Indulging in a homemade Italian meal, meeting new people and sampling fine wine is typically the scene of an expensive night out on the town, but for several Eastern students, it is another day of class.

During the four-week summer session, the school of Family and Consumer Sciences is sponsoring two Italian culinary programs, which will bring food, wine and the culture of Tuscany to Eastern.

Professors Cecilia Ricci and Camilla Carrega, of the Apicius Culinary Institute in Florence, Italy, teach the Mediterranean Cooking and Wine Appreciation courses.

Carrega’s passion for wine has allowed her to travel through Europe, South Africa and the United States.

“In each wine that I taste during my travels, I savor not just the drink, but the culture and traditions that it come from,” Carrega said.

These cultures and traditions are exactly what she said she hopes to pass onto her students.

Carrega’s Wine Appreciation course reviews the various types of wine, their differences, how they are made and which regions they come from.

Ricci’s Mediterranean Cooking course focuses on preparing various foods from Italy and other Mediterranean countries.

The classes can be taken for both graduate and undergraduate credit and is open to students, faculty, staff and the community.

Thursday the cooking class prepared a pasta dish consisting of fresh egg pasta with a homemade tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and fresh basil, and a dessert in a glass bowl with chopped strawberries topped with a mixture of mascarpone, cream cheese and powdered sugar.

Mediterranean foods are known to focus on adding simple ingredients to their dishes in order to accentuate each individual ingredient.

After the food was prepared, the Wine Appreciation class studied the process of making sparkling wines and the various types, as well as which wines go best with which foods.

“It’s a science,” said Stephanie Smith, a graduate student. “It’s so much more than just getting a bottle and getting drunk. It’s about preparation and tasting.”

The two classes joined together at the end of the class to enjoy a full Mediterranean meal.

With three glasses of wine lined up in a row, the group began sampling from right to left.

After all three wines were tasted, the group sampled the food with the wine, only to find out that each wine gives the food its own distinct taste.

The classes were able to experience a different culture with different traditions, while enjoying a meal.

Eric Robinson can be reached at 581-7942 or etrobinson@eiu.edu.