It's time. We've fought for far too long. The Pie vs. Cake War must come to an end! But a winner can't simply be chosen; there must be a battle, and you, dear reader, must decide the champion.


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TOURNAMENT UPDATES:

Day 2: Cakes: Coffee vs. Bundt, Angel Food vs. Pound. Pies: Peanut Butter vs. Boston Cream; Banana Cream vs. Pecan (voting closed as of 3/20).

Day 3: German Chocolate vs. Funfetti, Wedding vs. Pineapple Upside-Down, Pumpkin vs. Lemon Meringue, Blueberry vs. Rhubarb (voting closed 3/23).

Day 4: Red Velvet vs. Coconut, Key Lime vs. Sweet Potato (voting closed as of 3/24).

Day 5: Cherry Pie vs. French Silk; Carrot Cake vs. Black Forest (voting closed as of 3/25).

Day 6: Ice Cream Cake vs. Spice; Brown Sugar Pie vs. Cheesecake (voting closed as of 3/26).

Day 7: The Sweet Sixteen begins! Birthday Cake vs. Pound; Apple Pie vs. Pecan (voting closed as of 3/27).

Day 8: German Chocolate Cake vs. Coffee; Pumpkin vs. Boston Cream (voting closed as of 3/30).

Day 9: Wedding Cake vs. Red Velvet; Key Lime Pie vs. Blueberry (voting closed as of 3/31).

Day 10: Ice Cream Cake vs. Carrot; Cheescake vs. French Silk (voting closed as of 4/1).

Day 11: The Elite EIght! Birthday Cake vs. German Chocolate; Red Velvet vs. Ice Cream; Apple Pie vs. Pumpkin; Key Lime vs. Cheesecake (voting closed as of 4/2).

Day 12: The Final Four: German Chocolate vs. Red Velvet; Apple vs. Cheesecake (voting closed as of 4/5).

The CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH: Red Velvet Cake vs. Cheesecake (polls close 4/6 at 2pm EDT).


And so, in the spirit of March Madness (why should the NCAA have all the fun?), we're pitting the pies and cakes against one another — the Pie Conference and the Cake Conference, if you will — such that the dessert-loving nation can declare a superior sweet, once and for all.

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Each day, we will pit pies against pies, cakes against cakes, until there are only two treats left to battle for the ultimate honor. Your votes will determine the winner of each matchup.

Pies and cakes invited to the playoffs were chosen and seeded at the discretion of the Selection Committee — debating the validity of entrants or their rankings is moot; we must move forward with competition. Please note, generalizations of pie and cake types cover all variations of pies and cakes in their respective genre. Carmel Apple Crumb Pie, for example, is still an Apple Pie; Yellow Birthday Cake With Chocolate Buttercream plays for Team Birthday Cake. Strawberry Rhubarb Pie is Rhubarb Pie, Neopolitan Ice Cream Cake is an Ice Cream Cake. You get the idea.


Today, the #1 seeded Birthday Cake will face off against #16 Fruitcake; in the Pie Conference it's #1 Apple versus #16 Grasshopper. Voting will remain open for 24 hours. Let the games begin!

[Update: The Selection Committee acknowledges the omission of Key Lime Pie, which has been added as a strong wildcard at the #3 spot in the Pie Conference. S'mores has been found in violation of campfire rules and has been disqualified. The bracket has been updated; there will be no further changes to the tournament.]