3 days ago
Awkward moment Martha Stewart issues a snappy response when asked about Meghan Markle's 'viral' jam during trip to Australia
Martha Stewart seems to have little time for Meghan Markle.
The domestic doyenne, 83, is currently Down Under and hosted an In Conversation event at the ICC in Sydney on Wednesday night.
During the event, Martha was asked by journalist and author Benjamin Law for her take on the Duchess Of Sussex and her viral jams.
Meghan's conserves sold through her lifestyle brand As Ever recently sent condiment fans wild, selling out within just minutes of going on sale.
The Duchess' range, which included a £10.80 (AU$22.50) raspberry jam, honey and herbal teas, generated immediate demand but has failed to replenish stock since the initial sell-out.
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Martha did not want Meghan to overshadow her big night and she quickly shut down the journalist's question.
'No, I'm not going there,' she said before segueing into a story about meeting Meghan's father-in-law King Charles.
Martha's pointed shut-down comes after Meghan was accused of stealing a Martha Stewart recipe for her controversial one-pot spaghetti dish.
Meghan's dish was featured in the debut episode of her Netflix series With Love, Meghan, and foodies were quick to point out the similarities between Meghan's and Martha's dishes.
Perhaps tellingly, Martha updated her 'similar' recipe for one pan pasta a month before the premiere of Meghan's Netflix series.
While the ingredients and method remained the same, Martha updated the recipe description to read: 'The original and the best' causing many fans to suggest it was a pointed comment at Meghan.
Referencing Martha updating her recipe, Danny added: 'Did Martha know something? I mean she is very powerful, but I'm putting her recipe to the test to see how it compares.'
Danny, almost instantly, put paid to claims of culinary chicanery on Meghan's part, noting the differing ingredients in the two recipes.
'Just off the bat the recipes have a lot of differences,' Danny said.
'Meghan uses a lot of greens... she also uses lemon, but they both use a similar one-pot method.'
Danny suggested that perhaps Meghan had used Martha's recipe as inspiration for her one-pot dish.
'Every recipe is built on other recipes,' he said.
It was a similar sentiment shared by Martha at her Sydney event on Wednesday, as she weighed in on the recent RecipeTin Eats plagiarism scandal that saw Brooke Bellamy accused of copying the recipes of fellow Australian cook Nagi Maehashi.
'I have so many recipes and it's hard to develop a recipe without having a repertoire behind it,' she told the audience.
'I don't think too many recipes are owned by anybody, they are handed down, used and changed.'
However, Martha claimed that it can be considered plagiarism if a recipe is 'copied word for word'.
'If you print somebody else's recipe word for word in your own cookbook then it might be plagiarism but I think it's very hard to prove who actually came up with that recipe,' she continued.
'So unless they are word for word, you can't say they're yours.'
Martha's Megan shut down is not the first time she has taken a not-so-subtle swipe at the Duchess.
Back in April, Martha was quizzed about Meghan's Netflix series and the kitchen icon claimed she didn't even know it was out.
Often seen as the 'original influencer', Martha was quickly compared to Meghan when her 'domestic goddess' TV series was announced - with people even saying she was 'entering her Martha Stewart era'.
But when she was asked about what she really thinks about Meghan's show during an appearance on Access Hollywood, Martha appeared blissfully unaware - and seemingly knew nothing about it.
'I have not seen the show yet!' she confessed.
'So, has it started?'
With Love, Meghan came to Netflix in March after it was initially postponed from January due to the LA wildfires.
Martha, who was sentenced to five months in federal prison for fraud, is seen as the 'original influencer', known for her impeccable taste in cooking, gardening, and home decor.
She rose to fame following the launch of her books on cooking, entertaining and decorating before getting her own TV show.
