For years, I had the privilege of leading a culture-focused cooking group in the US. Like many wonderful experiences, our group came together organically, unfolding on its own and bringing joy and cherished memories to its many members.
But before I share the outline for creating your own group, allow me to share the story of how our gatherings began, it’s definitely worth a quick read!
A girlfriend of mine proposed the ambitious idea of recreating the entire Oktoberfest menu from that month’s Bon Appétit magazine. Although neither of us had ever made anything on the menu, as self proclaimed “home chefs” we embraced the challenge!
Setting a date we invited friends to celebrate Octoberfest in my row home in Baltimore city. I vividly remember we spent weeks researching, ordering specialty ingredients, running from one end of town to the other searching for the perfect cuts of meat and ordering Bavarian beer. We were committed to authenticity even if it meant exhausting ourselves!
On the day of our feast we pulled bar stools up to the stove, poured enormous glasses of wine and made Spätzle using our fingers, piece by piece. We braised the most beautiful brisket, made pretzels and our own fresh assortment of mustards. We decorated the table with our beautiful dishes and welcomed our guests with a choice of Bavarian beers and music! Honestly, you could have seen our smiles from the moon, we were so proud. Our friends were literally speechless (and trust me they aren’t the quiet type) and while they were well acquainted with our passion for cooking it was clear we had gone far beyond the extra mile.
to honour our hard work we took turns introducing each dish and what it had taught us about Bavarian food and beer culture and of course all about the FEST!
Just like us, our friends learned about a part of the world they had yet to explore, followed by an immediate dive into its food. It was a truly enriching experience, leaving no one empty handed and drew us closer through shared discovery. later that evening one of the other girls Proposed an idea
How about we do this again? Next time we pick another country and we all pitch in?
and just like that, fueled by our enthusiasm and inspired by our example International Cooking society was born.
global Gastronomy, uniting values and belonging
Our idea and group gained momentum rapidly, almost overnight. But it wasn’t surprising, given our concept revolved around celebration with individuals who valued inclusion and creating a sense of belonging. Countless friendships were forged, love stories blossomed, and many people and cultures celebrated. It was my privilege to have been a part of facilitating something so special.
And guess what? you can do it too, right now from wherever you are in the world! And when you do, please come back and tell me all about it, I want pictures and your story! I’d be happy to possibly featuring you on Pure Life & Olives!
Here’s is a refreshingly simple guide to get you started, inspired directly by our memorable Oktoberfest gathering, enjoy friends!
Each month, a different member would act as the host, selecting the country of focus. The host’s sole responsibility was to welcome the group into their home—no additional tasks required, as we understood the effort involved in hosting.
Each person contributed a homemade dish from the chosen country, and one by one, they would guide us through their creation, sharing insights into the food and culture they had discovered. The storytelling surrounding the dishes were often the highlight, aside from the eating, of course! With most of us experimenting with new ingredients and techniques, trust me there were great stories around the mishaps along the way!
Additional Tips
1. Keep it free, the only costs we ever had was what we paid for our own food and drinks.
2. Whenever possible, invite a native of the country you are celebrating.
3. There might be a person or two who wants to partake but simply doesn’t cook (we had a couple single guys like this!) we made them responsible for beer, water, paper products, trash bags…so on.
4. Donate leftover food. we had a men’s halfway house who always appreciated when we stopped by!
