the summer and during the school year, Mondo Italiano runs half day cooking demonstrations, 10-week long courses, language classes, and more, in which children and adults cook, sing, play, and learn in Italian.
Sampling Italian wafer cookies
In 2003, Italian native Viviana Altieri founded Mondo Italiano, meaning “Italian World,” to create a welcoming place for Pittsburgh’s Italian community and anyone interested in Italian culture to gather, learn, and embrace the culture together.  In addition, the organization runs group excursions to Italian exhibitions and festivals and even trips to Italy.  They also provide translation and interpretation services in over 20 languages.
Chopping cheese curd to make mozzarella
While waiting for everyone to arrive, campers decorated chef hats and crafted necklaces out of penne pasta and beads.  The group then headed outside to a little garden containing tomato and basil plants and picked basil leaves for use later in the class.  Back inside the well-stocked and equipped kitchen, the kids sampled Italian wafer cookies as Viviana explained the plan for the day.  The menu consisted of homemade mozzarella, pizza-like antipasti, and suppli al telefono.  Suppli al telefono is a Roman finger food combining the words meaning “surprise” and “telephone.”  A rice and tomato sauce mixture is filled with mozzarella, coated in breadcrumbs, and fried in oil.  The result contains a melty, cheesy “surprise” that stretches and twirls from the center much like a telephone cord!
Chefs at work, making mozzarella and suppli al telefono
Stretching the Mozzarella
After washing their hands and situating themselves at cutting boards, the young chefs mixed homemade tomato sauce with rice and eggs for the suppli while prepping for mozzarella making.  Viviana explained two ways mozzarella cheese can be made.  One method uses milk and rennet and a lot of chemistry to come out just right.  In this class, the campers learned a second method using cheese curd.  The kids chopped blocks of curd while Viviana taught them more of the process: pour boiling salted water over the curd and stir until the curd breaks down.  Next, drain the curd and stir the pieces into clumps.  Then, knead and fold the clumps to attain an elastic mozzarella texture.  Mozzarella means “to choke”, and campers were shown how to squeeze the mixture through their fists and pinch it off, resulting in a delicious ball of mozzarella cheese.
Cooking the suppli al telefono
Some kids were experienced chefs, while others were new to cooking.  Campers helped each other when they mastered a new skill.  One camper, Diaz, talked about her enjoyment in cooking Italian food: “I did the pasta and pizza class before, which was also really fun.”
Mondo Italiano’s cooking classes are capped at eight participants for safety and so that each camper can fully participate in all aspects of the cooking process.  “It’s important to me that kids nowadays have the chance to explore,” Viviana said, and the hands-on experience of creating food themselves really allows that.
Lydia, another returning camper, explained that languages and people from around the world interest her.  She’s excited to participate in Mondo Italiano classes because she appreciates learning about cultures from far and wide.
Once the cheese curds formed into mozzarella and the suppli was spooned piping hot out of the pan, everyone sampled their creations, munching and smiling over the mouthwatering treats they had prepared.  “Buon appetito!” filled the air as campers tasted together, a warm community of budding chefs sharing a love of the Italian culture.  Mondo Italiano’s community and learning environment allow kids to explore a special taste of the international flavor Pittsburgh offers.

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Buon Appetito: Heinz History Center Launches Healthy Heritage Cooking Series
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By MARGARET J. KRAUSS • APR 30, 2013

As part of the Heinz History Center's Healthy Heritage Cooking Series, Viviana Altieri demonstrates to Pittsburgh Public School students how to make fried risotto balls called supplì.
CREDIT MARGARET J. KRAUSS / 90.5 WESAThe Heinz History Center on Tuesday kicked off the Healthy Heritage Cooking Series, a three-month pilot program designed to introduce students to Italian, Syrian and Bulgarian cooking and connect health to history.
Viviana Altieri, who directed an Italian cooking demonstration, is the executive director of Mondo Italiano, a local meet-up organization that promotes Italian language and culture. She said food traditions have always been important to mankind and that the Healthy Heritage series will broaden students’ cultural horizons.
“It gives the kids exposure to other nationalities, other environments or recipes that otherwise they would not have come close to,” Altieri said.
Sixth-grade students from Pittsburgh Arlington PreK-8, having helped make and shape their own risotto balls — called supplì — looked on as Altieri took the final step of frying them in batches. 
“The secret about frying,” Altieri said, “is that you don’t want to overcrowd your pan. Otherwise the temperature is going to go down and it’s not going to make it crispy.”
The students watched intently. In homage to supplì’s birthplace in Rome, some of the class wore costume centurion helmets.
“That smells really good,” one girl whispered.
Lauren Uhl, the Heinz History Center’s curator of food and fitness, said the cooking demonstrations serve as a vehicle for teaching children about more than just cuisine.
“Food is such an accessible way to get to things like history and geography, so we thought this would really be great for kids,” Uhl said.
She hopes the series will introduce students to personal histories as well as national histories.
“This seemed like a perfect thing to get generations together, not only for us and for school kids, but hopefully they go home and ask their mom what their favorite recipe is or cook with their grandmother or something like that,” Uhl said, “start asking them family stories, ‘Where did you come from?’ ‘What were your family traditions?’ ‘What did you eat when you were growing up?’ Those are the kinds of things we’re hoping to spur.”
Sarah Simko-Zeminski, the class’s teacher, said the Healthy Heritage Cooking Series allowed her to connect the history of the Pittsburgh region to something concrete.
“As a history teacher I get, ‘That class is boring,’ you know, ‘We’re always reading,’" Simko-Zeminski said, "and this is a really good way for my kids to see that history is real and that these things exist, and there’s a reason why we learn about this stuff.”
The room’s noise level ebbed as the class tried their handiwork. Supplì were deemed delicious, and some even ventured to say they were going to try to make them at home.
As the class gathered for a photo, Altieri asked, “What do we say in Italian before we eat?”
“Buon appetito!” the class roared back. 
Istituto Mondo Italiano home of La Dolce Vita Butique
  • About
  • NEW! Virtual Tours of Italy from Italy
  • Cooking classes (ONLINE)
  • Italian Film Festival 2021
  • ADULT ITALIAN CLASSES (ONLINE)
  • CILS exam/Dual Citizenship
  • Translation/Interpretation
  • LA DOLCE VITA Boutique
  • GIFT CERTIFICATES
  • Italian Bookstore
  • NEWS from La Befana/CHILDREN
  • Bilingual Storytime
  • CHILDREN ITALIAN CLASSES
  • Birthday Parties/ROOM Rental
  • Category