Food and Drink

A plate of fried fish is photographed in this undated photo. Frying up cod or halibut in a beer batter is a delicious way to enjoy Alaska’s catch. (Courtesy Victoria Petersen)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: A secret ingredient for fried fish

Victoria Petersen serves up beer-battered halibut with a not-so-secret ingredient.

A plate of fried fish is photographed in this undated photo. Frying up cod or halibut in a beer batter is a delicious way to enjoy Alaska’s catch. (Courtesy Victoria Petersen)
Squash from my neighborhood farmers market will be roasted into a sheet pan dinner, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Lazy fall days

Farmers markets keep your hard-earned dollars within your community.

Squash from my neighborhood farmers market will be roasted into a sheet pan dinner, on Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2020 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Low-bush cranberries are gathered in Anchorage, Alaska, on Monday, Sept. 7, 2020. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Low-bush cranberries are gathered in Anchorage, Alaska, on Monday, Sept. 7, 2020. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Cranberry conundrum

I have enough cranberries to try multiple recipes. So I will.

Low-bush cranberries are gathered in Anchorage, Alaska, on Monday, Sept. 7, 2020. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Low-bush cranberries are gathered in Anchorage, Alaska, on Monday, Sept. 7, 2020. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
A bag of butter boletes is seen in this July 2020 photo. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: A secret stash of mushrooms

We have a tote bag full of the mushrooms, which are spongy and the nicest yellow color.

A bag of butter boletes is seen in this July 2020 photo. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
The ingredients for summer salsa. (Photo courtesy of Victoria Petersen)

Summer salsa, no matter the weather

By VICTORIA PETERSEN For the Peninsula Clarion Salsa is my favorite snack. I love how varied it can be and how personalized you can make… Continue reading

The ingredients for summer salsa. (Photo courtesy of Victoria Petersen)
Rhubarb pairs well with sweet fruit like strawberries, and work well in desserts like strawberry rhubarb crumble, June 1, 2019, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Rhubarb pairs well with sweet fruit like strawberries, and work well in desserts like strawberry rhubarb crumble, June 1, 2019, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Bottom-of-the-freezer berry crumble

I’m convinced it’s impossible to mess this one up.

Rhubarb pairs well with sweet fruit like strawberries, and work well in desserts like strawberry rhubarb crumble, June 1, 2019, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Rhubarb pairs well with sweet fruit like strawberries, and work well in desserts like strawberry rhubarb crumble, June 1, 2019, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Paella prepared by chef Victoria Petersen is pictured in this undated photo (Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Summer traditions

Over the years, a paella feed has marked momentous occasions, like moving or birthday parties.

Paella prepared by chef Victoria Petersen is pictured in this undated photo (Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Fiddlehead ferns shooting up from the ground, on May 24 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Foraging for fiddleheads

Springtime in Alaska is the beginning of foraging season for me.

Fiddlehead ferns shooting up from the ground, on May 24 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
A simple syrup made from locally harvested spruce tips is photographed in the author’s Anchorage kitchen on Tuesday, May 26, 2020. Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion

Sprucing up summer cocktails

The spruce tip simple syrup goes great in a lot of cocktails.

A simple syrup made from locally harvested spruce tips is photographed in the author’s Anchorage kitchen on Tuesday, May 26, 2020. Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion
Dutch babies, golden, eggy, puffy pancakes most often baked in a cast-iron skillet, can be paired with sweet or savory ingredients. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Dutch babies, golden, eggy, puffy pancakes most often baked in a cast-iron skillet, can be paired with sweet or savory ingredients. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Puffy pancakes help fill downtime at home

Dutch babies are a golden, eggy, puffy pancake that can be served sweet or savory.

Dutch babies, golden, eggy, puffy pancakes most often baked in a cast-iron skillet, can be paired with sweet or savory ingredients. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Dutch babies, golden, eggy, puffy pancakes most often baked in a cast-iron skillet, can be paired with sweet or savory ingredients. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Photo by Victoria Petersen
This “perfectly herby salad,” inspired by a recipe from New York Times food columnist Alison Roman, is the perfect antidote to a cold, snowy winter weather.

Kalifornsky Kitchen: A perfectly herby salad

A new column by reporter Victoria Petersen.

Photo by Victoria Petersen
This “perfectly herby salad,” inspired by a recipe from New York Times food columnist Alison Roman, is the perfect antidote to a cold, snowy winter weather.
A flourless chocolate cake surprise on the doorstep, Monday, in Kalifornsky. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Spread love in the era of COVID-19

Do you miss your friends and family? I do.

A flourless chocolate cake surprise on the doorstep, Monday, in Kalifornsky. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
The finished product should have a light, flaky crust and moist fillings, as seen here on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, 2020 in Crystal Falls, Michigan. Finished off with a Michigan made beer, it’s hard to find a better second lunch/early dinner on Christmas Day. (Photo by Megan Pacer/Homer News)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Pasties two ways

Peninsula Clarion columnist Victoria Petersen and Homer News reporter Megan Pacer team up to make the traditional hand pie.

The finished product should have a light, flaky crust and moist fillings, as seen here on Christmas Day, Dec. 25, 2020 in Crystal Falls, Michigan. Finished off with a Michigan made beer, it’s hard to find a better second lunch/early dinner on Christmas Day. (Photo by Megan Pacer/Homer News)
This flatbread is the perfect vehicle for leftovers. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Stuff on bread

This pizza dough or flatbread, however you want to make it, would be the vehicle for our leftovers.

This flatbread is the perfect vehicle for leftovers. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Essential ingredients for my family’s lemon cake recipe, photographed on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Great-grandma’s lemon cake

It’s not much, but it’s also everything.

Essential ingredients for my family’s lemon cake recipe, photographed on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2020, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
My favorite breakfast bagel sandwich from my favorite neighborhood coffee shack, on Jan. 5, 2020, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Looking for a few good bagels

Simple ingredients to make your own breakfast sandwich

My favorite breakfast bagel sandwich from my favorite neighborhood coffee shack, on Jan. 5, 2020, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion
A chicken patty adds to a simple Japanese-cuisine-inspired noodle bowl.

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Pondering chicken patties

If you have no idea what a chicken patty is, let me take you to the frozen section of Costco, or Three Bears.

Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion
A chicken patty adds to a simple Japanese-cuisine-inspired noodle bowl.
Salmon ready to go in the oven, photographed on Tuesday, March 16, 2021, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Sasha’s super simple savory salmon

I’m sure everyone on the peninsula who indulges in salmon have their own back-pocket way of making salmon.

Salmon ready to go in the oven, photographed on Tuesday, March 16, 2021, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
A glass of refreshing lemonade officially welcomes the summer season, photographed on Tuesday, April 27, 2021, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: When life gives you lemons …

Among the chaos and uncertainty 2020 and 2021 brought me, this column was one of the only consistent things I had in my life.

A glass of refreshing lemonade officially welcomes the summer season, photographed on Tuesday, April 27, 2021, in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
Fresh citrus and pantry staples like taco seasoning and granulated garlic make for an easy and delicious baked salmon that’s ready to be enjoyed inside a taco, photographed on March 23, 2021 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)

Kalifornsky Kitchen: Salmon saves the day again

Salmon is extremely versatile, and can be spiced to go with a huge range of cuisines.

Fresh citrus and pantry staples like taco seasoning and granulated garlic make for an easy and delicious baked salmon that’s ready to be enjoyed inside a taco, photographed on March 23, 2021 in Anchorage, Alaska. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)