Sneaky Food Books: Hot and a Hot Topic

Pictured is the cover of the book "The Sneaky Chef" by Missy Chase Lapine. (AP Photo) (AP)

At that meeting, staff who sampled her recipes for macaroni and cheese and meatballs were "wowed," he said.

"In person, she was such an articulate and passionate spokesperson and advocate for the idea of having your children eat nutritious foods," he said. The company acquired the rights to the book in June.

Meanwhile, Lapine got a deal with Running Press after an auction among six different publishers, she said.

Lapine's book came out in April, and a month later she saw a promotional brochure that included recipes and a book cover for Seinfeld's book, which she said was similar to her own book's logo _ a woman holding carrots behind her back.

"I got really upset," said Lapine. "My visceral action was 'Oh my god.' I was, like, heartbroken. I knew there was a book coming out by a famous person that was so incredibly similar."

David Steinberger, president and CEO of The Perseus Books Group, said he wrote a letter to HarperCollins expressing concern about the similarities.

While Collins did modify the cover to put the carrots on a counter, Ross said that was not in response to the letter. The company made no other changes, Ross said.

"We reviewed the allegations and found them to be completely without merit," he said.

Steinberger said Perseus is trying to get more information on how the similarities may have happened.

Seinfeld said she has never seen or read "The Sneaky Chef."

"My book came from years of trying to get my own children to eat healthy foods _ my own trial and error in my own kitchen," she said in a statement. "The idea of pureeing vegetables has been around for decades."

Seinfeld's agent, Jennifer Rudolph Walsh from William Morris Agency, said she and Seinfeld began discussing the idea in 2005. She said the book was already being bound when "The Sneaky Chef" came out.

Lapine said she is not accusing anyone of anything. But she said it does "hurt" to see someone else given credit for her method.

But with Americans focused on obesity and getting kids to eat better, both books are doing well: Seinfeld's will reach No. 1 on The New York Times best-seller list for hardcover advice books Oct. 28, and Lapine's will be at No. 9 on the paperback counterpart list, according to the newspaper.

Collins is working round-the-clock to keep up with demand, Ross said, with 2.3 million copies of the book expected to be in print by the end of January.

(This version CORRECTS spelling to Lapine.)