Ego Nwodim Just Shared Her Take on a ‘Controversial’ Holiday Favorite (& Honestly, I Agree)

The holiday season is officially in full swing, and with it comes more than twinkling lights and festive plans, it’s also that time when all the family traditions start popping back up. For some, that means dinner at Aunt Sue's and for others, it’s neighborhood caroling or a dozen other things. I caught up with Ego Nwodim to chat about her own traditions and she let me in on the cozy ways she celebrates, as well as a surprisingly controversial take on a certain holiday pie.

During a quick round of holiday this-or-that, Ego, who was promoting her partnership with Scotch Brand, revealed which classics she’s loyal to.

Real tree or fake tree? Real.
Home Alone or The Grinch? Home Alone.
Giving gifts or receiving? Giving.

But the real curveball came with the big question: pumpkin pie or sweet potato pie?

Her answer: Pumpkin.

"I know, I know, and I know it's controversial," she quickly explained. "And unfortunately, you guys, I'm not a pie girly. So that was like a very stressful question. And I know you thought I was going to say sweet potato."

For context, the “controversy” is actually more of a cultural debate where sweet potato pie tends to triumph over pumpkin, particularly among Black communities. (This CNN article dives deeper into the topic.) While Ego's admittedly not a pie girly, I am, and I too would have chosen pumpkin, even though it's not the expected choice. So no shade from me.

All the holiday chatter comes as Ego teams up with Scotch Brand to take on Resting Gift Face (RGF), which can be described as that unmistakable look you make when you unwrap a gift that seriously misses the mark.

"I think it's an experience we can all relate to. Someone gives you a strange gift. It's maybe wrapped poorly. Scotch brand is making wrapping so much easier for even an amateur wrapper like myself and reminding people to be more thoughtful about the gifts that they give."

Ego's tips for giving a thoughtful gift? Get laser focused.

"I'm hyper focused when talking to them and listening so thoroughly and intently in conversation to what they say they're up to, what their current hobbies are, what their current interests are, what they've expressed a need for or an interest in," the Saturday Night Live alum shared. "I would advise people to do that because people kind of tell you what they need or they're looking into or they're going to get for themselves, and maybe you can swoop in there and get them that thing."

Pie debates and gifting faux pas aside, Ego's favorite holiday tradition all comes down to one thing: hot chocolate.

"Every year I get super into into finding a new chocolate that I want to use," she shared. "That's maybe my favorite holiday tradition in conjunction with getting together with family and just getting to be with my nieces and building gingerbread houses with them."

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