Friend tells bestfriend's girlfriend that the "grandma's pasta recipe" was taken from the back of a pasta box, despite what the boyfriend said: ' I genuinely didn't know he'd created an entire backstory for it'

Author image for María Cetra
María Cetra • Writer
Oct 12, 2026 1:00 PM EDT

Maybe don't lie if you don't want your secrets to get spilled. 

To lie to the person you just started dating is awful, and I say that as someone who has been on both sides of that story. When you lie just when things are starting, you are condemning the relationship to go downhill. If you couldn´t even be honest with me at the beginning when we were still talking about dumb stuff, how could I ever believe you when we discuss the deeper and more personal topics? As I said, I know what I'm talking about because not only have I lied at the beginning of a relationship, but I was also lied to. That's why I really do know how it feels, and no, it's still not okay. 

When you start dating someone, you want them to see the best version of yourself, the polished one that seems more fun, cleverer, and closer to perfect. This makes us feel less confident about our true selves, which, in the end, ends up making us lie to appear as if we were better than we truly are. I was there once; I know it's hard not to pretend, but I promise you it's not worth it. Lies go from "Of course I read that book, I loved it" to "There's nothing wrong with what you did; they were in the wrong". We know that isn't true. We know it when it first crosses our minds, and we know when we said it, but it's always too late to take it back. 

Now, on the other side of the story is the person who has been lied to, who will, eventually, realize that it was all a lie and not trust you anymore. It doesn't matter what kind of lie it was; what matters is the fact that someone you trust doesn't trust you enough to tell you the truth about something. This always ends badly. It can be like this story, a very dumb lie with no real meaning, but it still hurts and damages the relationship. That's why I will always say that you shouldn't lie, not even about the super dumb things. Say the truth, and if it's not enough, then that person isn't the love of your life. 

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  • 01

    Am I wrong for telling my friend's girlfriend that his “family pasta recipe” is from the back of a box?

    My friend has been making the same pasta dish for years. It's good, but nothing crazy. We used to make it in college when we were broke and trying to save money. Recently he started dating someone new and apparently he's been telling her it's an old family recipe his grandmother taught him. A few of us had dinner at his
    via u/Some_Amphibian169
  • 02
    A home-cooked pasta plate.
    via amirali mirhashemian

    A home-cooked pasta plate. 

  • 03
    place and she kept talking about how sweet it was that he was carrying on his grandmother's recipe. At one point she asked me if his family always made it for holidays. I thought she was joking so I laughed and said no, we originally got it off the back of a pasta box in college while we watched kick streams. The table went completely quiet.
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  • 04
    He immediately said he'd changed the recipe a lot since then, which is true, but later he pulled me aside and asked why I had to embarrass him in front of everyone. I told him I genuinely didn't know he'd created an entire backstory for it. He says I could've figured out from context that he wanted it left alone and that there was no
    via u/Some_Amphibian169
  • 05
    reason to correct something harmless. His girlfriend thought it was funny but he's still pred at me.
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  • 06
    A person cooking pasta dough. Model portrayal.
    via Jorge Zapata

    A person cooking pasta dough. 

    Model portrayal. 

  • 07
    Unlikely-Flatworm-48 My ex-MIL refused to drink my tap water and would always bring bottled water with her to my house. Then she got mad when I read the label to her which said, "bottled from City municipal water supply". It was literally the same water.
    via u/Some_Amphibian169
  • 08
    -whats-your-damage- My ex told me about how his favorite pie was his grandmother's pecan pie. I told him I could make him one (never made a pie before but really good at following recipes). He almost cried & told me it tasted exactly like his grandmother's. He asked me to make one for family Thanksgiving. I didn't tell anyone that I got the recipe from the Karo syrup package.
    via u/Some_Amphibian169
  • 09
    Marialnconnu Why can't people a) be honest, and b) not claim someone else's work as their own?
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  • 10
    Marvelous-Miss And c)stop claiming other people caused the drama they actually caused.
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  • 11
    Quiet Water0128 People haters getting caught in their own lies and will always direct their "humiliation rage" at you or the person holding up the mirror. But he embarrassed himself. Duh.
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  • 12
    MelissaCop I'll tell you what. The best spinach dip is still on the back of the Knorrs box. Including the water chestnuts of course.
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  • 13
    stocar My mom always asks my husband to make his "world famous seafood pasta." He got the recipe from me after I made it up one night trying to figure out what to cook for our angsty toddler. Shrimp, onion, garlic, mushrooms, canned sauce and I stir in some Philly cream cheese to make it a rosé.
    via u/Some_Amphibian169
  • 14
    My husband thinks it's hilarious and always reminds me it's his world famous pasta!
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  • 15
    Difficult-Bad-2456 The solution was obvious from the start. Your friend needs to confront his gf and tell her the truth about his grandma being a pasta box.
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  • 16
    SaneForCocoaPuffs Most "family recipe" or "grandma recipes" come from the back of a box. Companies like King Arthur Flour or Toll Brothers have made their products for generations, they have some good recipes in their collection within that time
    via u/Some_Amphibian169
  • 17
    Stormagedoniton I was flirting with a guy and I pulled up a google review of a building I worked on in his company. He looked at the page and said "I took that photo!" cool story bro. I took that photo. My name is on it.... guys who make up bs need to be publicly mocked.
    via u/Some_Amphibian169

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