Artisan Conserves: Fruits and Vegetables

Preserve the seasons—master traditional and modern techniques for transforming fruits and vegetables into shelf-stable delicacies.

Choose one of the following available dates:

Highlights

  • Understand the science and safety behind conserving fruits and vegetables.
  • Produce a full range of fruit conserves: marmalades, jams, jellies, butters, syrups, and candied fruits.
  • Make natural fruit juice concentrates, fruit vinegars, and fermented preserves.
  • Learn how to dehydrate fruits and create oil infusions and essential oil extracts.
  • Explore traditional vegetable preserves: pickles, sauces, pestos, and savory condiments.
  • Work with herbs, seeds, and spices using oil, vinegar, salt, and fermentation as preservation mediums.
  • Visit a local farmers’ market to select seasonal ingredients for production.
  • Enjoy full room and board, chef-prepared meals, and the camaraderie of a small, international group.

Quick Look

Period

March

Difficulty

Beginner to Advanced

Duration

7 days

Acommodation

Blue Sardine Boutique Hostel

Group Size

12 students max

Cost

2026: €29502027: €3450

Introduction

Discover the Art of Natural Food Preservation

Join us for a one-week, hands-on course focused on preserving fruits and vegetables naturally.

This program is perfect for cooks, food artisans, small producers, and passionate home preservers.

Discover how to safely preserve seasonal produce while maintaining its full flavor and nutritional value.

You’ll explore key preservation principles—acidity, pH, sugar concentration, dehydration, and fermentation—through practical, easy-to-understand lessons.

Each day, you’ll create a variety of sweet and savory conserves using traditional methods and modern tools.

Make marmalades, jams, pickles, pestos, fermented vegetables, fruit vinegars, and oil-preserved delicacies.

This course provides you with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to begin preserving food at home or in your business.

Objectives

Gallery

Itinerary

Who is this course for?

What You Will Learn

This course will give you the confidence and technical skills to produce your shelf-stable preserves with seasonal ingredients and artisanal integrity.

Objectives

  • Understand the scientific principles of pH, water activity, and shelf-stability.
  • Apply safety measures and hygienic practices during production.
  • Use different preservation techniques: high-acid cooking, vinegar pickling, sugar concentration, fermentation, and dehydration.
  • Create fruit conserves in multiple formats: jam, jelly, marmalade, syrup, and butter.
  • Produce fermented vegetables and fruit vinegars using controlled microbial activity.
  • Develop vegetable-based products like relishes, sauces, and savory condiments.
  • Work with herbs, seeds, and spices in infusions and preserved forms.
  • Analyze flavor, color, and texture for professional-quality results.

During the Course, You Will Also

  • Receive a printed and digital manual with recipes, production charts, and technical notes.
  • Receive an ACS apron, hat, and branded notepad and pens.
  • Taste and evaluate all products made in class.
  • Enjoy chef-prepared lunches and dinners inspired by Mediterranean cuisine and seasonal produce.

Who teaches this course?

Juan Penzini Granier

Academic Director

Check Bio

Juan Penzini-Granier is the founder and academic director of the Artisan Culinary School. With a career spanning over 15 years, Juan is a seasoned professional with a wealth of knowledge and experience in the culinary industry. Juan’s culinary journey began with formal training in baking, which he then complemented with education as a professional cook, then turned his career towards the managerial part of the culinary business. He went on to own and manage several successful restaurants in Venezuela, where he was awarded the largest concessions system at the most prestigious country club in the city. He also had the opportunity to go back to the school where he started his career, but this time as a kitchen instructor and food and beverage cost professor. Then, seeking to expand his horizons, Juan moved to Italy to pursue an education in professional charcuterie and cheese making and ended up being the director of an international culinary school. As a teacher and instructor, Juan has trained over 500 people from more than 45 countries, instilling in them a passion for culinary artistry and a commitment to excellence. With the Artisan Culinary School, Juan aims to offer a unique and immersive culinary education experience that empowers aspiring food artisans to realize their full potential. Juan’s dedication to culinary education and his vast expertise make him an invaluable leader and mentor at the Artisan Culinary School. His vision and leadership drive the school with excellence and inspire its students to reach new heights in their culinary careers.

Itinerary

Discover everything we have planned for you in our itinerary.

Day 1

Arrival Day, Welcome to Altea

Check-in, orientation, and welcome dinner.

Day 2

Fermentation, Vinegars & the Science of Conservation

Introduction to preservation theory and safety. Fermented fruit and vegetable conserves. Homemade vinegars.

Day 3

Fruit Conserves I: Marmalades, Jams, Jellies, Butters, Dehydrated Fruits

Focus on sugar-based preservation techniques, balance, pectin, and dehydration.

Day 4

Fruit Conserves II & Vegetable Conserves I

Work with fruit juice concentrates, syrups, and candied fruits. Begin with savory vegetable preserves and pickling.

Day 5

Vegetable Conserves II: Sauces, Condiments, Seeds & Grains

Make vegetable sauces (pesto, romesco, chutney), and explore preserving seeds, grains, and legumes.

Day 6

Market Visit & Herb/Spice Preservation

Morning trip to a local farmers’ market. Final production day working with herbs, infused oils, and essential oil extraction.

Day 7

Departure Day – Goodbye for Now

Breakfast and transport to the airport or station. Light lunch available for late departures.

Specifics

When you join us at the Artisan Culinary School, everything is designed to allow you to focus entirely on learning, creating, and enjoying the experience.

Course Fees (2025/26)

  • €2,950 per student
  • €850 non-participant companion

Course Fees (2027)

  • €3,450 per student
  • €850 non-participant companio

Inclusions

  • Airport/train station transfer to and from school
  • Full room and board during the course
  • All lessons, theory, and practice
  • All course materials and printed manuals
  • Custom ACS work shirt, apron, hat
  • Access to the school’s online community
  • One group dinner out at a local restaurant
  • Certificate of course completion

Not Included

  • Airfare or any travel expenses not explicitly mentioned above.
  • Travel insurance (highly recommended).
  • Personal expenses, shopping, or additional food and drink during free time, excursions, or dining outside the school.

Who is this course for?

This course is ideal for:

  • Chefs and food professionals looking to expand their pantry of house-made preserves
  • Farmers and growers adding value to their seasonal harvests
  • Small-scale food entrepreneurs or homesteaders creating product lines
  • Enthusiasts passionate about natural preservation, sustainability, and traditional food culture

Did you know?

  • Pectin levels vary dramatically by fruit and ripeness. Commercial jam recipes often use added pectin or acid to achieve a consistent gel, but traditional methods rely on extracting natural pectin from underripe fruits.
  • Botulism risk is real in oil infusions: When garlic or fresh herbs are submerged in oil without acidification or refrigeration, Clostridium botulinum spores can grow and produce deadly toxins in anaerobic conditions.
  • Acetic acid concentration matters: Homemade vinegars should reach at least 4–5% acidity to be safe for pickling. Vinegar made via spontaneous fermentation may not get this level without controlled acidification or blending.
  • Lacto-fermentation creates lactic acid as a preservative. This natural acid not only inhibits pathogens but also contributes complex flavors to preserved vegetables like sauerkraut, kimchi, and fermented carrots.
  • Vacuum sealing does not preserve—it only slows oxidation. Without acid, salt, sugar, or refrigeration, vacuum-packed produce can still spoil or become dangerous.
  • Candied fruit is preserved by osmosis and dehydration. As water leaves the fruit and sugar enters, microbial activity becomes impossible in the low-Aw, high-sugar environment.
Objectives
Instructors
Itinerary
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