A couple of months ago I mentioned that one of my unique recipes had shown up in a national magazine. Both b5media and I contacted  the magazine to ask that they give me attribution for the recipe. The magazine didn’t even acknowledge our emails, or the emails of the lawyers.  If they will do it to me they will do it to any of you that are food blogging. After all, I had a network and network lawyers behind me and they still ignored us… The magazine is Tea Time, which is put out by Southern Lady.  Hoffman Media, LLC.

Recipe copyright is a tricky thing. You can’t copyright a list of ingredients…and really, the magazine was within it’s rights to publish the recipe. Legally they did nothing wrong. But the recipe was one that I had developed over a long period of time, one I had worked on to get just right..and spent money on… and it was unusual. In fact, if you list the ingredients in google, my recipe is the only one that comes up.

So, we weren’t talking about them using a recipe for chocolate chip cookies here. This was for white silk and berry tarts..and it took me a long time to get it just right. You see, just white chocolate and heavy cream, the way you would make a chocolate ganache is too rich. White chocolate and butter is too…bland…

After several tries I found that what chocolate and sour cream were just right. The perfect combination and back drop for the berries I chose. I published this recipe last May, almost exactly a year ago. White Silk and Berry Tarts.  I used premade shells because I had been concentrating on testing the filling…

Everyone that tried them loved them.  The slight almond flavor, the creaminess, the tanginess of the sour cream. Perfect.

Now, I do work for a network. I do make an income from blogging and freelance writing.  As some of you know, Marc became disabled 2 years ago and lost his job. We have been fighting with the VA to get his benefits. For awhile we were not sure where our next meal was coming from..seriously money has been tight.

This is not a hobby for me. I love it but Baking Delights, Kettle and Cup, and the other writing I do feeds my family and pays our bills.I don;t just write here. I write about 15 hours a day to make our budget.

So, I read Tea Time Magazine because I love the images, the recipes and the tea articles. I have been a reader, although not every issue, for a couple of years. Imagine how I felt, laying in bed one night and paging through my newest copy (May/June 2009) and coming upon a recipe for White Silk Tartlets.

Me:”Hey Marc! Look! Someone has a similar recipe to mine in a MAGAZINE!”

Marc:”Really? Let me see.”

We begin to read the recipe….

Marc:”Ummm, Kid? That IS your recipe.”

Me: “Seriously? No they wouldn’t do that..must be a coincidence…”

I pulled up the laptop and went to my recipe.  Here it is:

Marye’s White Silk Tarts

16 tart shells of choice (pastry, graham, puff pastry etc.)

1 c unsalted butter

3/4 c sugar

6 ozs good quality white chocolate melted in 1/3 c heavy cream and cooled to room temperature

1 tsp vanilla flavor

1/2 tsp almond flavor

2 TBS sour cream

2 eggs

1/2 pt blackberries, raspberries or both

Bittersweet chocolate for drizzle

+++++

The I looked at their recipe. Page 33.  Forgive me as I blatantly copy their recipe off:

6 oz white chocolate chopped

1/3 cup heavy cream

1 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons sour cream

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

tartlet shells

6 oz blueberries

6 oz raspberries

Melted white chocolate for garnish.

++++++++++++++

Instructions are basically the same. They sweetly used their own words.

The next day Matthew said, “Wow Mom! These tarts on the COVER of Tea Time look just like yours!

“Actually Matt, they look better, their photographer is much better than me but other than that THEY ARE MINE.”

I was astounded. I was sure that they had just made a mistake. SO I emailed them, expecting an email back. I mean, my recipe had made the cover of a national magazine that I admired! Surely I would get a quick apology and a small attribution in another issue….

They didn’t even say eff-you.  Nothing.

Nothing. It says By Valerie Kramer Davis, recipe development by Chantel Lambeth…Which is interesting since she was certainly NOT at my house while I worked on that filling…My poor family was forced to eat mounds of white silk..mounds of it I tell you!

So, am I writing this because I am angry?

Yeah, I am. I am angry that a big, profitable magazine would steal from a broke food blogger. If I had written one of there recipes without attribution I think I would have heard about it.

And you know what? I have inadvertently taken recipes from other bloggers without meaning to. Especially when I first started blogging. But as soon as I was made aware of it I apologized publicly and made it right as much as I could. Because I was raised that way.

You know, if this was a common recipe I really would not feel comfortable saying anything..but as you can see it is not. I am angry. Obviously I will NOT be buying the magazine anymore..which is kind of scary because if they will steal once what will stop them from stealing again?And if they do how will I know?

I don’t believe in signing some blogger’s ethics paper, or joining a bloggers group that has rules about what you can and can’t do. I think that everyone knows what is right and wrong and people can err on the side of caution and ask permission. You know, I would have said, “SURE! Just mention the blog!”

Several months ago a magazine contacted me by email. Niagara Magazine Group out of Canada wanted to use one of my images, with attribution. They asked if it would be ok..  I said, “SURE!” and they even sent me the magazine!

I am not a difficult person to get along with. I think I am pretty reasonable. But I have this thing about lying and stealing. I don’t like it. And I think, especially if you are a public figure, lying and stealing is…well….I don’t want to say unforgivable… but…beyond unethical. I, for one, do not want to be associated with an unethical company.

Food bloggers, really, there is no way to combat this individually. We are too small. But together we are a pretty scary force on the internet. As I told someone this morning..I have a spatuala and I know how to use it!

Try to notice what is on other blogs and then as you are looking around the internet or through magazines take note of anything that looks too familiar. Let’s help each other in this.  Also, if you find that a company or another blog has used your stuff email them. If they don’t fix it…let’s start calling them out. Do you really want to support a magazine like Tea Time that not only plagiarizes other work but refuses to acknowledge their mistake?

Another thing I do is to google my name, and Baking Delights regularly. I also run random pages through CopyScape AND I generally hide a link in the post that links back to one of my blogs or websites so I can track the blog thief.

I am very disappointed, frustrated, and hurt. I am pretty sure that they made a heck of a lot more on my recipe than I did.

Tea Time comes across as being a genteel, feminine magazine…but turns out to be little more than a bully in a frilly dress and a push up bra….. ” I can do this because I am bigger than you.”

Yep, Tea Time, you can.

You are bigger, wealthier, and more powerful than me…but I have something you will never have again. My respect, and I am guessing the respect of more than one of your readers.

Oh… and thank you for saying that this was your best dessert ever…I will take that as a compliment.

Images:(c) Marye Audet (that means I took them with my camera at my table a few minutes ago) 2009

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