Just a Taste – Pumpkin Pie Brûlée Bites

Posted on November 16, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

*These little custards were baked in two-ounce canning jars and are awaiting the finishing touch of a caramelized top. They are the perfect size for a dessert bite at a potluck*.

Tis the season for pumpkin pie. Ten years ago (wow, 10 years!!), we posted a recipe after making a fall pumpkin pie and found ourselves with leftover filling. You know the problem, not enough filling to make a whole second pie, but the idea of tossing the extra unthinkable. We decided to bain-marie the remainder. When the little custards came out of the hot water bath, they seemed to want a bit of crunch. Out came the kitchen torch and a little sugar for a satisfying brûlée finish. And so, a new recipe for our repertoire was born.

Here is the link to the original recipe and post: https://cutterlight.com/2015/11/15/maple-pumpkin-pie-brulee-or-what-to-do-with-leftover-pie-filling/

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On Wings of Angels

Posted on September 7, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

We’ve been studying and learning about foraging for choice edible mushrooms for the better part of six years now. A seasoned mushroom forager’s instruction helped us move from interested and nervous mushroomers to confident and knowledgable mushroomers. In the forests we currently traverse, we focus on finding four types of choice mushrooms that are culinary beauties. Today’s hike ended with a basket of Angel Wings, Yellow Foot Chanterelles, and Hedgehogs. I can’t wait to see Jack create a bowl of Udon featuring these delicious and beautiful mushrooms.

#wildmushrooms #mushroom foraging #wild gourmet mushrooms #wildalaska #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination

Yelloweye Rockfish

Posted on August 2, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

One of the many, many things we love about Cordova is receiving a notice that someone is selling freshly caught seafood down at the harbor. Yesterday’s “catch” were beautiful yelloweye rockfish. The meat is firm, white, and flakes beautifully. The collar, grilled, pan-fried or broiled, is reminiscent of lobster tail. What’s your favorite seafood?

#yelloweye #freshfish #Alaskafish #rockfish #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination

Steam Juicer – a Revelation

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

If you’ve been following along, you’ll know I avoid superfluous or single use kitchen gadgets. When friends suggested adding a steam juicer to our arsenal, I borrowed one to see what the fuss was about. I first tested it on rhubarb and high bush cranberries with good results, but when I steam juiced wineberries (aka nagoon berries) I was sold. This device simplifies the process of cleaning and sorting, and quickly produces pure, unadulterated juices ready for immediate use or for canning. Highly recommend!

#steamjuicer #kitchengadget #juicing #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination

One more for the book: Wildberry Custard Tart

Posted on July 26, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

We are having quite a berry season. It was easy to gather premium wild blueberries and wild salmonberries for this tart. Look at the size of those golden berries! There’s a lot of things you could do with freshly picked berries…but nothing says “fresh berries” like fresh berries.

#wildblueberries #wildsalmonberries #dessert #wildberrytart #tartrecipe #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination

En Papillote

Posted on July 25, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

Chef Jack doing his magic. Preparing halibut on a bed of chopped venison sausage to be grilled en papillote. So grateful for the kindness of sharing neighbors.

#halibut #venison #venisonsausage #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination

A Soup Involving Puff Pastry and a Tasty Reveal

Posted on July 13, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

Jack is working his magic today. He’s perfecting a soup recipe baked in stoneware and topped with puff pastry. Spoiler alert? Your guest will crack into the perfectly baked pastry to find wild Alaskan Dungeness Crab. Yes, please!

#soup #puffedpastry #dungenesscrab #soupsurprise #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination

Dessert for Any Season – Frozen Salmonberries

Posted on July 11, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

This is a favorite Jack creation. The elegance of the delectable array of salmonberries brings a wow-factor to meals all throughout the year.

#salmonberries #foragingalaska #dessert #frozenberries #chefdonachy #alaskacooking #food #foodphotography #eatingwelloffthebeatenpath #alaskafood #alaskabush #fooddestination #moose&malbec

Moose Pie & Malbec – a New Adventure

Posted on July 10, 2025 by Jack & Barbra Donachy

Perfectly flaky crust stuffed with delectable ingredients. You want the recipe, right?

We are coming up on our fifteenth anniversary of publishing this blog. All those years ago, we packed up our beautiful California bungalow and headed off to live an adventure well off the beaten path in bush Alaska. People thought we would return to the lovely life we left in the urban world after a year or so. But we fell in love with all the joys and challenges with living in bush Alaska and here we are…still living well off the beaten path.

Much of this blog has been dedicated to foraging and recipe creation. Fifteen years of collecting experiences, reimagining food and beverage pairings and generating culinary ideas should lead to … a cookbook! Our blog catchphrase – living well off the beaten path – is now a work progressing toward a book with the working title Moose Pie and Malbec: Eating Well Off the Beaten Path in the Alaska Bush.

To keep you, our long-time readers (and new followers) in the loop, we will endeavor to post regular peeks into what we are working on here on Cutterlight and on Instagram. Follow along on our new adventure and see how it goes, leave a “like” and feel free to comment and share!

Thanks, as always, for reading and commenting!

Chefs and Bakers – Jack and Barbra