napa valley reds

  Week #6

Napa Valley Reds

 

 

    

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 Downtown Napa has experienced a rebirth in the last couple of years.  

There are a few old jaunts such as the Napa River Inn, and the Napa General Store.

But the area is also bustling with new buildings and restaurants.

 

A familiar sight - the Napa Bicycle shop.
We often pop in here once in a while to check out the latest bikes. 

Then there's the Napa General Store, which is a virtual treasure trove of souvenirs 

and all things Napa.

  

 Books! I'm all over that!

 

A patio area near the Napa river.  You can sit here for hours and watch the trains go by.

Sweetie Pie's.  They have the best cakes in the city. 

You have to stop by for one of their gourmet sandwiches, and 

I guarantee that you will end up taking home a "few" goodies

(because everything is so delicious).

The Napa Valley Wine Train.  

An essential component of the Napa Valley experience.

A good sightseeing and food trip.

  

 More displays inside and outside the Napa General Store, where you will also find locally made items.
Everything from EVOO to iron sculptures.

You could very well spend a good part of the day just looking around, and
justifying a nice meal at the Cafe or nearby Sweetie Pie.

Stay tuned for more color-themed photography trips next week!

Luv,
Lease

More on Project 52

http://www.beinglease.com/

Chicken Afritada

What can we say? We love good food.  If we can't find a restaurant that cooks it the way we like it, we will find a way to make it ourselves.  F, our resident foodie shares a favorite recipe that has been slightly modified to make it heart-friendly.  We have it on good authority that this recipe has (comfort and healing) powers that only good food can give.  

Take it away, F!
---Lease

~~~

I recently had a craving for Chicken Afritada – a Filipino dish of meat and veggies stewed in tomato sauce.  Maybe it was the rainy weather that brought about this yearning for comfort food from my childhood.  One of two Filipino dishes I can make well (enough), my modified version of this recipe is an attempt to make it “blood pressure friendly”, which means less sodium and fat.

Ingredients:

2  tbsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 onion, cut into 1-inch pieces

pinch of salt

1 lb (plus/minus) skinless chicken thighs, may also combine with skinless chicken breasts

2 red bell peppers

2 medium red potatoes, peeled

2 carrots, peeled

1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce

1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce

1 bay leaf

1/2 cup frozen baby peas

freshly ground black pepper

 

Directions:

1. Cut red bell peppers, potatoes and carrots into 1-inch pieces and set aside.
   
2. Heat oil in a  pot over medium-high heat. Saute garlic until fragrant then add onions and season with pinch of salt.  Saute until onions are soft and translucent, about 3 minutes.  Add chicken in the pot and cook just until both sides are browned.
   
3. Add peppers, potatoes and carrots to the pot.  Then add tomato sauce, soy sauce and bay leaf.  Stir so that all ingredients are evenly distributed and most of the chicken is submerged in sauce.
   
4. Bring to a boil, then cover and lower heat to simmer for 30-40 minutes and chicken is cooked through.
   

5. Add peas and season with black pepper to taste then let simmer for another 5 minutes.  You can adjust saltiness to your liking at this point by either adding more soy sauce or a bit of salt.
   
6. Serve on top of hot steaming rice.
   

Enjoy!
F

More on F

http://www.beinglease.com/

The red bridge

Week #5

Red. Red. Red.

In honor of the month of love, our February photography projects will feature splashes of color.

What better way to start it off than with the red landmark of the San Francisco Bay Area? 

The Golden Gate Bridge 

 

The name of the bridge makes reference to California's historical gold rush 
rather than the color of the bridge.

 

This was taken on a stormy winter day!

 

I was only able to snap a few during a brief lull in the rains.

And, the wind. 

Believe me when I say it is the wind chill that gets to you.

Always.

 

But, the standing in the rain, and bracing for the wind chill was worth it when I saw these pictures.

 

There's nothing quite like it anywhere else.

Happy weekend folks!

Luv,
Lease

more on Project 52

http://www.beinglease.com/