newsandviewsjb

NEWS&VIEWS by Jacqueline Bennett

Posts from the “NEWS” Category

Home Baked Rich Muffins a Great Way to Start November!

Posted on November 1, 2016

By Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   With Thanksgiving just around the corner it is time to pull out the cornucopia of family recipes. Readers of newsandviewsjb may be familiar with my “Mom’s Recipe Box” series – a seven month series which featured old and new family favorites, including Rich Muffins.   Growing up one of the best surprises in the Bennett Household was to awaken to the aroma of my mother baking Rich Muffins downstairs in her RED & WHITE kitchen – a recipe that has been carried on to the next generations. I can’t think of a better way to start the month of November than with a batch of rich muffins. Put in the oven at 5:10 a.m. this morning and ready at…

Categories: family recipes, NEWS, Wicked Yummy!

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“Have a Nice Day” Obsolete As Mass Pike Manned Toll Booths Demolished

Posted on October 31, 2016

Crews cover signs above #Weston #MassPike #tolls as manual tolling ends. Supervisor shakes toll takers hands before going home. @fox25news pic.twitter.com/6Zg7J1hSBF — Christine McCarthy (@ChristineMFox25) October 29, 2016 By Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Since before I can remember I have been traveling the Massachusetts Turnpike. For as long as I can remember, manned toll booths on the Mass Turnpike have been an accepted way of life. That changed over this past weekend when manned toll booths were closed then demolished, relegated to a bygone era as the Commonwealth converted to E-Z pass or pay by plate.   The drive north from Connecticut to Massachusetts has always meant readying a bag of coins and single dollar bills to keep in the front seat in order…

Categories: Have A Nice Day, Mass Pike Closes Toll Booths, NEWS, Obsolete, Transportation Progress

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Windsor Eye View of Autumn 2016 – Connecticut’s Oldest Town

Posted on October 27, 2016

  Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com     Windsor, Connecticut is the state’s first English settlement, a fact the town proudly notes with the motto “First in Connecticut- First for our Citizens”. Settled in 1633, Windsor is home to the nation’s oldest Congregational Church. Oliver Ellsworth of Windsor, was a Founding Father who helped craft the Constitution and served as the third Chief Justice of the United States – his Windsor homestead is a National Historic Landmark.       Among the towns of the Connecticut valley where fertile fields with rich soil have produced cigar tobacco for years, Windsor is situated at the confluence of the Connecticut and Farmington Rivers. Its largest park is Northwest Park where a tobacco museum is…

Categories: Famous Designers, New England Town Greens, NEWS, Oldest Towns in United States

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Destination: Hometown Kitchen at the Plaza in Somers, Connecticut

Posted on October 20, 2016

Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Hometown Kitchen is aptly named. Tucked inside Southfield Corners Plaza in Somers, Connecticut it is the kind of restaurant best known to locals. In fact, I first ate here a number of years ago when it was called Kathy’s Playhouse because it was a favorite stop for one of my brothers, F.W. and his wife, who were both teachers in a nearby town.       What brings me back is the scrumptious pumpkin bread which I was told by a waitress is still homemade by her sister, the former owner. Moist, flavorful and so popular it is sold by the loaves, it is as tasty as the pumpkin bread that used to be served at…

Categories: Food, NEWS, Off the Beaten Path, Restaurants

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Cloaked for the First Frost

Posted on October 15, 2016

Write-Up & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Connecticut’s first frost of autumn 2016 arrived last night which meant covering the outdoor plants and pumpkins. According to the howtogardener.com the first frost of the season is distinguished from the first freeze by temperature.   When temperatures are predicted to drop to 36 degrees F or below, prepare for the first frost which can kill plants left outside. Following the first fall frost, the first freeze – 32 degrees F or below – typically arrives about two weeks later, notes howtogardener.com.     Even hardy mums need some TLC -tender loving care- when the nights become slightly more than what New Englanders refer to as crisp. Light cloth is all that is required to protect the vegetation.…

Categories: First Frost, NEWS, weather

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Return to Vanilla Bean Cafe & Buell’s Orchard Harvest Festival

Posted on October 11, 2016

Article & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com               The beauty of a quintessential New England autumn day was enhanced by a Columbus Day lunch at the Vanilla Bean Cafe in Pomfret, Connecticut followed by a stop at Buell’s Orchard’s annual Harvest Festival in Eastford. This was my second consecutive Columbus Day making the ‘Bean and Buell’s’  trek !       Vanilla Bean Cafe So much has been written about the Vanilla Bean that framed articles fill hallway walls at this quaint restaurant with the hide-away feel nestled in Connecticut’s “Quiet Corner”. The menu is large; a personal favorite is the create your own half sandwich & homemade soup combo – BLT on marbled rye with Tomato Florentine…

Categories: Apple Cider Donuts, Cozy New England Cafes, Harvest Festivals, NEWS, The Quiet Corner, To BEAN or not to Bean...?

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Mom’s Recipe Box: Baked Lemon Pepper Salmon & Fresh Vegetables

Posted on October 9, 2016

          Baked Lemon Pepper Salmon & Fresh Vegetables   My first experience of salmon was for a holiday dinner at Apricots Restaurant in Farmington, Connecticut. Served in what can be described as a gourmet portion, the salmon was cooked to perfection and presented with a few stalks of tender asparagus. Overall, it was simply divine.   Not only is salmon delicious but it is found on every list I have read of foods that are good for the heart. The thing is – salmon can be expensive at the grocery store. As well, the thought of preparing an unfamiliar fish dish can be intimidating.   A recent sale on salmon, however, at Big Y World Class Supermarket in the area…

Categories: Easy Meals, Food, Heart Healthy Meals, NEWS

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Unless You’re A New Englander It’s Hard to Fathom …

Posted on September 26, 2016

By Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Unless you are a New Englander it may be hard to fathom the sheer joy that accompanies the first chill in the air with the arrival of each autumn. When I opened my front door the past two mornings and this morning around 5 a.m., the welcome coolness was waiting. It left me feeling refreshed, as if a new beginning could be just around the corner.   Autumn 2016 made its debut on Thursday, September 22, and Connecticut could not have asked for a more perfect first fall weekend. By Saturday and Sunday crisp temperatures meant it was time to pull on favorite sweatshirts, from my L.L.Bean deep green zip front to heavy hoodies that were being worn.  …

Categories: Autumn in New England, NEWS, Unless You're A New Englander ...

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“FIRST FOLIO!The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare” – Rare Collection at UConn

Posted on September 19, 2016

Article & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   An extraordinary opportunity awaits at the William Benton Museum on the University of Connecticut’s Storrs campus. Through September 25, visitors can view a first collected edition, published in 1623, of plays by William Shakespeare in the exhibit, “First Folio! The Book That Gave Us Shakespeare”.  Admission is free.   In recognition of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington D.C. has sent “First Folio” on a national tour making a stop at one site in each state. UConn was the distinguished selection for the Connecticut stop.   “Of the 233 copies known today, 82 belong to the Folger,” states a synopsis of the event.       Without First Folio, the…

Categories: Famous Literature, First Folio! On Tour, NEWS, Playwrights, The Bard, William Shakespeare

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Windsor “Walk of Light” Commemorates 15th Anniversary of 9/11

Posted on September 12, 2016

  By Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   A large crowd filled the Windsor, Connecticut Town Green Sunday night, September 11, 2016 where a 15th Anniversary “Walk of Light” and commemorative ceremony honored victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks against America. Nearly 3000 luminaries lined the historic town green, inscribed and decorated, representing each individual who lost his or her life due to the attacks.   Four hijacked planes attacked the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon and one aimed at Washington D.C. was downed in Pennsylvania.   Despite his still palpable grief, speaker Fred Kuo chose to focus on “gifts of kindness” associated with that day. Director of Experiential Learning and Associate Director of Alumni & Parent Relations at Loomis Chaffee School in…

Categories: 9/11 Tribute, Gifts of Kindness, New England Town Greens, NEWS, Respect

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