Friday morning on AOA's Facebook page we blithely asserted that the Reese's peanut butter egg is vastly superior to the peanut butter cup. And while there were some who agreed with us, we did later in the day realize the error of our ways.

We didn't have data to support our claim.

So, because it's Friday afternoon, here is definitive proof that the peanut butter egg is better than the peanut butter cup.



Size matters

We'll just say it: bigger is better. And the peanut butter egg is clearly bigger than the peanut butter cup.

peanut butter egg weight: 35 g

peanut butter cup weight: 21 g

You're there for the peanut butter

Sure, both the egg and cup have chocolate. But, let's face it, you're there for the peanut butter. If you weren't, you'd just have chocolate -- and, we'd hope, better chocolate. Because the chocolate in a Reese's cup isn't that good.

So we separated the peanut butter fillings from both an egg and a cup and weighed them.

peanut butter egg filling: 19 g

peanut butter cup filling: 10 g

The egg is bigger overall, so this is not surprising. But what also matters is the peanut butter to chocolate ratio. And again, in this regard, the egg is superior.

peanut butter egg filling as percentage of total weight: 54 percent

peanut butter cup filling as percent of total weight: 48 percent

On the AOA FB page, Erin argued that the peanut butter/chocolate ratio is wrong in an egg. But we maintain that any peanut butter cup or egg that is less than half peanut butter is an inferior offering.

It's special

The peanut butter egg is a seasonal item, and therefore only available part of the year. So even if somehow the egg and the cup were both of the same quality (which they are obviously not), because the egg is more scarce than the cup, it will be more desirable to us. Sure, this part of it is all in our heads, but so much of life is.

That said, we must acknowledge that Reese's is endeavoring to change all this by introducing items like "peanut butter pumpkins." Such items are obviously an affront and should be avoided.

QED

As we have shown here today -- through both physical fact and psychology -- the peanut butter egg is clearly superior to the peanut butter cup. And if you already thought this -- as any reasonable person would -- we bid you to enjoy one this weekend with the smug satisfaction in knowing that you were right all along.

Happy spring.