By Sara Niven
It’s commonplace to ask for a cappuccino or latte but do you know what macchiato means and why it is spelt with an ‘h?’
Or that pepperoni is not actually salami but a vegetable?
Those that can now claim to are the students attending Amanda Stewart’s ten-week long Italian language class in Swanage which comes to an end early next month after starting in the new year.
Her Beginners’ Italian for Foodies is a language course with a twist – all the classes are culinary themed. It has gone down a treat with enthusiastic linguists of all ages who meet each week at Marine Villas on Swanage Pier.
Amanda Stewart (above) is teaching a Beginners’ Italian for Foodies class in Swanage
“There’s definitely no shortage of culturally motivated people in Swanage – they bring a lot of work and travel related experience to the classes which I try to make as creative and fun as possible,” says Amanda, an experienced language teacher who grew up in a bilingual Italian and English household.
“Last lesson we covered the fact that Italians have seven different ways of simply saying ‘the’ but we did it through studying a typical menu.
“We then covered the fact that ‘pepperoni’ is not salami but is actually peppers, and to highlight that, I brought in roasted ones drizzled with a typical ‘Bagna cauda’ sauce originating in Piedmont, northern Italy.”
For details of future Italian classes in Swanage, email contactamandastewart@gmail.com
Live in Lulworth Would love to know more about your Italian intermediate sessions! When, where & how much?
Before Covid Lockdown I studied Italian for 2 years or so in U3A group & one to one with a couple of native speakers
Would love to improve all round