A Week in Southern California

~ 5:00 A.M.  ~

Beginning of a wonderful week in San Diego

Off to the Queen Mary Hotel

~ Hampton Inn Channel Islands ~

 After staying the night in Long Beach on the Queen Mary Hotel (Photos)

We spent two nights in Oxnard, between Santa Monica and Santa Barbara.

An early morning walk with my husband

~Channel Islands~

An afternoon in Santa Monica

~ Last Burger on Land ~

I had this breakfast burger a year ago
and have been dreaming of enjoying it again all year!

~ Pacific Park ~

Another night in Oxnard

~ Oxnard Beach ~

Off to Santa Barbara

State Street, Santa Barbara

My goofy Dennis Quaid smile

~ Santa Barbara Beach ~

Back to San Diego for three more nights at the Dana Hotel

Early morning walk along the marina

I got up every morning at 5:00 for a quiet walk

My Brother-in-law's cute little rental car

Museum of Contemporary Art
I am not so sure I would like what is inside this museum,
But I loved this boat art out front.

~ Newport Ave, Ocean Beach, San Diego, CA ~

Another day...

~ The view outside our room ~

~~~♥~~~

{Source Google Maps}

~ Kono's Surf Club Cafe 704 Garnet Ave ~

~ View of Ocean From Kono's Cafe ~

It was one wonderful week!

Still Workning on Perfecting My Bagel

Bruce Ezzell’s Bagels

I made bagels again last night. Two things I realize during this attempt – you need plenty of flour, and the bagels need to rise and get quite puffy before boiling them.

The first time I tried this recipe, using the exact amount of flour called for, I measured the flour by measuring it into the cup and using a knife to leave the top. I ended up with a very sticky dough. Last night when I made these, I scooped the flour with my measuring cup. The flour is more condensed that way. The dough was stiffer and less sticky. However, I think they still needed more flour to achieve the proper firmness so that the bagels puff up without collapsing when lifting it from the counter to place it into the boiling water.

The upside is, this recipe is mostly flour, which isn’t too expensive since we buy it in 50 pound bags at Costco. So, I don’t have to think that I am wasting too much money in my bagel experimentation.

The super upside, although my bagels are not yet perfected, they do taste delicious!