Food Network's Anne Thornton has gotten the axe from her TV show after executives discovered some of her recipes were too similar to versions dished out by Martha Stewart and Barefoot Contessa.
Thornton's 'Dessert First' launched on the network in October 2010. But the show's second season will be its last.
"The network discovered the similarities during the second season of the show," a source tells the New York Post.
"They went back and reviewed her first season, and discovered what looked like copying then, too. Many of her recipes were close, with only a few minor edits, to other chefs' recipes."
Among the recipes she is said to have lifted was the frosting for her German Chocolate Cupcakes, which was found to be a replica of Martha Stewart's Coconut Pecan frosting recipe from her 2009 book 175 Cupcakes.
The pastry chef's Luscious Lemon Squares was also found to be similar to a 1999 recipe from Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa.
And her Mascarpone-Stuffed French Toast from the cookbook 'The Essence of Chocolate' with Thornton's only addition being orange zest.
Food Network bosses were concerned because not only were recipe ingredients almost identical, but so were the cooking instructions for each of the sweet sensations.
Reached for comment, a Food Network spokeswoman declined to address the allegations and claimed poor ratings were to blame for the show's cancellation.
Food Network's Anne Thornton has gotten the axe from her TV show after executives discovered some of her recipes were too similar to versions dished out by Martha Stewart and Barefoot Contessa.
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