About

A California girl, I got hooked on Alaska, Ole Gundersen and fishing (not necessarily in that order!) more than twenty years ago and have never looked back.

Every summer Ole and I work alongside each other performing all the duties involved in commercial salmon fishing on a small boat.

In addition to being chief deck hand, I’m also the galley cook and that’s what forms the inspiration for my cookbooks. But my interest in cooking started long ago.

My father was a bread baker and my mother loved entertaining. Some of my happiest and most abiding memories are of watching my parents welcome friends into their home. The gold-plate cutlery would come out. The fine china would make an appearance. My dad would put on some Frank Sinatra or Elvis. My mom would spend hours and hours preparing the meal.

Like my parents, I love food and sharing it with friends, but that’s where the similarities end. Fine china and gold-plated cutlery have no place on a commercial fishing boat! Nor do I have endless hours to devote to cooking. That’s why my recipes focus on ease and flavor.

While catching, cooking and eating salmon is now my passion, I once ran a bakery and deli in Poulsbo, Washington. There I taught myself how to make a dessert so luscious that you gained two pounds just looking at it. Along the way I also honed my food skills at a variety of dining establishments in Alaska including Kay’s Kitchen, Annabelle’s and Cape Fox Lodge.

Ole and I enjoy salmon fishing, we love each other’s company and we wouldn’t trade our life for the world.

If you are interested in a more formal bio to use in promoting me or my books, please check out the press kit page.