Chef Duskie Estes, shown here cooking with her husband and partner John Stewart, will cook with Worth Our Weight Apprentices at a special dinner on Saturday night.

There is still time to snag yourself a seat at Saturday evening’s benefit for Worth Our Weight Culinary Apprentice Program.

Chef Duskie Estes of Zazu Restaurant will be guiding the apprentices through a special dinner featuring piquillo chiles stuffed with Dungeness crab brandade and served with Meyer lemon aioli, black cod with black risotto, Sebastopol mushrooms and sweet pea vines and, for dessert, rose-geranium-scented panna cotta with balsamic strawberries and shortbread. Wine will flow and there will be live music.

It all takes place at the home of Karen Gifford, a member of WOW’s board of directors, in Sebastopol.

Cost is $100 and all proceeds benefit the program. For reservations, call 544-1200. Call soon so you don’t risk missing out on a great opportunity to support a unique and invaluable program.

So far, 2012 has been great for Worth Our Weight. With the help of several generous donors, WOW has purchased, remodeled and furnished a four-bedroom house located next door to their cafe and kitchen. The first apprentice moved in recently and, eventually, eight apprentices will reside in the house. This is an enormous benefit, as homelessness has been a stumbling block for several of the young people who have participated in the program, which provides hands-on education in every aspect of restaurant management. To date, the program, founded six years ago by Chef Evelyn Cheatham, has worked with about 450 youth.

Chef Evelyn Cheatham founded Worth Our Weight Culinary Apprentice Program in 2006

Worth Our Weight serves brunch on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. It is located at 1021 Hahman Dr. in Santa Rosa. The back of the cafe, currently adorned with a wonderful mural, abuts Osake’s parking lot.

You can hear a podcast of Chef Cheatham and apprentice Rafa Guzman on “Mouthful, the Wine Country’s Most Delicious hour” here.

(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)