No bake vegan dessert demo at Maplewood Library

Photo By Maryanne Christiano-Mistretta
Robyn Whalen, senior information specialist at the Maplewood Library; and Christopher Nadolny, of Celebrated Food Catering at the library.

Macadamia “Cheese” Cake, Lemon Pudding, and Chocolate-Raspberry Tarte.

These were the three no-bake vegan desserts featured in a demo by Christopher Nadolny recently at Maplewood Library. It was a full house with not one empty seat. Patrons of all ages including children enjoyed the samples, with many going back for seconds.

The desserts not only tasted unbelievably good, they looked like works of art. For example, the Lemon Pudding was elegantly topped with edible flowers and blueberries.

Nadolny, and his wife Ellen, run Celebrated Food, an off-premise catering service in Maplewood that is uniquely styled to the needs of the client. Their service began in 1989. The style and cuisine were inspired by Chris’ experience at the Quilted Giraffe and other four-star restaurants in New York City.

Celebrated Food is not a vegan catering service, but Chris saw the trend for vegan options is clear. He got into vegan cooking during the pandemic.

“I can see the need for veganism for our own health and for the environment,” he said. “It’s very important. There’s definitely a demand for it. I didn’t want to be that stupid caterer that didn’t care. I have to allow for vegans. It’s nice to be able to say, ‘I have this.’ It’s rewarding. The main reason for eating vegan is health concerns. When Covid hit, I started researching vegan. I hope it’s an inspiration for people.”

All the recipes made at Maplewood Library were non-bake and very simple. In addition to being vegan, they were all conventional sugar free and gluten free. Chris likes to use Chicory syrup as a sweetener.

Attendee Marcia Leonard of Maplewood said she has known Chris since 1989.

“He has a wonderful catering service,” Leonard said. “I have celiac and I have to be careful. It’s been a challenge, especially with desserts. It’s very good for me, that sense of recipes where gluten is not needed.”

“The recipes are really great,” said attendee Laraine Pinnone of Maplewood. “Easy to follow. Not using fake vegan butter. Not made with stabilizers. My son is vegan.”

Chris mentioned that while creating the recipes, he was aiming for vegan, but these desserts are also flourless. “The beauty of these desserts is no cooking,” he said.

The simple Chocolate-Raspberry Tarte was fast and easy to make.

“If you had guests coming in 30 minutes, you could whip that up before they got there,” Chris said.

During the question and answer segment of the demo, an attendee asked for Chris’ favorite vegan food hack/tip.

He said, “Aqua faba—chickpea water. You can whip it like egg whites. I’ve baked meringue from chickpeas. Pay attention to spices that go into the recipe. I’ve made incredible breakfast sausage with tofu and spices.

Though Chris said he doesn’t think he’ll be a vegan himself, he finds vegan cooking fascinating. “I made a vegan lobster roll using hearts of palm and nori,” he said.

To learn more about Celebrated Food, visit: https://celebratedfood.net/