The College of Cook Book Knowledge prized American regional cookery, especially recipes using local ingredients. In its determination to save the neglected bounty of an ever shifting tradition, the college requisitioned the only labor force it had at hand. To graduate, students were required to collect and test at least 100 recipes.

 In the early years of the college, freshman were sent out periodically into the nearby town. At first, the townspeople were welcoming, then they were merely tolerant. Finally, with each succeeding class, the recipe hunters had to travel further and further afield, which in the end was a benefit to the college's collection.