While at the cutting at the South Point I had some pretty outstanding lunches. They have a "Soup of the Day" so I took advantage of that on Manhattan Clam Chowder day. It was outstanding. One of the best soups that they serve.
On another occasion I made it done to the Oyster Bar and had Fish and Chips. A staple of mine and they delivered. The fries were extra tasty. I usually ditch the fries for the fish!
Ron and I can tear through a plate of oysters so one day, we did just that!
And here I am in my cowgirl gear and my horse Flaco. We did not win that day but we gave it a good shot. He preformed very well and I was pleased with his performance.
So I have been in Las Vegas since Tuesday at the annual South Point Casino Cutting Horse Show. We have been up early and going to bed early doing all things horse and I thought I would catch myself in some action for you!
After we showed yesterday my two Valentine's took me to dinner at Primarily Prime Rib, a restaurant located within the casino. We all were pretty wiped, did not have reservations any where else so this was going to do just fine.
We started with an order of fried artichoke hearts filled with cheese. Delicious!
This photo does not do justice to this pulled beef tostada. It was fantastic. Served with a slaw and a sweet sauce. I loved the crunch of the tostada. My favorite thing of the meal!
The Pea Soup was a close second. I do love Peas Soup and this was very tasty as well.
My RARE Prime Rib was fine. Didn't have much flavor, I think i should have ordered it medium rare. My bad. The horseradish was so spicy it cleared out my sinuses. Wowza!
Desserts for ys - Cheesecake and a White chocolate covered ice cream. They were ok. I felt satisfied. Scott has big Valentine's Day plans for us when we get home so I am beyond excited to find out what that adventure might be. Until then it is horse show mode... Catch you later!
And we are back! We just cannot seem to get enough of Panolivo. We adore the fact that you can come in, reservation free, with a large group of people on a Saturday night. I called six other restaurants and got rejected and then I said forget it. "Let's go to our old faithful - Panolivo -Home to the Fat Monk Pinot and delicious dessert case." We met Cowboy Pete and Cowgirl Lisa there and settled into our usual table.
We all were starving from the day at the cutting so we ordered a warm goat cheese with toasted bread.
I was feeling a little saucy and made the table eat escargot with me! The sauce was buttery and fantastic - great for bread dipping too.
I started off my meal with Chicken Tortilla Soup - It wasn't as good as mine but it warmed me from the inside out. I was frozen all weekend long.
Kat ordered the French Onion - she said it really hit the spot. I should have ordered hers because I could smell the delicious caramelized onions.
Scott just got a salad, he loves a good Caesar Salad. This one looked lightly dressed, I would have liked it done heavier with anchovies! Cowboy Pete ordered more my style and added the little fish fillets. Go Pete!
I LOVED THIS. I ate every single bite off my plate. The salmon was lovely, oven potatoes crisp and fluffy, the spinach and cream sauce perfectly married. I could eat this everyday of the week on exception of the pumpkin tortellini that I had the night before. They both were heavenly plates.
Scott always ordered the Vegetable Cannelloni - The cheese baked on top is what sold me. That is a blanket of molten ooey, gooey fun! He swears it is the best thing ever so I believe him.
Pete had the Rib Eye and what I first though was pate resting on top but it actually was a cabernet and porcini butter! Wow! That is really neat. I should make my own flavored butter! He had the same roasted potatoes I had and I am sure he loved them. Lisa ate most of his green beans - she seemed to be a big fan!
Kat ordered this little hug on a plate. Who can say no to Chicken Cordon Blue and sweet potato fries. Such a comforting combo. She enjoyed it and will probably stick with this order on our future visits.
Pete loves Carrot Cake and on our last trip here they sold the last one right out from under him. So this time we got in our request early and he got to enjoy it. I loved the decoration. It doesn't take much to make a dessert look so fancy.
This should not surprise you. Melissa Good Taste has a mind of her own and no one can stop her. She is cuckoo for creme brulee. Solid, good, rich custard.
Do you want to go to an affordable, quaint restaurant in Paso Robles? Don't have reservations? No problem. Panolivo is your answer - They have always produced a solid meal.
We are back! We had just spent four days in Paso Robles for a horse show and it is nice to be home. It was painfully cold riding the horses from 6:30 in the morning to 12:00 at night! Long day! I have had many people recommend I go to Buona Tavola and I never had this opportunity until this trip. We started with just a house glass of Pinot and it was delightful...
Complimentary bread and olive tapandade came to the table. It was a lovely start to our meal and whet our appetites.
I ordered a Caprese Salad for the table and it was certainly enough to share. The tomatoes were not quite ripe and tasted a bit mealy. The cheese was wonderful and I loved the addition of the capers.
Kat ordered the Pasta Special - a name that I completely missed. I know she loved the penne, salmon, olives and tomato sauce it was dressed with. It looked very homey and a bite was not left on the plate.
Scott ordered a really fancy half moon shaped pasta filled with shrimp scampi and prosciutto bathed in a light saffron sauce. I tried one of his dumplings and it tasted like shrimp scampi in a little pocket. Very cute, clever and packed with flavor. The portion size was very lovely as well.
This plate is mine and it was the best! Pumpkin and ricotta stuffed tortelloni in a sage and marsacapone sauce topped with roasted walnuts. Oh my goodness. I would order this every single day. I order this dish a lot at Italian restaurants and this was at the very top.
Vanilla cream custard with half chocolate and half caramel topping. I was the only one who ordered dessert...
But the table took in upon themselves to help! It was that good!
We had a very lovely dinner for an extremely reasonable price. I would return, hands down.
A good friend of mine works for Mann Packing, a not only family owned but women owned company as well! How about that! They grow and pack vegetables across America to families just like you - everyday. I was selected to receive and review their newest product: Veggie Mac-n-Cheese. Scott Good Taste was very excited since he is the lover of all things noodle and cheese - vegetables included. There are four different flavors but I really took a liking to the Broccoli and Cauliflower with Fiesta Cheddar.
All you do is open the bag and dump into a microwave safe container. The veggies, the cheese and pasta... All in one! Cover with plastic wrap and stick into the microwave for only four minutes! That is pretty easy! I do have a side note: I like my vegetables mushy. Almost like a soft baby food so I went ahead and microwaved for another four minutes after stirring. If you prefer them perfectly al dente follow the directions as suggested.
How beautiful is this? Easy, healthy macaroni and cheese all in one convenient bowl! I was very impressed with the taste of the cheese. It was very rich and creamy unlike other cheeses on the market. I paired this with a nice piece of salmon and it made the perfect meal.
This product is available at Safeway, Von's and Tom Thumb. Go try it today. You will not be disappointed in the product. It is a great way to get vegetables on the table with even the pickiest eaters in your family. If you would like more information on this product please check out www.veggiesmadeeasy.com
Melissa Good taste gives Mann's Veggie Mac-n-Cheese her full endorsement.
Winchesters is located on Main Street in Downtown Ventura. They have an incredible outdoor seating area that is perfect for people watching. It is one of my favorite things to do, especially in eclectic Ventura so we took a seat and ordered a draft Newcastle.
We arrived at the restaurant already famished so right away Scott ordered deep fried Duck Strips with fries to get us started. He is an adventurous little foodie! They were amazingly delicious, dare I say even better than chicken? The fries sealed the deal - totally satisfying. The honey mustard had a kick to it, made us helplessly addicted and requested more from the waitress.
This is where things go downhill. I hear pork sandwich and think, "oh yeah" and order it without question. It was over cooked pieces of pork cutlets that were like shoe leather. The tried to mask it with barbecue sauce but nothing could have saved this fail. The sweet potatoes chips were not quite crisp, but chewy and needed salt.
The same complaint for over cooked, tough meat was the same for Scott's Tri-tip. It was a disappointing end to a great start at Winchesters.
Did we order the wrong things? Should we have complained to the waitress? I know she didn't cook the food but I think she needed to know. I didn't say anything that day and now I regret it. A restaurant cannot survive on one time diners, it takes a loyal following coming back for great food to succeed. I didn't do my part.
I had a lot of fun preparing my Super Bowl menu this year. Although there were only going to be three of us I wanted a medley of food so we did not get bored eating through on large mass of food. So on that note let me introduce you to me... Watch!
I decided to do a video blog because I though I needed to jazz up a post or two! What do you think?
I walked you through the main sauce and the mixture part of the Asian Salad Won Tons but I didn't finish and show you the frying of the won tons in oil, topping with chopped peanuts and a drizzle of balsamic. FYI: I thought the salad mixture was a little dry so I added a bit more ponzu and lime juice. You decide what is enough for you! I got really busy in the kitchen and I didn't have time to video, you know how it goes!
The final product! It was delicious, I for see make this my go to appetizer for parties and warm summer evenings. They reminded me of summer.
Speaking of summer, these will be my new designer cocktail - Recipe exclusively made by Melissa Good Taste herself. I was given a very large bag of dried apricots from my Dad. I portioned some off into the freezer and fridge for ready use.
So I took one bag out and reconstituted the apricots in a bath of water and agave nectar under a low flame until the apricots started to become mushy. I pureed them in my blender and then used the puree to flavor my Apricot Margarita. Drink of the day. Two ounces of tequila, 1 ounce of triple sec, juice from two limes, a dollop of puree, ice and whirl away.
It makes the most refreshing drink ever. Thank you Dad!
While i had the apricots out i rolled them up with an almond inside and bacon on the outside. Twenty minutes at 400 degrees really plumped up the dried apricots into a soft creamy center. Who doesn't love bacon?
I love the cactus plant creation in my kitchen. Sometimes I overwater it and a few plants die but I think it is beautiful. Ok onward...
I whipped up my potato salad earlier in the day and put it in these convient little pots. It made for easy serving and even easier clean up. Love that! I wish I paid a little more attention to my measurments when making this because both Kat and Scott swore it was one of the best things they had all day. I do have to say one thing that was different and new to me to use was: Pimentos. I have never used them but maybe that was the secret weapon.
This would be my Fried Chicken drenching station. Eggs, hot sauce, water on the wet side. Self rising flour, pepper and house seasoning on the dry. It was a messy job but who doesn't love a crispy piece of chicken?
They had their hot oil treatment at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.
Yummy yummy. They came out golden delicious, fried up heaven. I was pretty proud of my first ever chicken frying experience. Go Me!
As if we were not full enough... I finished off the night with Red Velvet Cupcakes stuffed and swirled with cream cheese frosting. A big glass of milk and two of these bad boys sent me off to a sleepy dream land. The kitchen was clean, food put away and I was done!
Cheers to the 49ers being Reserve World Champions - Come on, the glass is half full!
I bought a bottle of Cajun Power Garlic Sauce from the Cajun Kitchen in Ventura in December in hopes of spicing up my kitchen. It has been staring at me on my counter since then, so I dedcided I better use it. I read the recipe on the back of the bottle for Bar-B-Q Shrimp and I thought this sounded fantastic. I knew my fellow blog friend An Immovable Feast loves the sauce so I knew it had to be worth using.
You start off chopping up one red pepper and they suggest two onions. Allow them to cook in butter until they are tender. I let them cook on low for a long time because I like that caramelized sweetness that the onions bring after a long time over a low flame.
The back of the bottle recommended using only 6 ounces of the 8 ounce bottle but I went ahead and used the entire thing with an ounce of Worcestershire sauce too. After that the shrimp went in the pool and it all simmered together for 15 minutes. So easy!
While the shrimp was cooking fluffed up some Birds Eye White Rice in the microwave, chopped up some cilantro and served up my shrimp and sauce. It was delicious! It easily serves four as we have a lot of left overs. I will defintely make this again! My southern style meal came just in time with all the talk about the Cajun Superbowl!
