Chef Diane Forley FORLEY

Diane Forley, has been a long-standing advocate and practitioner of plant-based cooking and baking. Chef Forley’s “roots” in modern American and classical French kitchens have allowed her to develop a personal approach that breaks with, yet remains mindful of, tradition. Her early training included The River Café and Gotham Bar and Grill in New York and L’Arpege and Maison Blanche in Paris, and pastry at L’Ecole Lenôtre. A trendsetter, Diane began her foray into vegetable cookery in the 1990s putting fruits and vegetables at the center of the plate at her restaurant, Verbena, in New York City. Her botanically-inspired cookbook, Anatomy of a Dish (2002), established her as an early innovator at the forefront of the plant-based movement. In 2009, Chef Forley opened a baking commissary, Flourish Baking Company, with a mission to transform her kitchen towards a more sustainable, vegan approach and address the growing need for allergen friendly products. Her products are available in both wholesale and retail markets. Most recently, she developed a line of breakthrough decorating supplies, including an organic, egg-free meringue powder, available through her ecommerce store, meringueshop.