Should I Share My Family Recipe for Cooking Competition?

A 27-year-old woman refused to hand over her family’s secret apple pie recipe to her best friend, and it immediately turned into a full-blown drama. Not because she didn’t want her friend to succeed, but because her family treats this recipe like family history you don’t casually copy and paste.

The situation is messy in a very specific way: her best friend, Sarah, entered a local cooking competition, asked for the recipe because “everyone loves it,” and then got mad when the OP said no. Sarah called it selfish, claimed it was “just a recipe,” and basically framed the OP’s refusal as sabotage of her win.

Now the question is, who’s actually being unreasonable, and why does that apple pie matter so much?

Original Post

So, I'm (27F), and I come from a family renowned for our secret apple pie recipe. It's been passed down for generations, and we guard it with our lives.

My best friend, Sarah, recently entered a local cooking competition and asked me for the recipe because she knows how much everyone loves it. I hesitated but eventually told her I couldn't share it, as it's a family secret.

Sarah got upset, saying I should support her and that it's 'just a recipe.' She even accused me of being selfish and ruining her chances of winning. Am I being unreasonable for not sharing our closely guarded family recipe with her for the competition?

So AITA?

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This echoes the grandma’s pie standoff, where someone refused to share with a vegan friend wanting to sell it.

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OP didn’t just say “no,” she explained it’s been passed down for generations, and Sarah still pushed for the exact recipe anyway.

When Sarah accused her of being selfish over a pie, the disagreement stopped being friendly and started sounding like a betrayal.

The competition deadline probably made Sarah feel desperate, but OP’s “family secret” line stayed firm.

By the time Sarah claimed OP was ruining her chances, the apple pie favor flipped into an argument about loyalty.

Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section.

If Sarah wants the win that badly, she should bake her own strategy, not borrow OP’s family legacy.

Still debating Sarah’s “just a recipe” argument? See why this woman refused at a potluck.