Cooking with someone is a great way to get to know them. And breaking bread together over a meal has always been a community building ritual. A lot of people get intimidated by cooking for such a large group. Really, it's all pretty easy once you learn where everything is. Sign up for a couple of weeks to cook with someone who's lived here before.
People come into the co-ops with all sorts of food backgrounds.
Have fun, dance while chopping carrots, make tapes for the kitchen. Everyone cooks once a week. You can change nights from week to week. You must sign up to cook, find the person you're cooking with, and plan a menu several days before the food week actually starts. You need to submit a list of the food you need to make your meal to the foo co-ordinator.