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NEWS&VIEWS by Jacqueline Bennett

Posts from the “NEWS” Category

Mom’s Recipe Box: A Very Special Birthday Cake ! Series Conclusion

Posted on January 23, 2015

                            Mom’s Recipe Box Family Series Conclusion – A Very Special Birthday Cake!   What better way to conclude Mom’s Recipe Box Family Series than with a homemade birthday cake for the anniversary of my mother’s birthday that was on the 12th of January. Mom/Nana, Cecelia G. Bennett ( or as my dad called her, ‘Cecelia G.’), passed away in December, 2010. In the “Mom’s Recipe Box” series, that began on July 4, 2014 and ran weekly on Fridays, those who loved her so much – her family – added to and celebrated Mom’s/Nana’s collection of recipes. For the conclusion of the family series, my sister Candy volunteered to bake a very…

Sour Grapes Meant to Deflate Patriots AFC Championship?

Posted on January 22, 2015

Commentary By: Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   “… The officials do a great job of being sure everything is up-to-date. With all the procedures they take, I find it hard to believe that someone could take two bags of 12 balls and deflate them. I don’t see where you could go with this large bag of balls. Do you lock yourself in a room? It’s not very feasible.” Gil Brandt, former vice president for player personnel with the Dallas Cowboys and current analyst for NFL Media, as quoted January 20 in The New York Times.   I am a New England Patriots fan. Like most Pats fans I was on top of world after the AFC championship game victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, January 18, that…

Behind-the-Scenes of “I’m Your Puppet!” Creative Collaboration – Silk City Chorus Barbershop Harmony & UConn Puppet Arts

Posted on January 20, 2015

Article & Photos by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   A first ever creative collaboration between two extraordinary and highly regarded groups, the Silk City Chorus barbershoppers and the University of Connecticut Puppet Arts Program, titled “I’m Your Puppet!”, is set to take center stage Saturday night, January 24, in Manchester, Connecticut.                               “This is the first time something like this has been tried by the Barbershop Harmony Society, an international organization. The Silk City Chorus (an 80-man chapter) has been working on the collaboration with Bart Roccoberton, director of the UConn Puppet Arts Program, and students from UConn for a year,” Neal Kellogg, director of marketing and communication for the Silk City Chorus, said during a behind-the-scenes interview…

Mom’s Recipe Box: Great-Grandmother Reeve’s English Plum Pudding with Brandy

Posted on January 16, 2015

                  Great-Grandmother Reeve’s English Plum Pudding   During the “Mom’s Recipe Box Family Series” that began seven months ago, in the process of looking for photos to accompany the recipes more was discovered. Well, it happened again. A few days ago, while searching through my mother’s old photos for a picture to include with the series, came a wonderfully astonishing find – a journal of old family recipes penned more than one hundred years ago. It is handwritten in script by  Great-Grandmother Reeve, Gram Bennett’s (Bessie Reeve Bennett’s) mother, and my father’s maternal grandmother. I would imagine the journal was given to my father by Gram, which he in turn had my mother hold for safekeeping. She had kept it…

New England Patriots-Seattle Seahawks Potential Super Bowl Bout Heats Up East/West Coast Family Rivalry

Posted on January 13, 2015

Write-up by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Wins by the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks in the playoffs last weekend have potentially positioned the professional football teams to face each other in a Super Bowl bout, heating up a friendly – albeit serious – East/West Coast rivalry in my family, Bennett/Larned versus Landeck.   Backing the Seahawks are Deb, Wayne, Katie, Nate, Dan, Sofia and their teacup poodle Scooby-Doo. In the Patriot’s corner are Mike, Melane, their German Shepard Polaris, Dixie, Candy and I.     The possible match-up between the northeastern and northwestern competitors is an exciting prospect.   “We’ll win hands down – if they can’t get to Brady,” said Dixie on January 12.   That is a big ‘if’ given the season’s history where Brady’s defenders…

Mom’s Recipe Box: Crepe, Goldbread and Apple Griddle Cakes

Posted on January 9, 2015

                                    “Crepe, Goldbread and Apple Griddle Cakes”     No Bennett Family recipe series would be complete without my mother’s “Crepe” and “Goldbread” – a type of French Toast – or my father’s  “Griddle Cakes”.   Although one would assume crepe would be a breakfast item, for us it was more often a Sunday night “supper”. On the heels of holiday dinners, Mom’s Homemade Crepe was a near certainty the Sunday evening afterwards. Cooked up in her heavy, black, iron skillet, Mom made the crepes one by one as each of us sat at the dining room table with our mouths watering waiting to enjoy this treat. Mom always topped her crepes with molasses, a…

Busy Day On Tap for Connecticut Govenor Dannel Malloy – Parade, Inauguration & Ball

Posted on January 6, 2015

Write-up & Photo by Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   Tomorrow will be a busy day for Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy. Re-elected for a second term, Malloy, a Democrat, is scheduled to be sworn into office for a second time Wednesday, January 7, 1:30 p.m. at the William O’Neill State Armory, 360 Broad Street, in Hartford -doors open at 11:30 a.m.   Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman is slated to be sworn in during a separate ceremony earlier in the day.   “It is an honor and a priviledge to serve the people of the state of Connecticut and Nancy and I look forward to sharing this day with as many residents as we can,” Malloy was quoted as saying in a press release posted on the governor’s website.   Other constitutional…

Mom’s Recipe Box: New Year Greetings with Bennett Family Favorites of Glen Jr., Kayleigh and Keri – Classic New England Lobster, Pumpkin Pie & Shepherd’s Pie

Posted on January 2, 2015

                “New Year Greetings with Bennett Family Favorites of Glen Jr., Kayleigh and Keri”   Family favorites are a good reason for a gathering.   Here are The Bennett Favorites at Glen Jr.’s house: Glen’s Favorite Classic New England Lobster; Kayleigh’s Favoite Pumpkin Pie; and Keri’s Favorite Shepherd’s Pie                         Glen’s Favorite Classic New England Lobster INGREDIENTS 2 or 3 tablespoons salt; 4 live lobsters (about 1 and a half pounds each); 1 half cup (1 stick) melted butter; Lemon wedges. PREPARATION Fill a large stockpot about half full of water. Add the salt and bring to a boil. When the water has come to a rolling…

New Year’s Eve Open Houses with John Jr. & Jane

Posted on December 31, 2014

  By: Jacqueline Bennett newsandviewsjb.com   For many years, my brother John Jr. and sister-in-law Jane hosted an open house on New Year’s Eve. It started around 8 p.m. and people could stop in at whatever time they pleased, mingle for awhile and leave, or stay for the countdown to midnight.   In that it was New England and winter, it was not unusual for snow to be on the ground with temperatures of 32 degrees or below. Guests would scurry from their cars to the side door of the house where stood either my brother or sister-in-law to greet each arrival into the warmth of their home.   By 10:00 p.m., the driveway was filled with parked vehicles. On those snowy nights, occasionally John or one of…

Mom’s Recipe Box: Nathan’s Cranberry Bacon Reduction; Plus, “Great for a New Year’s Eve Gathering” Sweet & Sour Meatballs from Wayne

Posted on December 26, 2014

                      Nathan’s Cranberry Bacon Reduction   My fond memories of visiting my Nana and family in New England were usually around the holidays. Here is a simple recipe for my favorite cranberry sauce that teleports me to that time and place with a tasty twist. This recipe always goes over well. It tastes sweet, bitter, sour, salty, and savory. Serve it warm or cool. My favorite application is for the day after a great holiday meal. I slather the cool cranberry reduction on either a ciabatta or a telera roll along with cream cheese, turkey, stuffing, green leaf lettuce, and more crispy bacon (see picture). It will be one of the best lunches you’ve…