Taco Night - Ojai, CA

When the weather is warm all Scott and I want to do is plan BBQ's. We have the best porch for entertaining and plenty of meat in the freezer so we decided to get to it! If your a fan of Corona or Pacifico, you are going to love Victoria beer. Light, and very refreshing. Give it a try!

Carne asada doesn't need much, in fact just some grill marks and it is ready!

I put together a mix of fixings that we had on hand. I grated cheese, plenty of it because the more the better! Limes and lemons make everything bright so I had some of those on hand for squeezing. And last but not least, avocado. We are so spoiled, we are given avocados by the bag full quite frequently so I usually always have some on hand.

A pan of RANCHO GORDO beans. You can purchase these beans online and I suggest you do. I soaked them that morning and started cooking them an hour previous to the start of our meal preperation. They take up to two hours to fully cook. I started out with bell pepper, onion, spices of all sorts and probably a beer or two for them to cook in. The longer they bubble, they better they are!

Our two helpers liked being on hand in case we had any scraps of carne asada that they could clean up for us!

Dinner is served. The best part about a meal at home is cooking it with your family. Get them involved, it is more fun! Scott doesn't always have time to cook but I know he enjoys it so when he is game, I encourage it! So dust off your grill and get cooking!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there! I am lucky enough to actually have the best mother in the world! She is my best friend, biggest cheerleader and a kick in the pants. 

Here's to you Mom! Enjoy your day. 

Glamping Day #4 - Ventura, CA

Good morning campers! Scott got up and played in the water on Saturday. The waves were small but he gave me something to practice shooting with my camera.

He rode this wave until the end and looked right at me and gave me this look! I thought it was hilarious. What a sport.

This is my paddle board, it is huge! Even though the waves were small it really wasn't too paddle board friendly. Blah! We will go to the Ventura Harbor soon so we can get some really good core exercise in.

Scott made me the best lunch ever! Don't you just love grilled hot dogs? How about with cheese melted on the bun too? What a treat!

Evening rolled in and we were ready to get started celebrating Cinco de Melissa!

Ole!

We started at The Tavern for a glass of wine. I thought this space was so cool, it was a refurbished Victorian and had an awesome menu. I cannot wait to come try it during happy Hour after a beach day.

So happy.

Next stop, The Watermark. We went to the upper deck and overlooked Downtown Ventura at sunset. it was just stunning.

While enjoying another glass of wine, we also indulged in an order of Crab Cakes. I could not remember the last time that I had them so it was awesome. What a treat.

From there we went to Cafe Fiore for dinner. Scott ordered the Bacon Marmalade Pizza. How cool is that? Instead of marinara they used a bacon reduction. Holy cow, or holy pig really...

The Roasted Carrot Risotto was on special and I went for it. It lacked some flavor but I can't ever turn down this special rice. I am such a sucker.

Creme Brulee was delicious. Don't you love my sparkler? I ordered an espresso to go with it. I savored every bite. It took over 20 minutes for me to finish but I ate every drop.

So this is me, Melissa Good Tatse. Thirty years old. Oh my. I hope to keep this fun blog up for years and years to come. Thank you for following my Glamping/Birthday Adventure!

Glamping Day #3 - Ventura, CA

We woke up on Day #3 with anticipation. The night before we got a call that our dog, "Buster" just might be at the local humane society. Buster had been missing for two months so we were almost at the point of giving up search.  

Thank goodness we did not give up. The dog was Buster! He remembered us and his name right away. We spent the majority of the day shopping for new dog stuff for him and just bonding with him. He likes the ranch more than the water. That we did know already! 

The nature walk continued. I spotted some mussels on the rocks and it made me crave the Baked Mussels you can order at sushi restaurants...

I watched Scott surf a little bit and I hopped in the water for a quick cool down. It is amazing as to what sea water does for you. Instant relief of worry and pain. 

We climbed on top of our travel trailer and enjoyed a view beers while enjoying the view. I have to say most people were pretty jealous that we could bring our lawn chairs up top.

Scott then started to begin preparing his Melissa Birthday Feast. He is a great cook but doesn't always have the time or energy to do it. He promised me a great meal so I put my feet up, grabbed my book and let him do all the work. I like how he made little packets out of foil for the salmon to cook, he poured wine, butter and lemon juice in before sealing it up tight. 

Cooking away... 

Me, enjoying watching a man cook! 

Propane fueled our dinner. Good old propane. 

Just as the sun was settling on in Scott was setting our "table" and arranging everything so it was just perfect. 

Doesn't this just look wonderful? I would pay a lot of money for this in a restaurant! 

Chardonnay, lobster, salmon and garlic bread - It was just over the top, indulgance city. I am a lucky lady. My husband loves me very much!

Thank you Scott!!!

Glamping Day #2 - Ventura, CA

Scott and I slept in pretty late because we actually could for once! What an amazing thing, waking up to the sound of the ocean. After a few cups of coffee we were ready to hit it! We planned on biking into Ventura so let me take you there... 

Scott led the way. Who even considers this exercise with amazing views like this? I certainly didn't.

An Amtrak Train went zooming by. I am surprised I actually got a photo of it. I have always wanted to ride the train from Ventura to San Jose. I think the Surfliner will be in my future. Hello, dining and beverage car!

The bike path is amazing. From the beach to Downtown Ventura you are welcomed by all kinds of beauty.

The San Buenaventura Mission - The ninth and last mission founded and blessed by Junipero Serra. Known as the "Mission by the Sea" it is just beautiful. I am partial to my hometown mission in San Juan Bautista though. 

We both were getting very hungry so we decided we need a pit stop at the Busy Bee Cafe. We have walked by this place a million times but have never actually stopped in. I like the feeling of an old timey diner, we had one in Hollister for awhile. It was actually where Ella's Cafe is now, my grandpa used to take us there.

It was the brunching hour but I was leaning towards lunch. I had the Beef Dip with onion rings. The sandwich was served with this terrific au jus. Very potent and worth its weight in gold. There was green chile on my bun and I slid it off. I like my bun soft with the meat, dripping to the point of soggy. The chile was just messing things up! 

Scott had a Scramble with home potatoes and wheat toast. He ate happily but didn't say anything, the satisfied look on his face told me he thought it was ok. We took our apples to go and made our way to shop in Ventura. There is nothing better than shopping to burn off a good meal! Right?

We continued to ride our bikes into the afternoon and loved every minute of it!

Glamping Day #1 - Ventura, CA

 "Glamping" is the new thing. Taking all your luxuries from home and basically plopping them down in the middle of Mother Nature. It is almost cheating when it comes to camping but let me tell you, it sure makes you very comfortable. We decided to "glamp" at Emma Wood State Beach. It is gorgeous and pretty small so grabbing an ideal spot takes getting lucky, no reservations. We set up camp on Wednesday night and sat down to a cold one. Cheers! 

Great beer! I only picked it at Von's because it seemed like it was the cool thing to do. It was a popular pick amongst the shoppers, this pack was the last one left.

We did not bring our beautiful fire pit, we used one that was existing there made out of rocks. With a little help it was in great camp fire shape!

Scott installed a surf rack on top of the trailer so that is where all our surfboards lived for the week. I thought it was a great idea until we had to lift the boards up! Yikes, stand up boards are heavy!!

It was quite chilly at the camp site and as soon as the sun set, the wind came up and we found ourselves craving a camp fire more than anything. 

I was on cooking duty on Day #1 - So we had pasta. It was easy, quick and simple: Penne, asparagus in a sun dried tomato cream sauce. We ate it outside and could not have had a more enjoyable evening. The setting up and getting there seemed crazy but as we sat there, quietly enjoying our dinner we knew it was all worth it.

Stay tuned in for blog entries through the rest of my Birthday Celebration!

Cook du Jour - Ventura Star Newspaper

Cook du Jour - MELISSA WEIS 

That is the link to my Ventura Star Newspaper article. They spell my name wrong, get my address wrong but it was a lot of fun. Click the link, sit with a cup of coffee and enjoy the read!

http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/may/05/cook-du-jour-melissa-weiss-keeps-it-simple-while/

BUSTER is back!!!

Our dog, "Buster" was taken/stolen from us two months ago. I have been searching and searching for this guy so much I was at the point of giving up. Then a friend of ours called my husband and told him there was a border collie at the Ojai Humane Society. We didn't want to get our hopes up but we hoped and prayed all night and when they opened this morning we were the first ones there.  

It was BUSTER! We got our dog back! He is now safe, sound and with us at the beach! 

I can't wait to introduce him to his little brother, "Willy the Wiener" - he is back at the ranch protecting the porch. Our family of four will be officially complete.

Could this not be a better birthday present for me? I am so blessed.