Tunagate: Cindy McCain Accused of Stealing Recipes

The presidential campaign may come down to Ahi Tuna and what Cindy McCain knew and when she knew it about her warm spinach salad. John McCain’s wife has been accused of including another woman’s recipes in her collection of “McCain Family Recipes.” She joins the wife of Jerry Seinfeld in the expanding field of recipe misappropriation.

Bloggers have attacked “McCain Family Recipes” as being copied from cookbook author and former “Cooking Thin” host Kathleen Daelemans. Even her recipe for farfalle pasta with turkey sausage, peas and mushrooms was traced to the TV show “Everyday Italian” and her rosemary chicken was traced to TV chef Rachael Ray. While the website portrays these as “Cindy’s Recipes.”

“Apparently a Web intern added Rachael Ray to our policy team without her knowing it,” McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds deadpanned yesterday. “He was swiftly dealt with, and the page is down for revision.”

The food scandal was first reported by a weiner — freelance writer David Weiner to be specific.

She now joins Jessica Seinfeld who is in the midst of litigation with Missy Chase Lapine alleged copying of recipes from “The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids’ Favorite Meals.” Jessica Seinfeld came out with her book: “Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Getting Your Kids Eating Good Food” with some striking similarities.

For the Seinfeld story, click here.
For the full story, click here