How To Start a Cookbook Club

Want an easy way to dine with friends? A cookbook club is the latest trend, with each member creating a recipe from the same cookbook. Here’s how.

It’s 6:30 p.m. on a Thursday. Our typical Thursday searches for leftovers after our 7 month old paints himself with mashed veggies, but tonight there’s soft jazz playing. A dear friend brings Larson to his knees; another pours wine into stemless glasses. I put the finishing touches on a quinoa risotto with roasted broccoli. Stifled laughter, glasses clinking. The table is full: Kale salad with apples, baked mashed potatoes with vegan aioli and macaron truffles. How is that possible, and even on a weekday? Welcome to the magic of the cookbook club.

What is a book club?

A cookbook club is like a dinner club or potluck. Instead of everyone going at their own pace like the typical potluck, all the recipes at the table come from the same cookbook. What makes this experience unique is that instead of a patchwork of mismatched dishes, all the recipes come from the same author, making for a cohesive meal. Each participant brings a dish from the cookbook. In the time it takes to prepare a single dish, you can have a wonderful meal that would have taken countless hours to prepare.

All photos below by the talented Lauren McDuffie from My Kitchen Little.

Organize a book club

Cookbook clubs are pretty easy to set up. Here are some of our tips for planning and running a kitchen book club.

select club members.

Our ideal number of guests at a dinner party is 6-8. This comfortably accommodates everyone around the table, allowing each participant to converse and feel part of the group. As a group gets larger, conversations become more segmented and eating together becomes more complicated. We prefer an intimate dinner party to a large one, as this allows us more time for each guest.

Choose your location.

Determine if you want to host the kitchen book club in the same house or different locations each time. It’s nice to rotate the locations so that each person or couple has a chance to show off their space and be responsible for setting it up and cleaning it up.

Choose your cookbook.

Rotate the cookbook selection for each club member; A simple way is to ask the host to choose the book. Our first cookbook club book was The First Mess by Laura Wright (she’s also featured on our podcast, episode 40).

Choose a date on the calendar.

Even between two people, finding a dinner date can be difficult! Using a Doodle poll can be helpful to narrow down a date. Don’t forget the midweek nights as the weekends are sometimes the first to fill up. We love Thursday or Friday nights as they are a great way to end the weekends.

Create a recipe.

Create a common registration form for the recipes in the book. Here’s how we do ours: I made a joint google doc and added all the dietary restrictions above. Then I added each contestant’s name with a place for them to write down the recipe they chose. Below I’ve added a photo of the cookbook table of contents to provide the list of recipes for you to choose from.

To obtain the book, members of the cooking club can purchase the cookbook or consult the library. Or I’d offer to send a photo of a recipe if the guest wasn’t willing to commit to buying the book. As cookbook authors, Alex and I strongly recommend buying cookbooks to support your favorite authors and have a physical reminder of the night.

Pro tip: Ask the on-site host to sign in to prepare the main course. This allows traveling guests to bring appetizers, side dishes, and desserts, which tend to be easier to transport.

Find a repeat.

This is perhaps the most important thing: deciding whether to repeat the cookbook club. A resource I’ve seen recommended every 6 weeks as it can be difficult to commit monthly with busy schedules. Our book club agreed that 6 weeks was a comfortable rotation for us. When speaking to people whose dinner clubs have fizzled out, choosing a frequency that everyone can contribute to is a key indicator of the sustainability of the group.

Plan the logistics.

Since our book club only has 6 people, the logistics are easy. Everyone brings their dish and we eat. However, larger cookbook clubs may have greater challenges, e.g. B. to have enough plates, cutlery and glasses for everyone. To solve this problem, some hosts of large parties ask their guests to bring their own plates, bowls and cutlery.

have fun.

Once everyone is gathered and the food is ready, it’s time to let go! Free yourself from distractions, grab a glass of wine, and immerse yourself in good food and conversation. If the members don’t know each other, think of a few guiding questions to get things started. Our first book club was a mix of old and new friends, and the conversation was both silly and deep.

A selection of cookbooks

If you’re looking to start a cookbook club and aren’t sure where to start, here are some cookbooks to get you started. We have hundreds of cookbooks, but here are some of our latest favorites:

Vegetarian Cookbooks

• Pretty Easy Cooking by Sonja and Alex Overhiser: Voted one of the best healthy cookbooks of 2018 and one of the best vegetarian cookbooks, our book is packed with beautiful yet accessible vegetarian and vegan recipes! (Taste good.)
• love real food by Kathryne Taylor: A creative and complete vegetarian cuisine, simple and surprising. (Taste good.)
• The Love and Lemons Cookbook by Jeanine Donofrio: Pretty colorful vegetarian recipes inspired by the seasons (taste.)
• Feast of Sarah Copeland: Delightful veggie food from bibimbap to veggie burritos at the taco truck. (Taste good.)
• Green Kitchen Travels by David Frenkiel and Luise Vindahl: Imaginative vegetarian cuisine inspired by travel around the world. (Taste good.)

vegan cookbooks

Healthy Cookbooks