Thirty-four sweet years
By: Marquette University
Tags: Philosophy, Baking, Recipe, Holidays, New Year

Thirty-four sweet years

Dr. Richard C. Taylor and his son Edward recently baked several kinds of cookies from recipes that appear on Taylor’s list of more than 100 recipes collected from his students since 1986.

By Shelby Williamson, senior communication specialist in the Office of Marketing and Communication

Philosophy and cookies seem like an odd pairing.

The first, a field of study analyzing fundamental questions, reason, existence, knowledge and values.

The latter, a delicious treat.

But for more than three decades, Dr. Richard C. Taylor, professor of philosophy in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences, has tastefully mixed the baked goods into his classes to create the perfect blend of serious and sweet.

The result: A 70-page list — or cookbook, if you will — of more than 100 (mostly) cookie recipes collected from students over the course of 34 years.

Taylor has shared the list of recipes with friends, family and colleagues every now and then. He says, though, if there were ever a time to share the list more broadly with everyone, it’s now — to spread some sweet joy and a little happiness both to close out what has been a difficult 2020 and welcome 2021 on a delightful note.

Taylor began teaching at Marquette in 1982. Having always enjoyed baking — a love instilled in him by the father and aunts who raised him — Taylor soon began making Snickerdoodles for his students and fellow faculty members. He mostly shared the treats during final exams in hopes of adding a little dash of indulgence to what is typically, a stale, stressful week.

“I just really wanted to do something to help release some tension,” Taylor says. “And then that turned into students returning from Thanksgiving Break and sharing cookie recipes with me that they brought from their families. So, I saved them.”

In 1986, Taylor made it a point to formally archive the recipes.

Today, the collection boasts 114 recipes from different eras.

The “R.A.D. Oat Cookie”

One of Taylor’s favorites on the list is the “Mega Cookie” recipe — whether he enjoys the cookie so much for its flavor, or chaos that ensues in the kitchen when it’s made, though, is up for debate.

“The Mega Cookie is massive,” he says. “This thing calls for a pound of chocolate and all sorts of other things. I have broken two mixers trying to make the Mega Cookie. So, I’m on my third mixer . . . I’m a little more careful now.”

The Mega Cookie is not the only recipe on the list with a juicy story.

Taylor says the first recipe on the list is actually identical to No.14.

No.1, which of course dates back to 1986, is the “Pseudo-Mrs. Fields Cookies” recipe.

“It’s a very specialized recipe,” Taylor says. “But then some years later another student submitted the same recipe with a story attached saying that the recipe is actually the recipe for the Neiman Marcus cookie. They wrote that they got the recipe from someone who paid $250 to get it. So, there’s this sort of urban legend surrounding those particular ones.”

The “Pseudo-Mrs. Fields Cookies,” also known as the “Neiman Marcus Cookie,” according to two different recipes submitted by students of Taylor’s.

The cookie recipes are special to Taylor for many reasons, but perhaps the thing that’s most appetizing is that the collection contains recipes from students all of different backgrounds, experiences and cultures. Because of that, Taylor says, some fudge and even some non-dessert recipes are sprinkled throughout the list.

“Of course, not all of our students are Christian,” he says. “On the list are various kinds Indian food recipes from students who wanted to submit something but didn’t necessarily have something to contribute as far as sweets.”

The collection also contains Pakistani and a few Arab recipes.

“Those recipes are not so sweet,” Taylor says. “But are just as enjoyable.”

When Taylor thinks back to 1986 and how and why all of this started, he says it really came down to him simply wanting to show that those studying philosophy can be serious in their practice but also have a sense of humor.

Afterall, the best things in life are equal parts salty and sweet.