Menu
Categories
Getting Controversial In The Boyhouse
February 27, 2023 Books

It was so cold here last week, with an enormous dump of fresh snow; it looked really pretty, in contrast to my Walking Outfit, which was not so pretty. Snow pants! Toque! Giant fake-fur hood! Frosted-over eyelashes! Teenage me, who wore tiny skirts with tights that were Just as warm as pants, Mom, would have been horrified.

Speaking of horrified, I have a complaint. It may be more of a personal pet peeve, but it is something that bothers me greatly, and that is when people state subjective opinions as objective facts. Or, more accurately, when people state negative subjective opinions as objective facts. There is a big difference between saying I hate chickpeas, and chickpeas are gross. When a person states an opinion as a well-known fact, such as Alice Munro’s writing is boring, I get my back up: no, YOU THINK it’s boring. There is a big difference between a person’s perception and the actual quality of the item in question. You can think whatever you want to about whatever you want, but opinions aren’t facts.

And I love hearing other people’s opinions, even negative ones! But words matter to me, and hearing Top Gun is a terrible movie is not the same as I hate Top Gun. Hate away! Opine that it’s terrible! But that is not an objective fact. There are many things that I don’t like, but that doesn’t make them objectively terrible; for example, I dislike action movies and books by Jody Picoult, but objectively, those are not bad things. They are just things that I dislike. I might THINK they are bad, but they are not, objectively.

Interestingly enough, my impassioned opinion about opinions-as-facts does not encompass positive opinions. If someone said to me ketchup chips are the finest chip ever invented or dogs are god’s greatest creatures, I would not be offended, particularly since those are two opinions I share, but even if I did not share them, I would be happy that someone else found joy in weird Canadian salty snacks and puppers. Therefore, all you Cat People reading this might be thinking How dare! Cats are god’s greatest creatures! and although I won’t agree I will just be happy for you and your purring companions. Enjoy your kitties! I’ll be over here with my fuzzy favourite, who may be wondering if I am indeed somewhere inside all those layers.

Anyway, I was thinking of this – my opinion pet peeve – because in my not-so-recent Ask Me Anything, Stephany (HI STEPHANY) asked what controversial opinion do you hold? I thought about this for a long time, because I didn’t think I hold any controversial opinions. I believe that people are all equal and deserve to be treated as such, regardless of gender, skin colour, sexuality, religious beliefs, or abilities, and that all people should have autonomy over their own bodies and be able to make choices that best suit their own life journeys; these seem to be topics that generate controversy for reasons I cannot fathom, but to me, equality and autonomy are not a matter of opinion.

This weekend I realized that I do indeed have a very controversial opinion, and that is that I hate pie. Yes, all kinds. To me, pie is a grievous waste of fruit at best, and a flaky monstrosity at worst. Cake all the way, baby. Cake all the way. With the same passion that I hate pie, I love cake; yes, all kinds. I even love grocery store sheet cakes that are universally considered to be subpar, with frosting that is universally considered to be too sweet. If one of them was in my house right now, I would cut myself a giant corner piece just to get the extra frosting, and arrange it so I could get an extra frosting flower on my piece as well.

Usually when I voice this extremely controversial Anti-Pie opinion, someone will ask what about pumpkin, what about rhubarb, what about apple? No, no, no. And I am not yucking anyone’s yum, here, but the thought of biting into a soft piece of cooked apple makes me physically shudder. Listen, I love apples. There’s nothing like a fresh, tart Macintosh to make my heart sing. However. I do not love COOKED apples. I don’t like pastry in general, but the thought of eating a piece of pie with soft, mushy apple in it…I can’t. I have always been this way and probably always will be this way.

So I hate pie, but I love my guys, and they love pie, so I make one for them every so often, and one of those occasions was this weekend.

Many perfectly good apples were sacrificed in the making of this dessert.

Speaking of desserts and Ask Me Anything, my lovely friend Suzanne (HI SUZANNE) asked what are your top recommendations for baked goods? This was fun to think about because I bake something at least twice a week, often more. Usually that baking is a snack loaf or muffins for the boys, but sometimes I throw together a batch of cookies or a cake. I am absolutely loving Julie van Rosendaal’s cake cookbook, and her pumpkin snack loaf is in regular rotation around here. The Lutheran Ladies have an amazing banana muffin recipe that I use frequently, as well as an oatmeal chocolate chip muffin that I based this recipe off of.

I wrote a weekly food blog at YMC from 2013-2017, and I have all of the recipes, plus some that I wrote on this blog, listed here. It is split into sections and one of those sections is Baked Goodies; I think my favourites from that list are the Pot of Gold Cupcakes, the Chocolate Chunk Coconut Cookies, Old Fashioned Oatmeal Cookies, and, of course, my Grandma’s Gingersnaps. My mom’s Sugar Cookies never fail, and are a holiday staple around here.

I do love baking, but I should note that all of the above recipes are my own variations of the original. I never follow a recipe to the letter, because I am a wild rebel when it comes to baked goods. I mean, why limit ourselves to a teaspoon of vanilla when two teaspoons would be more delicious? Why use a whole cup of sugar when you can cut it to three-quarters and no one notices? Why not try coconut oil or add some extra chocolate chips? It’s a fun way to play with baking, and when the weather is dipping into the minus-a-lot, it feels like a nice, cozy activity.

Weekly Reading

Speaking of cozy activities, it was a good week for getting some reading and puzzling done.

Mary Jane. I was born in the year in which this book was set – 1975 – so I can’t say from experience, but it seems to me that people in the 70s were really separated into Establishment and Counterculture. This book – a sweet, cute coming of age story – deals with a young girl who is hired to be a summer nanny at a house that is definitely Counterculture. They smoke pot! The doctor is a psychiatrist, not a medical doctor! The wife doesn’t cook or clean and the house is a disaster! The girl is from a strict Presbyterian home that, inexplicably, has a framed picture of President Ford in its dining room. Anyway. The girl – Mary Jane – brings her mother’s housewifery skills into the chaotic household, and she learns what it is to be accepted, and becomes part of the family. It’s a sweet little book, although I found the dialogue to be stilted and contrived, but light and enjoyable nonetheless. One thing I really liked, which is quite unusual, is that at one point Mary Jane thanks her mother for teaching her all her skills, and says how much she values them. In my own life, I spend a great deal of time creating a calm household with lots of delicious food in it – see above! – and sometimes I wonder if this is time well spent. It was nice to see it valued in a book that was very tongue-in-cheek in name.

Navigating The Messy Middle. Many many years ago I read Ann Douglas’ Mother of All Pregnancy/ Baby/ Toddler Books, and I loved them. Canadian content! I feel like I’ve come full circle, reading her book about being a woman in midlife. Well, maybe not full circle; perhaps in 20 years I’ll read about being a woman in the golden years. Anyhoo. This is a book that is almost entirely made up of interviews with other women, and it is incredibly inclusive and diverse. Because of the interviews, it reads like a series of long-form old-school magazine articles, if that makes sense. It makes for a nice fast read. I don’t know if there’s anything particularly new or earth-shattering here, but it is such an affirming book. Because of the diverse viewpoints, it really made me feel both seem and like we are all on a journey, with different paths, but together. Very uplifting and encouraging: from being a sandwich generation to body changes! I really liked the sections in friendship, relationships, and “raising” young adult children.

BFF. When I started reading this, I thought this seems familiar, and that is because the author also wrote the memoir Group, and there are a few overlaps between the characters and stories in that memoir and this one, about the author and another women who lived their whole lives with a lot of difficulties maintaining female friendships, but who become very close friends. Here’s the thing: I didn’t love Group, and I didn’t love this book, which is probably on me – note to self: read the synopsis BEFORE blindly putting a book on my library list. I didn’t love BFF for the same reason that I didn’t love Group, and that was that I found the author to be incredibly frustrating. Yes, I realize that flaws and foibles are what makes for a good memoir, however, get it together, author. I guess her particular flaws and foibles were just especially upsetting to me. However, this wasn’t wasted time; there were some thought-provoking parts, particularly about female friendship triangles, and the end of the book had some really insightful thoughts about the pandemic and how it helped the author reconnect with long-lost friends.

You guys, Wednesday is MARCH! March! What a whirlwind life is, even when not much is going on. I hope you all have a cozy week, doing things you love, and maybe even eating some cake – or pie, I won’t judge! My aversion means more pie for all of you! xo

"90" Comments
  1. Dogs are god’s greatest creatures! Each Alice Munro story is a treasure! Your belief that people are equal and deserve autonomy is beautiful! I’ve never been able to like Top Gun… Did I do those right? 😛

    That pie looks amazingly flaky; lots of lamination, I bet. You love the boyhouse boys so well!

    Two questions: Do you like savory pastry? And oh, Nicole! You recommended a book to me when I was missing my older kid. I wrote it down *somewhere* and can’t find it. It had some kind of explosion in the title, I think. Any idea what that book might have been?

    • You’re so funny! Yes! You did that exactly right!
      I do not like savoury pastry either. The guys said the pie was great, and I had a big scoop of dark chocolate sorbet for dessert instead, so we were all happy.
      I wonder if it was Bomb Shelter? It was SO good. I think it would really resonate for you.

      • I looked up Bomb Shelter, and it looks right… thanks, Ernie and Nicole! The sample I read really did resonate for me. After I read her epigraph, I was thinking I really should read Didion’s Year of Magical Thinking (and Deraniyagla’s Wave, probably)–but the premise of losing more than one family member at a time is so terrifying.

        Nicole–with you on fruit pies, but I do love savory treats wrapped in puff pastry.

  2. Oh my stars, I love your controversial opinion because we are diametrically opposed – a good piece of apple pie is the way to my heart, but I do not love cake or frosting in any way or form (mushy and sweet and ick). I believe there is room for both of us in the world and how wonderful to be able to spread the dessert love around, right?

  3. Reading this post gave me a flashback to my teenage years. There was a restaurant called “Poppin Fresh Pies” and my boyfriend and I would go there frequently after dates. My goals was to try every single pie on the menu- it’s your worst nightmare! The funny thing is, I get your aversion. Mushy, cooked fruit does sound kind of gross. I don’t eat pie anymore (other than the sugar-free pumpkin pie I make for myself at Thanksgiving) but my family loves them, so I make them pie every once in a while. They’re WAY harder to make than cakes, so I would much rather bake a cake.
    I’m on Team Cat, but if anyone could convince me otherwise, it would be Rex. He’s obviously the sweetest dog in the entire world!!!

    • Oh my gosh – where was your Poppin Fresh located? We had Poppin Fresh in the suburbs of Chicago and we were regulars there. French Silk. Delish. Your comment brought me back. Many family celebrations were spent at Poppin Fresh Pies.

    • Aw, Jenny, that is so sweet of you to say about Rex! I know you’re totally Team Cat but I’m so happy Rex makes you happy! He sure has brightened my world.
      It IS my worst nightmare, all those pies! Well, that and rats and moths!

  4. I hate cake! Just joining you in the controversial dessert opinions 🙂

  5. So I’m guessing you don’t like applesauce either.

    I like pie and cake and pretty much all desserts. North made double (fresh and dried) cherry brownies yesterday with whipped cream on top. I haven’t tried them yet, but they look delicious.

  6. I’m shook by your hatred for pie! LOL! It’s one of my faves, but if it’s a fruit pie, it must be warmed up to bring out the fruity goodness. Yesterday, I made a pumpkin cheesecake in a premade pecan crust. It was easy and tasty. But I have to limit sweets, so when I make a dessert, I only have one piece.

    I enjoy your book reviews and make note of the ones that appeal to me. Thank you. I just finished A Saint for all Occasions by J, Courtney Sullivan. I enjoy all her books because they are dialogue heavy and great characterization.

  7. You have some really great advice here, one that I will be adopting, about stating opinions. Austin Kleon also has a good response to things that we personally don’t like (books, etc): “It wasn’t for me.” So, pie is not for you. I happen to love all fruit desserts, but I would certainly never force them on people! More for me! I even know people who don’t like chocolate, which I can’t wrap my head around, but that’s why this world is so varied, so there is always something for everyone.

    I guess I should share my controversial opinion… dogs are not for me. I know people love their dogs, but I just can’t find the dog love. I’ve had one too many scary experiences with unleashed dogs running at my children, or me. But, I don’t begrudge people and their dogs as long as they keep them leashed and under control outdoors!

  8. Just imagine an implied I THINK before those opinion statements– that’s how I read them, anyway. I don’t HATE pie, but pie is just not worth the dessert, like, allotment, you know?

    • Hahah no, I know it’s implied, it’s just…a pet peeve on par with incorrect apostrophes or something! Lol!
      I feel that way about doughnuts. They’re fine. I just wouldn’t choose one ever over anything else (unless, pie, if I had a gun to my head and had to have dessert)!

  9. I completely agree with you when people present their opinions as facts.
    On pie, I disagree with you. With the exception of rhubarb and pecan. Blech. But that is just my opinion. 😊

    That pie looked delicious. I admire you for creating a pie that you will never eat. That is an act of kindness I don’t believe I’ve ever performed.

    Xoxo

  10. I hadn’t really ever thought about it specifically before, but I think I agree with you that it also rubs me wrong when people do the “state an opinion as a fact” thing!

    But I’ll take it one step further than you, because I also have an almost visceral, immediate reaction to the word “hate”. Yes, people are entitled to “hate” things, I suppose, but I just find it to be such a HARSH and extreme word. I really try to not use it often, if I can help it. When I read or hear people frequently and casually constantly mentioning how they “hate” this or that, I’ll be honest that it is a big turn off to me and I sometimes feel like I don’t care much for that person as a result! It just feels like an over extreme reaction. Like, okay, maybe you really don’t like something, but do you have to HATE it??? So, so, so strongly and negatively?! There is absolutely nothing that is even remotely positive about it? I guess to me that gives me the impression that the person is so closed off and closed minded to that thing or whatever it is that they are not even open to considering any positive or redeeming factors about the thing/person/place/book/whatever, or that other people may actually like this thing. I tend to associate it with the word vitriol which I also find to be a very severe and ugly word. So, there’s my controversial opinion for the day! haha!

    • (Okay, to be clear, I didn’t mean this personally against you because you used the word “hate” in your post. LOL! I just re-read what I wrote and I hope you didn’t take that personally!!! No offense meant at all. I’m speaking more just as a general rule of thumb, because some people really use the word hate so often and so casually, in my opinion, and that’s where it grates on me the most. Like if someone is a serial “hater”. lol. I see you as a very positive person overall, and I can’t say I’ve ever noticed you really use the word hate often in your posts as a general trend. 🙂 )

      • I’m sensitive to the use of the word “hate,” too! We don’t use it much in our house. I think I was not allowed to say I hated something when I was a kid… I’m trying to train my boys to say “I don’t prefer X.” Kids are so horribly honest at times so I am trying to nip that tendency to say “I don’t like X” or “X is yucky” in the bud.

      • No no, no offense taken at all! I understand exactly what you’re saying! My kids have grown up saying “this isn’t my favourite” when it’s food-related, because it’s so offensive to hear “I hate this dinner.” I understand! My former hair stylist had a swear jar-type thing, and anytime any of her clients would say “hate” as in “I hate my hair” she would make them put in a dollar. It really started me thinking about all the times I said I hated something when it really wasn’t hate at all! Although, I do hate pie. I can’t help myself! I’ve tried! Lololol but if I was at someone’s house and they served pie I would never say I hated it.

  11. I’m with you on the “say you didn’t like it, not that it is intrinsically bad” bandwagon, and I think the reason that positives are okay with me is that if someone says, “ketchup chips are the finest chip ever invented,” I take that as cheery exuberance, not that they mean it literally. But if they said “ketchup chips are terrible” I would take that literally, and not everyone agrees with that, and why not just say “I don’t like ketchup chips”? If that makes any sense at all.

  12. I join you in your love of cake – even store bought sheet cake with too much sugary frosting. YES. Sadly, I can’t eat store bought sheet cake now that I have celiac. I do like some pie, but as a general rule I prefer fruit not be part of my dessert experience. Apple pie is the exception.

    I bristle at blanket statements. I’m not sure if that is always the same as stating an opinion as a fact. My in laws are big on making blanket statements like WEATHER MEN/WOMEN ARE ALWAYS WRONG. What? That’s not true. They once made a very insensitive comment about how PARENTS FEEL THE NEED TO TAKE THEIR KIDS IN FOR THERAPY AND THAT REALLY JUST MEANS THEY DON’T KNOW HOW TO PARENT THEIR KIDS. What on earth? I have created quite a bit of distance with them. They’ve softened over the years – either because of age, or because they gradually figured out that their strong statements are offensive. Probably just age, honestly. They don’t tend to have a lot of self awareness.

    • Oh, I totally feel this! I have certain people in my life who shall remain nameless that do the same thing. Very judgy of parenting because that wasn’t how it was back in “their day” and honestly, that’s not great. As time goes by we know more and we do better, right? I GET THIS, is what I’m saying!

  13. YES!!! I am here for the controversy. I really try to say “this wasn’t for me” instead of “this sucks”.

    And 100% I was never cold enough to wear what I thought were “ugly” layers when I was a kiddo. Today I never hesitate to throw on my bulkiest coat and an extra pair of pants to walk the dog. One of my stepsons has a thing going where he always wears his winter coat AND shorts no matter what the weather, but he’ll grow out of it. Or hey, maybe it’s his thing and he’ll do it for life – time will tell!

    • My son wears his shorts when he goes to the gym, no matter the weather. Well, almost no matter the weather. This past week he put on pants because it was so cold. But if it’s above minus 20, he wears shorts and a winter coat. It’s a LOOK. I feel very in tune with you because I don’t know anyone else who does this!

  14. I love this post and I love your controversial thoughts! Dogs RULE, Cats Drool. Kidding, you can actually like cats and dogs without starting a war.

    I love pie and you might be the first person I know who loathes pie so much. But again, I still love you and if we go out for coffee/dessert, you can have cake and I’ll have pie and all will be well in the world.

    You look adorable in all of your winter gear, but I’d feel like I was being swallowed whole by layers. 🙂

    • Hahahahah omg it’s the Pets Wars. People can get pretty heated about it.
      YES, let’s go for dessert and you can have all the pie and I will have all the cake and we will both have all the wine, and doesn’t that sound nice?
      The layers can be…a lot! I do think longingly of just leaving the house without taking 10 minutes to get dressed.

  15. As a person who really doesn’t care for chocolate, I am well acquainted with controversial food opinions. I am a fan of only select pies: apple and key lime, maybe lemon merengue if the merengue isn’t too eggy. My mother makes a blueberry or pumpkin pie that I sometimes eat a slice of for sake of nostalgia, but otherwise I am not a big pie fan. Another thing I don’t like — which reminds me of your pie aversion — is casseroles. I just really do not like a bunch of mushy foods mushed together in one dish. No thank you.

    Thank you for answering my baked goods question!!! I will be returning to check out each of them. I did not get a chance to make your gingersnaps in December but WILL be trying them.

    • Ooooohhhhh casseroles. I grew up eating so many ground beef casseroles and Suzanne, I cannot. I mean, I don’t, because I don’t eat meat, but sometimes people will send me a recipe for a vegan casserole or shepherd’s pie or what have you, and no no no.
      I remembered you don’t care for chocolate! Well, I am happy to eat your share!

  16. Hm. I am a fan of cake AND pie. I refuse to choose one. I do not care for raw apples at all and will only really apples in baked goods, so we are apple opposites.

    I am a person with strong opinion and my husband frequently calls me out on saying my opinions as fact. I’ve been trying to work on this, but there is a qualitative difference between “this is terrible” and “this was terrible for me to read” and I struggle with how to get across how bad I find something without resorting to what seems like wishy washy language. It’s complicated, but I try not to be unkind. But I’m undiplomatic, so sometimes I don’t realize I’m being unkind (and then I have a complicated system in which I spend approximately 10% of my time apologizing for saying something unintentionally mean, despite the fact that I swear I think really hard about every word I say.) ANYWAY. I’m working on it.

    • We are apple opposites! This means we could share perfectly. You can have all the baked ones and I will eat them raw. I feel similarly to you but with onions. If an onion is cooked into something (and largely unrecognizable) then it’s sometimes okay, but a raw onion, NOOOOOO. I can’t do it! I think it’s the texture because onion flavour is fine.
      Awww, Engie, you’ve never come across as unkind to me!

  17. I love posts with strong and potentially controversial opinions! I am not a pie person either. It’s fine I guess? But if I never ate pie again, I would not be sad. My mom will often set aside pumpkin and chocolate pie filling for me since I can’t have glutenous pie crust and that’s ideal for me. While I’m not a pie person, I’m also not huge into cakes either. GF ones are especially tricky as they can be kind of dry at times and just don’t turn out like a glutenous cake might. We did make cupcakes this week for Paul’s birthday but I mostly made them because Paul was bored/wanted to do something fun and we had all the ingredients for the recipe for dark chocolate cupcakes. We’ll see how they taste. I’m glad my boys prefer cookies because that is probably my favorite dessert! A life with no cookies would make me very sad. But no more cupcakes, cake or pie? Not a big deal.

    I have a similar look when it’s bitterly cold here. I think of my high school self who wouldn’t wear a hat (or toque as you call them in Canada) because it might ruin my hair and I am rolling my eyes at her. Now I am all about warmth – hair be damned.

    • Oh, gluten-free baking is SO tricky! I totally understand. Also, I love love love a good cookie!
      I used to wear earmuffs, at the very most, because it wouldn’t wreck my gigantic teased bangs and spiral permed hair! Sometimes I see girls at the schools around here with their shoes with no socks and coats unzipped and think…brrrr…but I was there too once!

  18. I love your commentary on how some people express emotions as indisputable facts. It really made me laugh due to a recent experience. We spent an evening with a person who I’d been warned was a bit of a pain and very opinionated. Why? Well she happened to be visiting the town we are in in Mx and knew our friends and sort of invited herself along. I didn’t really care as it was a group of 8. I made a comment which I actually prefaced with “I may be wrong but I believe blah blah blah”. Wow – she literally lunged across the length of the table and basically shouted “you’re wrong “ then continued to blast her opinion at me. Wow. Awkward silence, I said well, ok…. No wonder she has ti force herself into invites with others.

    And now PIE- literally my favourite food in the world. Apple, pumpkin, peach, and my top choice – pecan!! And I LOVE good pastry. I’m amazed at the beautiful pie you made as a non pie lover. I’m a good baker, but pastry is really difficult to do well. So impressed. Here in Progreso Mx there is a little hardware store you go into, order a pie from the lady behind the counter and pick it up the next day – her daughter in law makes them and they are delicious! Esp the very tart lemon meringue pie. Sooooo good!!

    • WHOA NELLY. That lady needs to settle down. That is bananas! Bananas! I guess that’s why she invited herself, no one else is going to!
      Pastry is difficult to make, but I have figured out something (someone must have told me but it was neither my mom nor my MIL, so I have no idea who else would have) – roll the dough between two pieces of wax paper. It makes for such an easier process! And you don’t need a ton of flour to keep it from sticking, and you don’t overwork it either.

  19. I think the secret to a good pie is no top crust. Give me a Dutch apple any day/ Though honestly, I’d rather have salty than sweet foods any day. Who needs pie when there are salt and vinegar chips in the world?

    Mine is there is no point to mayonaise. I just don’t get why people want to ruin a good sandwich with it. But as long as it’s left off mine, y’all can have all the mayo you want!

    “Navigating the Messy Middle: A Fiercely Honest and Wildly Encouraging Guide for Midlife Women” isn’t out yet here, but I just requested an ARC. Fingers crossed.

  20. Hmmm, I’d never thought about it before, but yes – I think it’s a good idea to own our opinions. I’ll try to be more aware of that.
    For some reason, your thoughts about pie made me laugh out loud. Such controversy! You are very kind to make pies for your family!

  21. Hi Nicole,
    Did you recommend the novel Love & Saffron by Kim Fay? It was on my library holds. If I just went by the cover, I don’t think I would have picked it up. I am so glad I read it, such a lovely book. So now I am wondering where the recommendation came from.
    Here’s to a lovely week!!

  22. When you said you had a controversial opinion, I was intrigued. And it turned out to be PIE!! I mean, I get it – when one tries to describe the texture of a cooked apple, it does not sound appealing at all.

    I like pie and cake in equal measure – so I’m sure we could work around that, if it ever became necessary.

  23. I could take or leave pie, I don’t really have strong feelings for it either way. I would choose a bowl of potato chips over a piece of pie any day of the week though.

    I think my biggest controversial opinion is that I think the Bronë sisters are overrated. I think their lives were interesting and I enjoy learning about them, but I don’t like any of their books. And I wish I did, but I just don’t.

    • Oh that’s an interesting take! I don’t love their books either – I don’t dislike them, but I wouldn’t choose them. I WOULD choose a big bowl of potato chips though! I love salty snacks.

  24. I used to make a butternut squash loaf and experimented with reducing the sugar until I found just how far I could go before it wasn’t tasty — it was 1/2 of what the recipe called for!!!
    I definitely prefer a good slice of cake to any pie– especially with cream cheese or buttercream frosting, but I don’t hate pie.
    I am definitely on Team Cat; as I write this, one of our five kitties is curled up on my lap. BUT…something that I love is observing people interact with their beloved pet, whatever it is. I love seeing that bond and love between human and animal. I was at an orchid show yesterday and a woman was there with her macaw. Definitely not a pet for me, but it was so sweet watching them together. I think I’ve gone far off-topic here!!
    Looking forward to that Ann Douglas book. I’ve never heard of her. Is she well known in the U.S.?
    We are awaiting a dump of snow here in MA. Schools, etc have already been closed for tomorrow!!
    Take care.

    • Chrisoula, I agree, I think that most recipes can lose quite a bit of sugar before it affects the taste. Easily 1/4 can be taken out, sometimes more!
      I love the image of the woman with the macaw. We just love our pets so much. They enrich our lives!
      Ann Douglas is a pretty prominent Canadian author, and she was a parenting expert back in the days of my pregnancies. I don’t know if she has much of a following in the US or not, I don’t think so though!

  25. I am Team Cake all the way. I have never made a pie and hope to never make one in my life. A really good strawberry rhubarb pie is delicious, but I don’t go out of my way to eat pie.
    My husband’s favourite dessert is Pecan Pie. It’s…okay…but I find it SO sweet.

    To be fair, though, cheesecake is my favourite dessert and in general I would skip sweet things in favour of salty!

    • I like pecans, but I can’t fathom eating them in pie form! Although that does make me think of my favourite movie of all time, When Harry Met Sally “I would be proud to partake in your pecan pie pecannnn piiiiiieeee”

  26. If everyone in the world loved apple pie, and no one liked cake, there would not be enough to go around. So thank goodness there are people like you out there to eschew the pie for the greater good. My daughter likes some pies, but not apple. Not really a fan of the cooked fruit either. She loves cake, though has come to discover that buttercream is not her favorite frosting. She’s team cream cheese frosting. Me? I like most pies better than most cakes, but I did eat a piece of carrot cake the other day at a birthday party. What about pudding? Someone brought an amazing banana pudding. So creamy and delicious.

    I was reading your book reviews, and thought, ‘that first book sounds familiar’, and that’s because I just recently listened to it on audiobook. I enjoyed it, it was light fun, and agree with you about the writing.

    I’m working on not being one of those people that states things as objective. Actually, what I’m working on is not making disgusted faces when someone offers me something I don’t want. I’m 10 years older than you (you wouldn’t know it from my little photo there, that was taken on my 40th birthday), and am very much still a work in progress. It’s a bad habit.

  27. I dunno, Nicole. You hate pie? I’m not sure how to process that. I love pie, but rarely make one. You are on Team Cake, then? My controversial opinion is #deletefacebook. Hardly anyone agrees with me, but I’m telling you it gives you a heady sense of freedom and control. I walked away years ago and never regretted it.

  28. I am glad you like ketchup chips because I vehemently disagree with you about pie. But i think I would be happy to eat your pies and share my ketchup chips with you.
    My controversial opinion is that cooking never really improves food. Like cookie dough, sushi, vegetables, steak…. Well maybe pie dough. Raw pie dough is not tasty.

    • Oh that’s an interesting take! I think it depends on the vegetable (asparagus, example) but YES, many are so delicious raw! And cookie dough, who doesn’t love raw cookie dough!
      I’m excited you like ketchup chips too! So messy to eat, so worth the pink fingers.

  29. HOLY CRAP YES. I get SO angry when people make bold pronouncements instead of just offering their opinion. On The Good Wife there was a judge that would keep stopping attorneys and telling them to preface all their statements with “in my opinion”, and it was supposed to be an annoying quirk but I kind of got her point, ya know? I am currently on Goodreads reviewing my last few reads, and I keep having to stop myself from getting mad in people’s comments because as a good friend says, I am not going to change hearts and minds on the internet today, so why bother? But one person literally said something like “i hated this book, and it’s not a case of Your Mileage May Vary – I fail to see how anyone could possibly derive any enjoyment from it”. I almost had to admire the breathtaking hubris.
    The movie that seems to be bringing out the ‘it’s not my opinion, it’s objective truth’ crowd right now is Everything Everywhere All at Once. It was pretty much my favourite movie of last year, but I can totally see how some people would find it weird or confusing or whatever. But the number of people saying ‘it’s so stupid’ or ‘it’s only getting good reviews because one or two people said it’s genius and no one wants to look dumb by disagreeing’. Well you’re disagreeing and you LOOK DUMB, I say.
    I prefer cake over pie, especially since I had the kids and my sweet tooth over salty is more pronounced. Matt keeps traveling for work and saying don’t get a boyfriend while I’m away and I’m like honey, all I do while you’re away is buy a lot of cake.
    I think I like dogs and cats equally. Does that make me weird? I feel like most people have a preference.

    • I don’t think it makes you weird, but it makes me love you because I didn’t know this about you! All these years, I had no ideas you liked cats and dogs equally! You learn new things every day.
      I haven’t seen that movie and I am so embarrassed to say I haven’t even heard of it! *runs to google*
      Honestly, every book has SOMEONE who likes it, so I think that is a ridiculous thing to say! Although, now I’m wondering which book it was.

  30. I apologize if this is a repeat — my first comment seem to have disappeared.

    Oh, such controversy, Nicole! LOL I am on team cake, if I have to choose. I don’t like the pastry/crust on pies, which a lot of pie lovers can’t understand. I scoop out and eat the fruit and leave everything else on the plate. Oh, and fruit pie fillings are made 100% better by a scoop of ice cream!

    I love dogs, and I love cats for their different personalities!

    Ketchup chips? At first I thought it must be a Canadian thing but there seems to be a few commenters who love them, too, so I had to Google! Yes, I live under a rock! 🙂 I wonder if they’re available here; my son may like it for the novelty.

  31. This is random, but as I was reading your post and I saw the Ann Douglas book, something about the font and the angle you are holding it at made me read it as Navigating the Merry Middle, and I thought, “What a nice way to look at it – the Merry Middle!” Haha. So, here’s to navigating the messy, merry middle, and I will add that book to my TBR. Mary Jane was already on it as well!

  32. Nicole! I don’t like pie either! I *will* eat apple pie, but I would never, ever in a million bajillion years choose it over any other baked good. NEVER. Thanks for answering my controversial question. 😉

  33. I had never thought about people using opinions as facts before but I will look out for it! I love pie, but my first thought when I read pie was “chicken and mushroom pie” until I realized you meant sweet pies.

    I really don’t like whipped cream though, so often get sad when a pie is covered in cream.

  34. Oh, Nicole. I am so sorry to say this but… I am your exact (and I do mean exact) opposite. Pie >>>>> cake any day. There is no comparison. Dry cake with sugary, overly-sweet frosting? No thank you. Pastry with fruit, or custard, or nuts, or all of the above? Yes, please.
    I request my mother’s (really, my grandmother’s) peach kuchen on my birthday, if I can (or, um, make it for myself). It’s not a traditional kuchen, but one with a crust, and custard, and peach halves, and… there is nothing like it. A cake couldn’t hold a (birthday) candle to it.
    However, I am fully on board with “Don’t state your opinions as facts”. Sheesh, people. 🙂

  35. Mmh, that is interesting but I think I agree: positive opinions stated as facts are much more palatable than negative opinions stated as facts. I think it’s because negative opinions come off as more passive-aggressive and a personal attack if you happen to disagree with said statement.

    I do love me a nice cooked apple (especially apple pancakes, but I will also happily eat any pie or cake with apples for that matter :)).

Leave a Reply to Nicole Boyhouse
*