Maehashi published a blog post accusing Bellamy of plagiarising her recipes for caramel slice and baklava in her Bake with Brooki cookbook released last year.
In the post, Maehashi wrote that she had made "copyright infringement allegations" against the book's publisher, Penguin Random House Australia, but she had not launched legal proceedings against the publisher or Bellamy.
"To me, the similarities between the recipes in question are far too specific and detailed to be dismissed as coincidence," she said.
"Penguin has denied the allegations. I have received no response from Brooke Bellamy, the author," Maehashi continued.
"I'm speaking up because staying silent protects this kind of behaviour. Profiting from plagiarised recipes is unethical – even if it is not copyright infringement – and undermines the integrity of the entire book.
"And it's a slap in the face to every author who puts in the hard work to create original content rather than cutting corners."
Maehashi said that the similarities were brought to her attention by a reader back in November 2024, posting the recipes side-by-side.
"I put a huge amount of time and effort into testing recipes, whether it's an original creation or one adapted from another source. It is what I am known for – the press have called me 'obsessive' about testing on more than one occasion," she wrote.
"And I share them freely on my website for anyone to enjoy," she continued.
"To see them plagiarised (in my view) and used in a book for profit, without permission, and without credit, doesn't just feel unfair. It feels like a blatant exploitation of my work."
"And because the income from my website helps fund my food bank, RecipeTin Meals, this isn't just legally questionable – I find it ethically indefensible."
RecipeTin Meals makes and donates 600 meals a day, Maehashi says, which are all funded through her website and cookbook sales.
Maehashi claims that 90,000 copies of Bellamy's book have been sold with, $4.6 million in sales.
Bellamy took to Instagram to deny the claims made by Maehashi, writing: "I did not plagiarise any recipes in my book, which consists of 100 recipes I have created over many years, since falling in love with baking and growing up baking with my mum in our home kitchen.
"In 2016, I opened my first bakery. I have been creating my recipes and selling them commercially since October 2016."
Bellamy then responded to the claim that she copied the recipe for the caramel slice, explaining that she had been making caramel slices using that recipe since 2016, while the March 2020 RecipeTin Eats recipe "uses the same ingredients as my recipe."
Bellamy continues, writing that she had offered to remove both recipes from future reprints "to prevent further aggravation, which was communicated to Nagi swiftly through discussion."
"Recipe development in today's world is enveloped in inspiration from other cooks, cookbook authors, food bloggers and content creators. This willingness to share recipes and build on what has come before is what I love so much about baking and sharing recipes."
"I stand by my love for baking, my recipes, and the joy this book has brought so many home bakers around the world eager to try recreating my recipes from inside their homes,” Bellamy wrote.
