In 2021, Jill Drum founded Jill’s Cookbook Club, a group that meets bimonthly for a planning happy hour and a dinner party. Earlier this year, the club spearheaded a chapter in Redmond, and on Thursday, its very first dinner party in Beaverton will be held.

The Bend chapter held its September dinner party on Sunday at Flights Wine Bar, where attendees brought meals made from recipes in Mark Bittman’s cookbook, “How to Grill Anything,” an ode to summer’s end.

Participants filed in with their hands full with dishes covered with tinfoil, adding to a spread of paella with handmade chorizo, stuffed flank steak, tofu Asian pear wraps, Baja-style fish tacos, grilled melon salad and zucchini bread, among 11 other dishes.

It wasn’t hard to figure out why the club has continued to grow since Drum founded it three years ago.

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Connecting through food

Longtime member Julia Bissinger, who brought spaghetti squash with fresh tomato sauce, said she has built close friendships by regularly attending the group. Community and camaraderie keep her coming back, in addition to the club’s format and values.

“I love to cook. I love trying new things. I like getting outside my comfort zone,” she said, adding the club challenges her to cook dishes she ordinarily wouldn’t make, like shrimp and watermelon ceviche.

The planning happy hour is held the week prior to the dinner party and invites participants to leaf through copies of the month’s chosen cookbook to select a recipe to bring to the dinner party. Participants pay $25 to attend the dinner to cover the cost of the venue, an event which is capped at 40 people and known to sell out.

After everyone has a chance to dig in at the dinner party, Drum invites attendees to talk about their dish, confessing if they’ve made changes to the recipe in case someone else hopes to replicate their culinary work of art.

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A coordinated potluck

Over the past three years, Drum has refined the club’s structure, tweaking it to run flawlessly. She prints out notecards with the name of each dish and dietary restrictions pertinent to the group’s members, which include vegetarian, vegan, dairy free, gluten-free, nut free and onion free.

Should new members have any additional dietary restrictions, she’s happy to add those to the list, too.

“We are erring on alphabet soup territory, but it’s worth it to be inclusive of different dietary needs,” Drum said.

When she first started the group, Drum helped attendees choose dishes to ensure an adequate balance of sides, mains and desserts. But she’s found it works just as seamlessly when individuals are free to pick a dish on their own. A Google spreadsheet allows participants to sign up for recipes organized by the type of dish.

“All of the dinners have been really balanced in a pretty surprising way,” Drum said.

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How are cookbooks selected for the club?

Drum selects the cookbook for each month based on factors such as seasonality and an appropriate format for the club.

“I always ask for recommendations, so I have a compilation of books that I write down that folks submit, and then I try to track both classics and new releases,” Drum said.

During the summer, Drum leans toward produce-heavy cookbooks and in winter, she selects books with cozy and comforting recipes. September’s grilling cookbook came as a recommendation by Bend chapter member Fred Bray. Bend’s next dinner party, which will be held Oct. 20, will center around recipes by Comfort: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi, an Israeli-born British chef.

Ottolenghi’s cookbook will officially go on sale on Oct. 8, just ahead of the next planning happy hour on Oct. 16.

November’s cookbook will follow the club’s tradition of family recipes followed by an invitation to share family stories at the dinner party.

“I read cookbooks like they’re novels,” Drum said. “The beauty is that if you pick a book that is specific — either to the author’s style, or to the cuisine — the dinner really feels like you’re learning about the author and the cuisine and the chef.”

Drum fosters an environment that encourages people to explore new dishes and cuisines, rather than bringing a dish that has been tested and perfected.

“It’s such a fun way for people to meet one another and bond over cooking and help people gain confidence in cooking,” she said. “It’s been a great way to bring community together through food.”

Those interested in participating in the cookbook club may sign up for events, once posted online, at jillscookbookclub.com, or stay in the know via Drum’s newsletter, which includes cookbook recommendations, recipes and club updates.