You’re on the job site, hammer in hand, steel-toed boots covered in dust, and your buddies ask what you’re up to after work. “Baking cookies,” you say with zero hesitation.

Cue the collective gasp.

Baking? You? A man of steel, grit, and sweat who eats lunch out of a toolbox and wipes his brow with sandpaper? What happened to you, man? Isn’t baking a little… “gay”?

Let’s clear that up; baking is science, my friend. Cooking? That’s for lightweights—you just toss a bunch of ingredients into a pot and hope for the best. Baking is for precision players. It’s teaspoons and grams, it’s knowing the difference between baking soda and baking powder (no, they’re not the same thing). One wrong move, and your cake flops harder than Kevin’s karaoke version of Livin’ on a Prayer.

If anything, baking’s for guys who know what they’re doing.

But sure, go ahead, stick with the stereotype that baking’s not manly. Let’s ignore the fact that some of the world’s top bakers—Paul Hollywood, Duff Goldman, Buddy Valastro—are dudes who could probably fix a truck with one hand and bake a flawless soufflé with the other. That precision, skill, and attention to detail are kind of important in every trade, not just building houses or laying concrete.

Here’s a hard truth: anyone can crack open a can of beer and watch a game. It takes a different level of skill to crack an egg, separate the yolk, and whip it into stiff peaks that can hold up a meringue. And let’s not even talk about the satisfaction of pulling a perfectly baked pie out of the oven. The kind of satisfaction that beats the hell out of another round of beers at the bar where you’ll hear the same stories for the hundredth time.

What about the guys on the job site? Won’t they make fun of you if they find out you’ve got an apron hanging in your kitchen and a drawer full of measuring spoons? What if they discover you can pipe icing onto cupcakes better than you can operate a jackhammer?

Don’t blow your ganache. The only thing that’s “gay” is pretending you don’t enjoy something just because someone told you it’s not manly enough. You think Buddy Valastro gets flak for whipping up a wedding cake? He’s probably too busy cashing checks to care.

Here’s the truth: if you can build a house, you can bake a cake. If you can install drywall, you can mix batter. If you can operate heavy machinery, you can probably operate an oven. 

Seriously bro, bake the cake. You’ll feel like a legend when you pull that tray out of the oven. And the smell? Better than any locker room or porta-potty you’ve ever been in.

So throw on that apron, preheat the oven, and get baking. We promise—the only thing you’ll regret is not doing it sooner. Plus, your wife will probably love you even more (if that’s possible).