Cake Versus Pie: A Scientific Approach

by 3 Day Weekend on May 7, 2010

Posted in Community

This was the post that made me fall in love with Allie over at Hyperbole and a Half. This was the post that turned the night of March 15th into the biggest timesuck in the history of me, because it was spent stalking poor Allie’s archives. And then I shared my love with the rest of the Aiming Low team and they were all, “OH MY GOD, I want to hump her a little bit too!” We have good taste in reading material over here, folks. We are honored that Allie agreed to be a part of our Three Day Weekend. We love her, and we know you will too. Also, you will probably want to eat some pie. ~Ali

I love cake. Cake is wonderful. But it is too easy to get caught up in the idea of cake. When you compare the data, it is clear that pie is a better choice.

1. Ability of enjoyment to be sustained over time


The first few mouthfuls of cake are almost magical, but as eating continues, enjoyment drops off precipitously. The enjoyment curve for pie appears to be much more stable over time.

2. Unequal frosting distribution is a problem


Pie exhibits much greater homogeneity than cake. In cake, the highest concentration of awesomeness is found in the frosting. The act of decorating a cake can polarize it and cause a dangerously uneven distribution of frosting, leading to discord and animosity during serving time.

3. Pie appears to contain a greater relative volume of enjoyable substances.


4. Pie is more scientifically versatile:


5. Pie is relevant in a greater variety of situations:


Cake is appropriate in a very limited number of situations, whereas almost any day is a great day to have pie.

6. Cake has much more severe, longer lasting consequences than pie:


UPDATE: It’s too early to tell whether this hybridization is the best idea ever or just dangerous and foolish:

Most likely it will either solve all the problems in the world or end humanity in a hyperglycemic blaze of glory.

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{ 42 comments… read them below or add one }

agentninety9
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 8:08 am

This is the best post ever written. And most true. So much so that cake must now be outlawed. The end.

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Secret Agent Mama - Mishelle Lane May 7, 2010 at 8:17 am

I saw the link to Hyperbole and a Half on Twitter (probably from Ali or some other AL gal) and I nearly died laughing. Later that day I saw HaaH on Stumble Upon and thought, “She’s gonna be the next Miss Blogosphere!”

So, I spent a million years going through her archives, until I was so hungry I could eat a horse. For real.

And, I’m totally Team Pie. Fuck cake, yo!

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DelrayLocal
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 11:15 am

WhoooHooo! My sentiments are with Team PIE too! Every holiday in my family we have at least 5 kinds, my mom is a wonderful lady.

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Maria Melee
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 8:34 am

Cake chart! ahahahahaha

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AmazingGreis
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 8:45 am

I’m a cake person!!! Unless it’s chocolate pie and then I like them both equally the same. :)

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amy May 7, 2010 at 10:39 pm

Team Cake here too!

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tena
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 8:54 am

Doesn’t pie mostly have fruit? And isn’t fruit good for you? I live and die for cake and frosting can only be chocolate- none of that sugary buttercream crap.

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Meghan
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 9:25 am

The fight over what kid gets what cool part of the frosted cake makes me want to stab myself in the face with the knife I used to cut it.

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Ali Martell
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 9:32 am

I wouldn’t say no to pie or cake right now. mmmmm….
but, seriously, there is just NEVER a bad time for pie. EVER

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Brittany
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 9:59 am

I mean, the mere fact that they have cake decorating competitions tells you how lame and needy cake is.

Oh hey, let’s make this cake look like Shrek so we can trick kids into eating it?

Half the time it isn’t even CAKE in the decorated cake. It’s rice krispie treat.

CAKE FAILS AT BEING CAKE.

You don’t even have to decorate pie to win contests or get people to have sex with you. You just show up with it. Or bake it and put it on your windowsill.

That works pretty much every time.

I think the bigger debate here is how to make pie LESS awesome.

And then maybe there wouldn’t be so many homeless people spending their life savings on pies, or teenagers so full and happy they are getting pregnant.

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Amber
Twitter:
May 8, 2010 at 11:07 am

Cake fails at being cake! Bwahhahahahahahahahha <3 YOU!

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ClassyFabSarah
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 10:34 am

I fail to see why everyone is hating on cake. I mean, seriously, who dislikes cake?

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Ash May 7, 2010 at 10:36 am

Mom and Apple Cake?

Think not. You’re so right – Team Pie!

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Angie Pangie
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 10:39 am

Having Allie here on OUR site?

It’s kind of making me warm and squishy in a happy place.

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Secret Agent Mama - Mishelle Lane May 7, 2010 at 11:12 am

Like PIE?!?!?!

Reply

Tracy May 7, 2010 at 10:43 am

Unfortunately, the preference for pie is a recessive trait, as I married a cake lover and then gave birth to one. Also, crust is meh? No way. Not my mom’s crust anyway.

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LemonySarah May 7, 2010 at 11:01 am

This is fantastic. Now I remember that I still have 3/4 of a strawberry/rhubarb pie leftover in the kitchen. Breakfast of fat, happy champions!

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Miss Grace
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 11:31 am

Yus. I think The Bloggess linked to her a couple months ago, and I was an instant fan/addict.

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Dumblond
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 12:09 pm

For those of you who love the cake, comedian Jim Gaffigan gives a great cake vs. pie bit on his comedy album Beyond the Pale.
“Put candles in a cake, it’s a birthday cake. Put candles in a pie…someone’s drunk in the kitchen.”
hehehe, yeah.

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Sarah May 7, 2010 at 12:13 pm

I think lemon meringue pie is as close to super pie as you’re going to get…no, meringue isn’t frosting, but OMFG is it good!

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Jenbshaw May 7, 2010 at 12:36 pm

I must procure some coconut cream pie NOW. Like 10 minutes ago now.

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Lisa
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 12:43 pm

I don’t think I’d ever turn down either. BUT, if given the choice between pie or cake I’m going with pie.

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Adventures In Babywearing
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 12:47 pm

Team Pie ALWAYS! This is the beat.

Steph

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Angi
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 12:49 pm

PIE! I love this.

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AmyBlam
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 1:05 pm

Hmmm, while I love both cake and pie I do have an issue. It’s uheard of frankly, and possibly means I am being weeded out of the gene pool.
Are you ready for it? It’s shocking.
I hate icing.
There. I said it. Feel free to commence throwing pies at me.

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Ashley May 7, 2010 at 2:10 pm

I am dying over here! The “cake chart” really DOESN’T make any fucking sense hahahaha!!!! You should set up a poll for people to vote pie vs. cake and show the results in a PIE CHART!

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Lauren May 7, 2010 at 2:14 pm

I LOVE Hyperbole and a Half! Everything Allie writes is hilarious!

Reply

Txtingmrdarcy
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 2:25 pm

Allie Brosh is my hero.

I highly recommend her post about new hygiene products for men- It had me laughing until I cried.

I am so nice, here’s a link: http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/04/how-to-make-showering-awesome-again.html

Reply

Assertagirl Amy
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 4:43 pm

I just bought a brownie mix, and now I have no clue what to do with it.

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heather...
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 6:58 pm

BROWNIE PIE!!!

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Anissa Mayhew
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 7:13 pm

I haven’t commented on anything in months.
This is definitely worth it.
TEAM PIE vs. coma and pie would win.

Reply

Jennifer May 7, 2010 at 8:14 pm

This is the best scientific document I’ve ever read. I must get to work on the cake/pie hybrid.

Reply

Jackie May 7, 2010 at 8:58 pm

The best thing I’ve read in weeks! SO TRUE!

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But Why Mommy May 7, 2010 at 9:45 pm

OMG I am love with Allie. And I also want blueberry pie w/ ice cream right now.

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Melissa
Twitter:
May 7, 2010 at 10:13 pm

I’m suppose to be doing pilates right now, and I’m not because I wouldn’t have such an urgency to do them if I was the type of person who actually followed through with exercise. Instead, I’m finding myself defending the very thing that’s made life harder on my feet. Cake is not actual competition to pie. It’s icing. In fact, I make icing, not cake. Finger licking icing is an act which I practice a lot. Ask my husband. I also make a lot of pie, which it typically easier to make than cake ( a poignant note not mentioned above).

How does icing blow pie out of the water?
1. It takes minutes to make
3. It requires like 3 ingredients that everyone has. You can make it and have it anywhere, anytime.
2. Enjoying it plain is like getting reparations for being a tortured child unable to enjoy it freely
4. Putting it on pie, makes pie better.

Reply

claire
Twitter:
May 8, 2010 at 10:24 am

She is hilarious. I’m glad to see her linked on here, it’s like uniting apple pie with a berry pie.. A perfect combo of mixed pie. Allie = Aiming Low= the best of 2pie worlds.

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ThePeachy1
Twitter:
May 8, 2010 at 10:08 pm

I really need you to stop making me love you sooo damn much. a) because I am married and it’s his birthday and that would not be cool for me to yell out your name in the required birthday woohoo later, and b) if I were to have an affair I have already sworn it would only be with Brendan Fraser. Now if you could dress up like BF and bring in the cake/pie hybrid thingy we could make this work…

Reply

Shauna Glenn
Twitter:
May 9, 2010 at 9:04 am

Damn, I’ve always been about cake, but now I’m rethinking what I ever believed. I’m so confused. I need to lie down.

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john May 10, 2010 at 4:12 pm

What’s so great about a pile of hot, mushy fruit?

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wat May 10, 2010 at 10:44 pm

What kind of disgusting person likes the frosting more than the actual CAKE?
That’s obviously the problem to your preference right there.

Reply

Wolfgang Wonka May 14, 2010 at 8:38 am

Amusing, yes, but this Allie person seems all too proud of her culinary naiveté, and eager to please us common folk with her mildly witty demagoguery. If baking were politics, she’d clearly be Palin.

Reply

Katie July 4, 2010 at 11:37 pm

EXCEPT CAKE TASTES BETTER!!! <3

Reply

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