Faculty, student collaborate to publish cookbook 

Visit the Battles’ home on a Thursday morning and you will find a muffin sitting on each of their breakfast plates.

Baking muffins is a passion that started for Professor of English Dominique Battles as a preteen and has only grown sweeter with time.

“I’ve been developing these recipes since the age of 12,” said Battles.  

Conversations around Middle English literature, Chaucer and early literature are where Battles’ academic prowess has been most notable, but the publication of “Muffin Mornings: Nourishing Recipes for Your Best Life,” a cookbook about muffins, now fills her inbox with praise.

“I can’t believe people are baking my muffins. How did that happen? Oh, right. Because we did this book,” said Battles.

Through time Battles has perfected her recipes, lightly wavering to baking cakes, but always returning to her first love of creating nutritious muffins. Before her recipes were published, they lived in a three-ring binder, which Battles describes decorating with “copyright free clip art and writing on yellow paper.” 

“My husband kept saying, ‘You should do this as a book. You should do this as a book.’” 

Finally, Battles approached Rick Lostutter, associate professor of art and design, about her interest in publishing her recipes. Battles had the written copy but needed a designer. Lostutter matched her with Grace Mitchell ‘22.  

The collaboration brought out the best of their talents.  

“As a professor here at the College, I sort of live for and love to help students realize and manifest their potential, and that watching students just blossom as human beings is always a thrill. It never grows old for me,” said Battles.

Through the project, Mitchell honed her skills in graphic design, food photography and client management. Most importantly, the 108-page cookbook offered her the chance to complete a large-scale project while a full-time student.  

“I felt like in my meetings with them [Lostutter and Mitchell] that she was very much a young apprentice,” reflected Battles. “Not so much like a student, but a young professional in training, learning how to ask the right of questions, how to guide, but also follow the client’s ideas. She did a really good job at that.” 

Mitchell’s role with the project positioned her to lead and educate, primarily around the principles of graphic design, while navigating the creation and revision process with Battles.  

“As Grace was learning, I was learning,” said Battles. 

Lostutter provided mentorship to Mitchell throughout the process and would often sit in on meetings between the two, but it was Mitchell who ultimately transformed the recipes from paper to publication.  

“I kind of learned as I went. I had worked with a client before but never one-on-one. I learned what questions to ask. A lot of people don’t know what they want. They don’t know what goes into the design, so I had to ask leading questions,” shared Mitchell.  

In light of both parties newness to the publishing process, the path presented challenges but Mitchell and Battles remained committed to the project.

“I always like to think of Vincent van Gogh’s quote of, ‘Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together.’ A book is just a lot of small things over many years … and I would say don’t be intimidated by setbacks. Believe that you do have a contribution even though there are lots of cookbooks out there,” said Battles.

The experience prepared Mitchell for her current role at Crowe LLP, a global public accounting, consulting and technology firm. While she hasn’t published another book yet, her career is only just beginning.

“I’m really grateful to Rick [Lostutter] and Dominique [Battles]. It’s really inspired me to go out and do other things with my graphic design degree. I would like to do more freelance work,” shared Mitchell. “I’m really proud of the work we did together.”

The book is now available on Amazon.