Ingredients
 

• 7/8 Cup all purpose flour (can measure 1 cup and remove 2 Tbsp.)
• 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• ½ Cup corn flour- yellow or white (not cornmeal)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ½ Lb. calamari - cleaned, cut into small rings
• ½ Cup evaporated milk
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• Vegetable oil for deep frying

Instructions

1. Heat an 8” deep pot filled less than halfway with vegetable oil until 375° Fahrenheit. (Use deep fry thermometer).
2. Combine the all purpose flour, cornstarch, corn flour, and baking powder, mix thoroughly. Place the calamari rings in the evaporated milk. Remove and let excess drip off. Quickly coat the rings with the flour mixture, tossing evenly to coat. Shake off excess flour mixture.
3. Carefully fry only about 1/3 of the breaded calamari at a time for about 1 minute or until light golden brown and cooked through. Drain on towels or paper plate, and season to taste with salt and pepper if necessary. Repeat procedure with remaining fish. Serve with cole slaw and sriracha mayonnaise (recipe below) and a lime or lemon wedge.

For Sriracha Mayonnaise

• ½ Cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp. Sriracha - or to taste
• 2 Tbsp. Red Onions or Shallots-mince
• 1 tsp. Fresh Lime or Lemon Juice
• 1 tsp. Lime or Lemon Zest
• To taste salt and black pepper.

Instruction

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Serve with the fried calamari.

Lincoln Culinary Institute’s Website: www.lincolnculinary.com

Hundreds of cyclists and walkers are on the move to support the Cancer Care Fund of Litchfield Hills at the 11th annual Tour of Litchfield Hills bike ride.

The noncompetitive event has raised almost $900,000 to help defray the costs associated with cancer treatment for patients in northwestern CT. And for many riders participating, that's a very personal cause.

"This is actually my third year doing the ride," Fran Prentice, of Bristol, said. "Today I'm riding for my dad who passed from cancer two years ago, and for a good friend of mine who was recently informed that her cancer came back."

Race Director Matt Pagano said that the bike ride also has a personal meaning for him.

"Ironically two years into doing this my daughter got diagnosed with leukemia," Pagano said. "So it started out as a cycling thing for me and then it became something very personal."

Bikers had a choice of riding 12 to 100 miles and a walking portion of the event stepped off at 10:15 a.m. with 2, 4 and 6 mile options.

The ride started at Coe Memorial Park in Torrington and will end there later Sunday afternoon.

Bridgeport police are investigating a stabbing incident that happened at about 2:19 a.m. on Harral and Lexington avenues on Sunday.

A man was stabbed in the arm, but his injuries are not life-threatening, police said.

It is not clear what sparked the altercation.

More information will be provided when it becomes available.

A man was rescued from a light shaft Saturday night after he fell from a ledge while at a party at a condo in Chicago's South Loop neighborhood.

Officials said the 30-year-old man fell backwards off a ledge at a condo in the 2300 block of South Michigan Avenue and landed 30 feet below, becoming trapped in a light shaft.

The man was conscious and talking to rescuers, according to Fire Chief Pat Maloney.

A rescuer was lowered down to the man, who was then stabilized on a backboard. The two were then raised up out of the shaft and the man was transported to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County in good condition.

"The way he landed, he was very fortunate," said Maloney.

The rescue took roughly 30 minutes, officials said.

“We don’t do this as frequently, but we train frequently,” said Battalion Chief Michael Conroy. “It was a hard place to access except by ropes.”

Conroy estimates that 15-20 people were at the party at the time of the incident.

A portion of Route 154 in Chester remains closed after a car crashed into a pole on Sunday morning, State Police said.

The route has been closed between East Kings Highway and Chester Town Hall since Sunday morning at about 7 a.m. and is expected to be closed for a few more hours as crews repair the pole, State Police said just before 4 p.m.

The driver of the car did not have serious injuries, according to a dispatcher.

No more information is available at this time.

Smiling from ear-to-ear, a U.S. military sergeant was reunited with his four-legged best friend Friday: a contract dog that served side-by-side with him in Afghanistan.

With a whistle, clap and enthusiastic hello, U.S. Marine Sgt. Sam Wettstein reunited with his 3-year-old Labrador, Belle, at San Diego’s Lindbergh Field.

“Belle! Hello, gorgeous!” Wettstein called out as the Lab ran into his arms, licking his face. “Come here.”

The sergeant and his pooch served together in Afghanistan for seven months, watching one another’s backs and keeping each other company.

Together, Wettstein said they became a team trained to seek out Improvised Explosive Devices (IED).

Belle was trained to sniff out IEDs, while Wettstein was trained to sense and understand her reactions. He said their mission was to clear the way for following forces and make sure everything was safe for those coming behind them.

“She gives a certain change that I am supposed to focus on and realize what it is,” he explained, adding that the two were good at reading each other’s cues.

“She did her best, I did my best. When you’re both on the same page and you’re doing your job correctly things seem to look a lot better at the end of the day,” he added.

Wettstein said having Belle as his buddy while on deployment helped him immensely. It gave him something to care for while being away from home and missing his wife and family every day.

“It helped a lot. It helped me a lot to focus on Belle and her well-being,” he said.

Wettstein returned home a few months ago but had to leave Belle behind. He hoped the day would come when he would see her again.

Now, together once more, the Marine said reuniting with his dog just feels right.

“I was missing a part of me. I was trying to fill the void and now my void is filled,” he told NBC 7. “Having that kind of a relationship with a dog, you know, you get this bond.”

Wettstein’s wife, Jessica, said she’s grateful her husband was able to rely on Belle while deployed.

“Obviously it’s hard not to worry when they are in that kind of situation, but having a companion I think definitely helped,” said Jessica, adding that she’s excited to welcome Belle into their family.

“It’s an incredible opportunity. It’s meant to be. She’s obviously meant to be part of our family,” she added.

Wettstein said it’ll take a little bit of adjusting, but he’s confident Belle will love her new home.

“It’s going to take some reacquainting and some relaxing, but I think it will be a really good thing for all of us,” he said.

It is estimated that dogs like Belle save the lives of up to 200 troops during their service.

Organizations like the American Humane Association and Mission K-9 Rescue help connect these dogs with service members through generous donations.

Kristin Maurer of Mission K-9 Rescue said reuniting the animals with their military comrades is an important cause.

“It’s a beautiful sight. These guys deploy together – they’ve been through something that we will never understand. These dogs protected them day in and day out. They were their battle buddy and vice versa, so they have a deep bond,” said Maurer.

“They deserve to be together,” she added.

For these reasons, both the American Humane Association and Mission K-9 Rescue are lobbying Congress about the need to bring these dogs home. To learn more about Mission K-9 Rescue, click here.

A 2-month-old baby boy is dead and his father is behind bars Sunday.

Twenty-year-old Brian Armstrong brought his infant son, Hassan, to a local hospital Friday in extremely critical condition.  The child succumbed to his injuries -- which were extensive -- at 1:55 p.m. Sunday, according to hospital officials.

Police began questioning Armstrong Friday evening after his account of what happened did not match up with the injuries sustained by Hassan. The next day, authorities charged the father with aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children and other related offenses. Charges are expected to be upgraded now that the baby has died.

Armstrong frantically ran out of his home on the 6200 block of Old York Road in the city's West Oak Lane section Friday afternoon with the child limp in his arms, according to witnesses.

Screaming for someone to help, the father, the child's grandfather and Hassan, who had blood coming out of his ear, were rushed by a passerby to Albert Einstein Medical Center, witnesses said.

Officials with Albert Einstein informed police around 5:20 p.m. Friday that the 2-month-old was in the emergency room with injuries to his ribs and skull.

The infant was transferred to Saint Christopher's Hospital for Children, where he was resuscitated at least once and placed on life support before succumbing to his injuries Sunday, according to officials.

The father was arraigned Sunday morning and bail was set at $5 million.

Police say the mother was at work at the time of the incident.

State police are investigating after motorcyclist died trying to elude the Fairfield Police just after midnight on Sunday.

Police say 23-year-old Arthur De-andrade-leao was traveling east on North Avenue in Bridgeport when he failed to negotiate a curve and collided with a pole. He was transported to Bridgeport Hospital and died of his injuries.

State police are investigating the incident. Anyone who may have witnessed the accident are encouraged to contact TFC B. Santa of the state police at (203) 630-8079.

A man leaving the Jason Aldean concert at Xfinity Theater in Hartford on Saturday night almost hit one police officer with his car and then ran into another officer on his motorcycle trying to pull the driver over, police said.

Police arrested David Mascuto, 51, of Fairfield, on multiple charges including operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol.

While Hartford Police Traffic Division officers were doing traffic detail after the concert, police witnessed a departing concertgoer "driving erratically," almost hitting a police officer, police said.

When another officer on a motorcycle, Joseph Fargnoli Jr., tried to stop the car, the driver's vehicle struck him.  An ambulance transported Fargnoli Jr.  to Hartford Hospital, where he was treated and released.

Hartford police stopped Mascuto's car and arrested him on charges of operating under the influence, evading responsibility and failure to obey an officer's signal.

Police set his bond at $25,000.

Additionally, Hartford Deputy Chief Brian Foley said in a tweet that police made one arrest inside the concert that 21,271 people attended. Police issued 55 court summons for underage drinking and made an assaul arrest, police said. Thirty people were transported to the hospital for alcohol related incidents, including eight people under 21, according to police.

Xfinity Theatre is affiliated with Comcast, which owns NBC Universal, NBC Connecticut's parent company.

A 71-year-old New Haven, Connecticut, man has been arrested after shooting a neighbor in his apartment building, police said.

New Haven police responded to an apartment building at 25 Donna Drive at 7:49 a.m. on Sunday after receiving a 911 call from resident Anthony Anamasi, 71, who told police he shot a person who attacked him with a knife and that he'd gone back to his apartment unit to wait for police.

Police and EMTs found the reported attacker Leroy Brown, 23, a resident in the building, in the "front common hallway" of the apartment complex with a gunshot wound in the side of his head, police said. An ambulance rushed him to the emergency department at Yale-New Haven Hospital to be treated for critical injuries.

Anamasi is charged with first-degree assault. The incident remains under investigation.

More information will be provided when it becomes available.

A 9-year-old boy who got separated from his family at the Central Park Zoo says being lost for two hours in New York City was the greatest day of his life.

The Daily News reports that Chris Villavicencio of Union City, New Jersey, got separated from his parents and younger sister Saturday afternoon.

He left the zoo and wandered around Times Square until police found him at the Port Authority Bus Terminal more than a mile away.

Meanwhile, the boy's panicked parents reported him missing to police in Central Park.

When the family was reunited, the boy's father clutched him tightly and wept.

The boy told the Daily News, "This was the greatest day of my life because this was the first day I was at the police station!"

Part of Route 66 was closed in Columbia after a tractor-trailer was involved in a crash at Cards Mill Road.

The state Department of Transportation sent out an alert around 10 a.m. saying the scene has cleared.

Wire damage is reported, but there are no injuries.
 

The gas company has responded to the area of Main and Davis streets in Watertown because of a gas main break.

Officials from the fire department said they have not evacuated anyone.

A car rolled over on Interstate 91 Northbound near exit 8 in New Haven and two lanes are blocked.

Police said it was not clear if there are injuries. State Department of Transportation cameras show an ambulance and a state police cruiser at the scene.

The vehicle that rolled over appears to be a pickup. A tow truck has arrived at the scene.

Tropical Storm Bertha is expected to move out of the eastern part of the Bahamas Monday and turn north with potential to become a hurricane late Monday evening.

But the good news is that it should miss the United States, heading out to sea, according to NBC Meteorologist Bob Maxon. The tropical storm may cause stronger waves in the waters along the east coast though, he said. The Turks and Caicos islands are seeing the most rain Monday morning as a result of Bertha.

However, Connecticut might not completely escape showers Monday as there's a 30 percent chance of rain in the forecast.

Temperatures are in the 60s to low 70s Monday morning with temperatures likely reaching the low 80s later in the day with humidity in the air, Maxon said. Partial sun is in the forecast, as well as possible scattered thunderstorms moving across New England and the state.

The Naugatuck Valley is seeing some heavy fog Monday morning, cutting visibility to as much as 50 miles in the Oxford area, near the Oxford-Waterbury airport and into the hills west of town, so be careful on your morning commute in those areas, Maxon said.

The Lillie B. Haynes and East Lyme Middle Schools were locked down for nearly three hours and the East Lyme Public Library was closed while police searched for a man who they say was driving erratically on Monday morning.

Thomas Schmidt, 30, was arrested following the chase, which bought out police ATVs and K-9s and ended around 11:30 a.m. in the area of exit 73 off Interstate 95.

Police said Schmidt has been in jail most of his adult life on armed robbery and burglary convictions. He's also facing larceny and drug possession charges with state police.

He's charged with third-degree larceny, possession of narcotics, possession of marijuana and driving without a license.

According to state police, Schmidt led troopers on a half-mile-long car chase starting around 8:30 a.m. near exit 71 off I-95 in Old Lyme.

Schmidt later abandoned the car on the highway, and a witness said she saw police lead him out of the woods behind the school bus trailer, a portable office near the bus lot where drivers clock in and out.

The school lockdowns remained in effect throughout the search and were lifted upon Schmidt's arrest. The buildings are used for summer programs in East Lyme, which were in session during the lockdowns.

"Staff that was there knew exactly what they needed to do, so as soon as we got the call from the police at about a quarter-to-nine, we locked down both buildings and they remained in lockdown mode until 11:30 when police gave us the all clear," said East Lyme school Supt. Jim Lombardo.

According to Lombardo, I-95 is a common cut-through for bank robbers, and the school system often deals with lockdowns while police seek out suspects.

"We have regular fire drills like all of us kids remember, but we also have lockdown drills as well," Lombardo said, "two or three of those a year in each one of our school buildings, so our staffs are very well prepared for our procedures."

The Facebook page for the East Lyme Library says the library and community center were also closed during the manhunt. The library is waiving all fines. 

Schmidt's bond was set at $100,000. Since East Lyme has no holding cell at its police department, he was taken into the custody of state police.

Police have not released any information about a possible motive.

The former Market Basket CEO whose ouster sparked massive employee protests says he will return to helm the grocery chain "immediately" if the board accepts his offer to buy the company.

Arthur T. Demoulas, who was pushed out by his cousin's allies in June amid a decades-long family feud in the boardroom, said in a statement Sunday night that he and his full team could return within hours if his bid were accepted so they could "begin to restore the business."

A spokeswoman for the man better known to loyal employees as Artie T. said his side of the family was working to buy the 50.5 percent of shares they don't own.

"These steps are critical at this point and are in the best interests of associates, customers, vendors and shareholders. Time is of the essence," spokeswoman Justine Griffin said in the statement. "Arthur T. is hopeful, but resolution depends on the response of the other shareholders in order for an agreement to be reached."

The region-wide supermarket chain has suffered this summer as worker protests, walkouts and a boycott have left stores, and their shelves, empty in the wake of Arthur T.'s ouster.

Arthur T. was fired back in June by a board controlled by allies of his cousin Arthur S., and two co-CEOs, Felicia Thornton and James Gooch, were tapped to replace him.

Two wings of the Demoulas family, all descendants of Market Basket's founder, have been feuding since 1971 for control of the company.

Meanwhile, current Market Basket executives are preparing to hold job fairs Monday and Tuesday for current employees looking for a promotion or to change positions. They are scheduled to take place both days from 4 to 8 p.m. at the company's IT center in Andover, Massachusetts.

CEOs Felicia Thornton and James Gooch released a statement Monday, reading, in part, "We have heard from many associates who are interested in applying for internal positions, but are concerned for their safety if they attend the scheduled job fair. In response to their concerns, we are making available an email address to which associates can apply. Any associate interested should dsend a copy of their resume to jobfair2014@demoulasmarketbasket.com."

A fair for outside candidates will be held Wednesday.

Middletown police arrested a man who is accused of exposing himself in a busy section of downtown, “waving his penis,” punching an electrical box and challenging people to fight.

Police said Terrance Michael Nelson, 56, of Middletown, appeared “extremely intoxicated,” when police responded to a report of a man exposing himself at the corner of Main and Colleges streets just before 6 p.m. on Friday.

The woman who filed the complaint told officers that Nelson unzipped his pants after challenging others to fight him, took out his penis, shook it and waved it at her and other people who were around, according to the arraignment report.

Nelson was arrested and charged with breach of peace in the second degree and public indecency.

At the police station, he refused to be fingerprinted or have a mug shot taken. Instead, he told police that he would rather “take the charge” and plead not guilty, according to police. He was also charged with failure to submit to fingerprinting.

He is due in court on Friday.

Two young men suspected of burglarizing homes in West Hartford on Monday morning have been taken into custody.

Joseph Israel Bultran-Romero, 20, and Juan Carlos Baez, Jr., 18, both of Hartford, were arrested behind the Shepherd Park elderly housing complex on Sisson Avenue in Hartford.

The suspects are accused of forcing their way through glass doors to enter homes on Warrenton Avenue and Concord Street in West Hartford.

"I'm just really fortunate nothing tragic happened," said Jim Wasoka, of West Hartford, who was in the basement of his home on Warrenton Avenue when the suspects broke in around noon Monday.

Wasoka said he walked upstairs after hearing a strange noise in the house and found the door open.

"I went outside to see who it could be and I saw two men riding away in bicycles, and they had backpacks that were pretty stuffed with items," he explained.

Wasoka called 911 and detectives arrived on scene to search for the perpetrators. As soon as police spotted them, the men dropped their bikes and took off.

"After a brief pursuit, both of the individuals were captured," said West Hartford police Capt. Frank Fallon.

Authorities recovered a backpack with stolen items inside and said the suspects have also been linked to other unsolved burglaries in West Hartford and Hartford.

Police initially said they were behind another home burglary on North Quaker Lane, but wrote in a press release Monday night that investigators are still working to determine whether the third break-in is connected.

Nothing was taken from the interrupted burglary on Warrenton Avenue, but police said the suspects made off with jewelry and electronics from the house on Concord Street.

Bultran-Romero and Baez are each facing multiple charges, including burglary, larceny and interfering with an officer.