A la carte: Special dinners, cooking classes and book events for spring

SONOMA

Shorts, sips and bites

The 22nd annual Sonoma International Film Festival kicks off with two delicious food-and-wine events March 28 and 29 at Ramekins Cooking School in Sonoma.

Devour! Chefs & Shorts! at 6 p.m. March 28 will feature seven chefs who will each prepare a dish inspired by short, food-focused films from around the world. The evening begins with passed appetizers, bubbles and a signature cocktail, and continues with the dinner, wine and film shorts. Tickets are $300. sonomafilmfest.org

Celebrity Chef Tyler Florence will host a dinner at 5 p.m. March 29 featuring his debut documentary, “UNCRUSHABLE,” and a four-course dinner paired with wine. The film tells the story of the 2017 wildfires in Wine Country. Tickets are $300.

To reserve: sonomafilmfest.org. Ramekins is located at 450 West Spain St.

SANTA ROSA

Art of Dessert

Now celebrating its sweet 16, The Art of Dessert will be held at 5:30 p.m. March 30 in the lobby of the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts.

The evening includes a cocktail and hors d'oeuvres reception, a dinner provided by Pacific Connection Catering with wine from Rodney Strong Vineyards, a performance by the LBC Mariachi Ensemble and a live auction.

The festivities culminate at 8:30 p.m. with one-of-a-kind cakes served at each table. Tickets are $250; celebrity-hosted table seats are $625. Celebrity hosts include Charlie Palmer of the Charlie Palmer Group, Mark Stark of Stark Reality Restaurants, Dustin Valette of Valette in Healdsburg and Heather Irwin of the Press Democrat's Bite Club.

To reserve: 707-800-7505 or sesquivel@lutherburbankcenter.org. For more information: lutherburbankcenter.org. 50 Mark West Springs Road.

SANTA ROSA

Estate dinner

St. Francis Winery will hold a pop-up Estate Dinner at 6:30 p.m. March 30 to celebrate the launch of spring and a new growing season.

Designed by Chef Trevor Eliason, the seven-course dinner paired with St. Francis wines will be held in the estate dining room.

Tickets are $200. To reserve: stfranciswinery.com. 100 Pythian Road at Highway 12.

PETALUMA

Not so humble pies

Andrew Janjigian, test cook and senior editor of Cook's Illustrated magazine, will give a workshop on perfecting pizza in the home oven on March 29 and March 30 at Central Milling's Artisan Baking Center.

Participants will make a variety of doughs - New York thin-crust, Sicilian, Detroit, among others - and learn how to shape, top and bake them to perfection.

The weekend workshop runs from noon to 4 p.m. March 29 and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 30. Cost is $254. To reserve: centralmilling.com. 1120 Holm Road.

SAN RAFAEL

Reichl dishes in memoir

Food writer Ruth Reichl will appear in conversation with Soleil Ho, the new restaurant reviewer for the San Francisco Chronicle, at 7:30 p.m. April 8 at a Copperfield's Books event at the Osher Marin JCC.

Reichl will discuss her latest book, “Save Me the Plums: My Gourmet Memoir,” which chronicles her personal journey as editor-in-chief of the ground-breaking Gourmet magazine. Her tenure there ended abruptly in the fall of 2009 when Condé Nast announced the monthly magazine would cease publication.

Tickets are $40, including one book; $55, including 2 tickets and one book. To reserve: copperfieldsbooks.com. 200 N. San Pedro Road.

SANTA ROSA

A Plum pasta class

New York transplant Ali LaRaia will give a hands-on cooking class, “Let's Make Pasta,” at 7 p.m. Friday, March 22, at Miracle Plum, a specialty food shop in Railroad Square.

Guests will dive into making pasta dough and crafting shapes while enjoying antipasti and wine. The class is a collaboration with

Cowgirl Creamery and Ria D'Aversa of Pennrose Wine.

Tickets are $75. To reserve: miracleplum.com. 208 Davis St.

WINDSOR

Notre Vue pasta class

Notre Vue Estate will offer a moderately challenging hike through the 710-acre estate at 10 a.m. Sunday, March 24,followed by a hands-on pasta-making workshop and lunch accompanied by estate-grown wines.

Chef Jack Herron of Relish Culinary Adventures will give the class on pasta dough, showing how to transform half into fettuccine and half into ravioli. He will also demonstrate how to prepare a roasted tomato sauce and an herb-brown butter sauce.

The lunch will include the pasta dishes along with a green salad and a surprise dessert. Tickets are $145. To reserve: relishculinary.com. 11010 Estate Lane.

SONOMA

Stone Edge reception

Chef/author John McReynolds will celebrate the release of his new cookbook, “Stone Edge Farm Kitchen Larder Cookbook” at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 21, at a Readers' Books reception at Edge, the restaurant operated by Stone Edge Farm.

The book, written in collaboration with Stone Edge Chefs Mike Emanuel and Fiorella Butron, includes recipes for delicious condiments such as Garlic and Onion Jam and preserved lemons, along with finished dishes using the larder products.

Edge is located at 139 E. Napa St. readersbooks.com

JENNER

Winemaker dinner

Coast Kitchen will hold a winemaker dinner with Venge Vineyards and Croix Estate at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 21, at the Timber Cove Resort.

The five-course meal paired with wine will be crafted by Coast Kitchen Executive Chefs Seadon Shouse and Ronald Andrade. In addition to an amuse-bouche, the dinner will include Ora King Salmon topped with pan-seared baby bok choy, Atlantic Sea Truffle and seaweed salad and Sonoma Lamb Loin topped with date jam, mint oil and braised baby turnips.

Dinner is $120, $200 with wine pairing, with a portion of the proceeds going to help flood victims. Reservations: 707-847-3231. 21780 Highway 1.

Staff Writer Diane Peterson can be reached at 707-521-5287 or diane.peterson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @dianepete56.