Buongiorno Friends! I’m Marzia Molatore, and I’m the founder of Bella Cibo’s Italian Cooking Classes and recently published my first (of hopefully many) cookbooks, “Cooking with Mamma Marzia.”
I was born in the beautiful city of Naples, Italy, and grew up in the Valtellina region of Northern Italy. I grew up with amazing females in my life who nurtured my love of food and cooking. Cooking wasn’t just an activity but a way of life for myself and the women in my family. My passion and love for cooking came from spending endless hours in the kitchen with the most fantastic cooks I could imagine; my mother, my Nonna, and all of my aunts.
In 2003 I took a leap of faith and moved to Vancouver to join the love of my life, my husband, Dan. We have two beautiful children (Isabella and Mattias) and have surrounded ourselves with wonderful people who helped us find a new family here in Canada.
Sometimes life throws opportunities to you when you least expect them. In 2013, a group of my Canadian friends wanted to learn how to make one of my most staple recipes, lasagna… from scratch, of course! I taught them how to make the traditional dish, and from that moment, I knew my destiny was to inspire others to make homemade food and share my Italian culture and heritage with Canada and the rest of the world!
From that night, I started Bella Cibo cooking school. I chose the name “Bella Cibo” because it literally means “beautiful food.” What began as a fun hobby grew into my passion and career as a business that hosts multiple classes per week. During the global pandemic, we even started offering online cooking classes so that aspiring chefs could continue to learn from the comfort and safety of their own homes.
A few years ago, I wrote down my business goals, and one of those goals was to write a cookbook. When my mother-in-law passed away in 2018, she gifted me her notebook with all of her recipes. This gift from her, and with the support of my family, gave me the inspiration to write and publish my first cookbook. This book is dedicated to my family, and all the women who have ever moved to another country in the world, found their passions, and fought to keep their traditions alive through love, food, and family. Every page in my cookbook is written with a Sprinkle of Love, and every recipe photo has an object in the background that has sentimental value to me or belonged to my family.
My vision with my business is to always be myself and maintain my authenticity. In my classes, I treat my students like family, we always have a good laugh, and I encourage my students to make beautifully delicious Italian dishes to share with their families.
I believe that if you have dreams, follow them, and if somebody tells you it’s impossible, prove them wrong. Always believe in yourself!
Connect with Marzia:
Website: www.bellacibo.ca
Instagram: @bellacibo
