Two recently-published cook books caught our eye in the last couple of weeks so we thought we'd share them with our Hedonistic Hiking readers - one on Australian food and the other on Italian Delis.

Last month saw the 200th anniversary of the death of Napoleon Bonaparte: Emperor of France and famous resident of the island of Elba which we visit on our Lucca, Volterra and Elba tour.

We’ve been lucky enough to have lived in Tuscany for over 20 years and, after planning our own tours in the region, we’ve really got to know every nook and cranny. So while travel to Italy remains challenging for now, here are our own little Tuscan gems, guaranteed to whet your appetite for...

Our new tours in the Grampians in central Victoria start and finish in the town of Ballarat, an established foodie destination with some magnificent gold rush architecture. Well worth a visit if you have not been before ...

The Etruscan people occupied an area of Central Italy referred to as Etruria predominantly in the 7th and 6th centuries BC, the region broadly covering modern day Tuscany, the west of Umbria and the north of Lazio.

One of the unique selling points of our hiking tours is the emphasis we place on local food and wine.  On many of the Australian tours we stay in lodges or private houses where Mick turns from hiking leader by day to head chef by night.  A professionally-trained chef, Mick puts...

As we continue to miss Italy and won't this year have the chance to catch up with so many of our favourite chefs and restaurateurs, we have re-visited this month three more truly fabulous dining experiences from our tours in La Bella Italia.  From the highly sophisticated cuisine...

Torta Pasqualina has become a tradition at Easter time across the whole of Italy, although it is believed to have originated in the coastal region of Liguria. The inclusion of the eggs symbolises life and rebirth and it makes a delicious savoury tart for picnics or light lunches.

If you're still hoping to lock in plans for an autumnal trip to Victoria's High Country then look no further than our Bright tour from 14-18 May.  This truly is the most stunning time to visit for the landscapes, seasonal produce and autumn festivals.

Last month's Blog about some of our favourite dining experiences in Italy seemed to attract so much attention that we have decided to share some more culinary highlights this month too!  We've ventured a little further afield this time - to Austria and Slovenia -  as well as down to...