Controversial find at Brooke Bellamy’s bakery as its business as usual for the under-fire author

A controversial item was found at the Brisbane bakery of under-fire Aussie cook Brooke Bellamy amid claims of recipe theft.

There was a hub of activity at Brooki Bakehouse in Brisbane today as it’s owner, Brooke Bellamy, continues to be at the centre of plagiarism claims rocking the cooking world.

On Wednesday, customers were seen visiting the Fortitude Valley bakery which is renowned for its cookies and cakes created by Bellamy, a baker-turned-author who raked in a reported $4.6 million in cookbook sales since releasing Bake with Brooki in October.

A steady stream of customers were spotted being served by young female employees inside the store, however Bellamy was nowhere to be seen.

Customers were seen shopping at Brooke Bellamy’s Brooki Bakery in Brisbane on Thursday. Picture: Tertius Pickard/news.com.au

Shoppers were seen walking out with stacks of boxes from the bakery. Picture: Tertius Pickard/news.com.au

There were also queues at the shopfront but Bellamy was nowhere to be seen. Picture: Tertius Pickard/news.com.au

The celebrity cook did not appear at the store nor has she been seen in public since Tuesday, when fellow author and cook Nagi Maehashi accused her of plagiarising two recipes – one for caramel slice, one for baklava – in her best-selling book.

“I’m no stranger to seeing my recipes copied online,” Maehashi wrote in a post on Instagram at the time. “But seeing what I believe to be my recipes and my words printed in a multimillion-dollar book launched with a huge publicity campaign from one of Australia’s biggest publishers was shocking.”

Popular chef Nagi Maehashi made plagiarism allegations against Bellamy on Tuesday.

Maehashi claims Bellamy used her recipes in her best-selling cookbook Bake With Brooki.

Bellamy and her publishing house, Penguin Books, have vehemently denied Maehashi’s claims, but in a statement said that going forward the two recipes Maehashi called out would be pulled from its future reprints.

Meanwhile, as of Thursday, the book in question remains front and centre at the store, placed by a window alongside other merchandise, such as oven mitts and cookie tube containers, also available to buy.

The book in question was seen in the shop’s window available to buy on Thursday. Picture: Tertius Pickad/news.com.au

According to reports, the book has made $4.6 million in sales since it was released in October. Picture: Tertius Pickard/news.com.au

“On March 2020, RecipeTin Eats published a recipe for caramel slice. It uses the same ingredients as my recipe, which I have been making and selling since four years prior,” Bellamy wrote in a statement on Instagram.

“I immediately offered to remove both recipes from future reprints to prevent further aggravation, which was communicated to Nagi swiftly through discussions.

“I have great respect for Nagi and what she has done for cooks content creators and cookbooks in Australia.”

News.com.au has reached out to both Maehashi and Bellamy for comment.

Bellamy has emerged as somewhat of a competitor to Maehashi in recent months as the bakery owner continued to find fame on social media.

Last year, Maehashi’s own book Tonight was locked in a battle for the Christmas number one spot with Bake With Brooki.

Bellamy at one of her recent cookbook signings

The controversy paved the way for US baker and author Sally McKenney to come forward with her own plagiarism claims against Bellamy, accusing the Aussie chef of copying her ‘The Best Vanilla Cake I’ve Ever Had’ recipe from 2019.

Bellamy has since shared a statement with news.com.au on Wednesday night, saying the backlash she has faced since the accusations first emerged have been “deeply distressing” both for her and her family.

“The past 24 hours have been extremely overwhelming,” she said in a statement, adding that she has faced “attacks” on social media as a result.

“I have had media outside my home and business, and have been attacked online. It has been deeply distressing for my colleagues and my young family.”

Bellamy went on to insist that she has never copied another baker’s recipe, and instead has only ever “drawn inspiration” for her own creations.

Bellamy’s husband, Justice, made an appearance at the store on Wednesday. Picture: Steve Pohlner

Justice was seen working alongside employees. Picture: Steve Pohlner

“I do not copy other people’s recipes. Like many bakers, I draw inspiration from the classics, but the creations you see at Brooki Bakehouse reflect my own experience, taste, and passion for baking, born of countless hours of my childhood spent in my home kitchen with Mum.”

She continued: “While baking has leeway for creativity, much of it is a precise science and is necessarily formulaic. Many recipes are bound to share common steps and measures: if they don’t, they simply don’t work.

“My priority right now is to ensure the welfare of the fantastic team at Brooki Bakehouse and that of my family.”

Yesterday, her husband Justice was seen at their Brisbane bakery. The Courier Mail approached him for comment at the time and he said his wife would not be making an appearance. He declined to comment any further about the allegations, but thanked the community for their support.

Originally published as Controversial find at Brooke Bellamy’s bakery as its business as usual for the under-fire author