I'm not sure I'd recommend the Santa Monica Mountains for "the prettier the better."
This is Mulholland above Leo Carillo and then up Little Sycamore - the burn stops shortly after. So Yerba Buena is a possibility but its a rough surfaced road at best. I imagine Latigo looks much the same. I'd head to the San Gabriels. Yesterday I was riding on ACH with mountains dusted in snow on a gorgeous sunny day. ACH was closed at the Mt. Wilson turn off. I went around the barrier and had it all to myself.
Good luck
