Two food writers have accused TikTok influencer Brooke Bellamy of plagiarizing recipes in her bestselling cookbook. Nagi Maehashi of RecipeTin Eats and Sally McKenney of Sally’s Baking Addiction claim Bellamy copied their work in “Bake With Brooki,” published by Penguin Random House Australia.

According to a CNN report, Maehashi, who has 1.6 million Instagram followers and authored the New York Times bestseller “RecipeTin Eats: Dinner,” published comparative examples of her recipes alongside Bellamy’s on her website, highlighting similarities in recipes for caramel slice and baklava.

“The similarities between the recipes in question are far too specific and detailed to be dismissed as coincidence,” Maehashi writes in a post. “Profiting from plagiarized recipes is unethical—even if it is not copyright infringement—and undermines the integrity of the entire book.”

Denials and Legal Response

Bellamy, who boasts two million TikTok followers and operates three Brooki Bakehouse locations, denies the allegations. In a statement, she claims to have sold her caramel slice for four years before Maehashi’s recipe publication.

“I do not copy other people’s recipes. Like many bakers, I draw inspiration from the classics,” Bellamy states. “While baking has leeway for creativity, much of it is a precise science and is necessarily formulaic.”

Penguin’s legal team also rejects the allegations, stating the recipes “were written by Brooke Bellamy.”

Copyright Complexities

Maehashi acknowledges the legal challenges in recipe plagiarism cases. “Copyright law protects creative expression, not facts or functional instructions,” she explains. “If someone copies enough of your words, they may be infringing your copyright. But if they just use the same ingredients and basic steps written in their own words, it’s usually not an infringement.”

Both Maehashi’s “RecipeTin Eats: Tonight” and Bellamy’s “Bake With Brooki” are currently shortlisted for the illustrated book of the year prize at the 2025 Australian Book Industry Awards.

As the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports, Bellamy has been dropped as an ambassador for a federally funded program aimed at teaching girls to “think like an entrepreneur” after the plagiarism accusations.