If you search “Cookbook Club” online, you’re sure to find lots of posts and articles about how to start a cookbook club, why you should join a cookbook club, and what even is a cookbook club. People across America— and possibly the world— are gathering together for a combination book club/potluck that gets them out of their comfort zone, both in the kitchen and socially. For me, it started when a friend from my homeschool days posted a link on Facebook: an article about Cookbook Clubs, first written in 2015. Her caption was simply “let’s do this!”
What is a Cookbook Club
Our experience
It was 2017, and I hadn’t spoken to my friend for more than a few sentences in years. We lived parallel lives in our hometown, where I had returned and she had never left. Maybe it was the loneliness I felt as a stay at home mom, maybe it was the thrill of mastering a new skill. Whatever it was, I commented on the post: “I want in!”
Another of our mutual friends from our homeschooling past messaged me a few minutes later to extend a formal invitation. We were really starting a Cookbook Club. We started a Facebook group, set a date, set a location, and we waited. I like to think we were all a little nervous since most of us were novice cooks at best and all of us were still trying to get the hang of motherhood.
January rolled around, and we met at A’s house for a potluck. We all brought intriguing cookbooks to peruse and pick through for our next meeting, which would be our first official meeting. Since we do nothing in halves, we picked a traditional Indian cookbook. Our next meeting lasted six hours. The house was filled with children laughing, the smell of curries wafting from the stove, and years worth of catching-up conversation. Although I didn’t know some of the other members that day, we were all friendly by the time we left.
Since then, we’ve tackled indigenous American cooking, Israeli food, Pacific Islander cuisine, and more. We’ve gotten closer as friends, and more skilled in the kitchen. We’ve found new favorite foods and new favorite cookbooks. I’ve tried foods I had never heard of, and cooking techniques that made me cringe when I read them in the cookbook. (Just last meeting, we had duck cooked in a whole tub of lard!)
We’ve had great recipes, like my potato au gratin. We’ve had less great recipes, like a curry that was so spicy it had to be diluted with a cup of yogurt for each 1/4 cup of curry. We’ve had simple recipes, like Turkish coffee, and complex recipes, like homemade milk bun.
How To Start A Cookbook Club
1. Start Small. Consider starting with a small group of about four people. That will give enough variety of dishes if everyone brings one of two offerings, but won’t be enough to overwhelm any of the cooks.
2. Consider Your Skills Are you a mix of proficient and newbie cooks? Choose a cookbook with recipes that appeal to all skill levels, like our The New Southern Cookbook.
3. Pick Cookbooks That Appeal To You and Your Friends. The beauty of a cookbook club is that it’s what YOU want. Are your friends less adventurous cooks than my lard-loving club? You can pick cookbooks that appeal to you.
4. Consider How You Want To Cook Do you hate cooking alone? Meet up with a friend or two to cook before the meet— or make the meet about cooking together!
5. Most Importantly-Don’t Stress It! Don’t stress about how your food looks. Don’t even stress about how it tastes. Cookbook Clubs are for having fun, and let’s be honest, having a night out of the house with friends.
I’m not going to be dramatic and say that our cookbook club changed my life. I can’t sit down and write a novel about what I’ve learned from it. But I look forward to it every month, and every time I visit the local used book store, I search out cookbooks that might intrigue and excite my fellow cookbook club members.
Being a new mom is hard. It can be hard to make friends in adulthood even if you aren’t also trying to raise a child. But food is the way to everyone’s heart, right? If you’re reading this, I urge you to consider— just consider— joining or forming a cookbook club. It’s my favorite way to socialize!
How do you and your friends get together? Have you ever heard of a cookbook club before?
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Tons of fun to network. And oh my, your plate of food looks amazing, it is making me hungry.
That sounds like so much fun!! Babushka might do a variation of this idea- a club for people wanting to do Mediterranean Diet, trying out recipes. Gracias for the inspiration.
Wow! I had never heard of a Cookbook Club before now! What a unique concept. This is perfect for extended families as well as groups of old high-school or college friends, or groups of friendly neighbors. Thank you so much for sharing this!
This is a great idea, but my husband is the cook of our family. I do like to cook, but he is much better. I’m going to tell him about this, just to see what he says.
I haven’t heard of a cookbook club, but it sounds like a lot of fun! I had a friend who was a great cook and she often brought things to get-togethers. Everyone would ask for her recipes and she happily sent them to all of us.
This would be a hoot but in my neighborhood of mostly 30 somethings, I don’t if any of them would have time to do this. Man, I would love to be a member of a club like this.
You made me hungry with all of these ideas lol. I never thought of making a cookbook club but it’s a great idea.
I never heard about the cookbook club, and I am so impressed in this blog to know about it. Thanks for letting us know all these!
Now this sounds like a great way to try a lot of new foods and swap yummy recipes! I need to try this with my friends!
That sounds like so much fun! It’s a good excuse to get together with some adults too!
This sounds like a great idea. And just think of all the good food you can eat
Oh wow this sounds like so much fun. I love the idea. I have often considered a cookbook but don’t think I have enough recipes so this would be a great way to publish with my friends. Love it.
This sounds like such a fun and enriching group to be a part of. You and your friends have really branched out into so many different types of cuisines.
I think this would be fun and I know a couple ladies who would be interested and I even know which Cookbook we should start with.
This would be a ton of fun. I do love to eat. Granted, I am not the best at cooking. Most of my food starts out frozen and I just reheat.
This is such a fun idea! It really offers people a chance to better their cooking skills while socializing and tasting a lot of other unique dishes. I love it!
I haven’t seen this done in years. Would be fun to get together with friends and enjoy doing something like this with each other.
Oh, what fun! I had never heard of a cookbook club before. Sounds like a fun club and a way to reconnect with good friends.
I think this would be a great social thing to start – especially because THIS GIRL loves food and eating! 😉