♪ ♪

we're back with the ro rockettes, ushering in the radio city holiday season. the ladies are going to be around for a little while. they'll tell us why. >> i think it is always the season for the rockettes. >> they're going to o perform a little longer number for us a little later in the show. right now back with more of "today" on this tuesday morning. i'm matt lauer, along with ann curry who's here while meredith's taking time off. mr. rocker joins us as well. i was going to say, do they have to keep standing there? >> and relax. coming up, much more on the michael jackson investigation. what else? >> also coming up, a lot of people are going through the heartbreak of sending their kids off to college. there are apparently five health issues -- six health hazards you and your student may want to know about. there is also the joy of getting a room back.

that wall's coming down! if you're thinking of grabbing a summer getaway, some tips for the perfect weekend destination, whether you're looking for wine country, undiscovered coastal gems, we have got some ideas for you. >> all right. a lot coming up. ladies, good to have you here. natalie astanding by inside at the news desk with the headlines. good morning. a show of confidence today for fed chairman ben bernanke taking a break from his vacation in martha's vineyard, president obama's reappointing bernanke to a second term. the president is praising the fed chair for what he describes as outside the box thinking. new focus this morning on michael jackson's personal physician. now that the superstar's death has been ruled a homicide. nbc's jeff rossen is in los angeles with more. jeff, good morning. >> reporter: natalie, good morning to you. this homicide ruling really paves the way for criminal charges for l.a. prosecutors. all that going on this morning. we got new information, a

play-by-play about what happened inside jackson's home the day he died. >> reporter: michael jackson finished his final rehearsal wired up and unable to sleep. according to new court papers obtained by nbc news, his personal physician, dr. conrad murray, admitted he gave jackson drug, after drug, after drug to help him get to bed. even provided police with the timeline the morning jackson died. 1:30 a.m., dr. murray gave jackson valium. it didn't work. jackson was still awake. 2:00 a.m., he injected jackson with a muscle relaxer, lorazepam. that didn't work. 3:00 a.m., dr. murray administered the antianxiety drug midazolam. 5:00 a.m. jackson was still awake so dr. murray pushed another dose of lorazepam into jackson's iv. 7:30 a.m., he administered more midazolam.

at 10:40 a.m. web administered 25 milligrams of propofol. at 10:50 a.m. dr. murray went to the bathroom and went jackson alone. when he got back minutes later, jackson wasn't breathing. law enforcement sources tell nbc news the coroner has ruled jackson's death a homicide. >> the fact that this one was classified as a homicide means that the evidence is pointing to another person being directly involved in the administration of the drugs that caused michael jackson's death. >> reporter: the toxicology report shows jackson had lethal levels of propofol in his system when he died, a drug jackson used so often, court papers say he referred to it as his "milk." >> to just give it to someone >> reporter: dr. murray is now the focus of the manslaughter investigation. in the court papers, police say during interviews, murray left out key details about jackson's final minutes. they analyzed his cell phone records. parate callers for 47 minutes after jackson stopped breathing

but before anyone called 911. "murray did not mention this to the interviewing detectives." >> when we're talking about manslaughter, we're talking about a departure from acceptable medical standards that's more than what we call ordinary negligence. it is criminal negligence. it is extreme negligence. dr. murray told police four other doctors were prescribing drugs for jackson. "much of what was in the search warrant's affidavit is factual. however, unfortunately, much is police theory. we will be happy to address the coroner's report when it is e jackson family is now weighing in, too, "we look forward to the day justice can be served." natalie? >> thank you, jeff rossen in los angeles. the fda is investigating 30 reports of liver damage in some people taking the weight loss drug alli or prescription zen cal. the fda has it has not

established a link between the weight loss drugs and liver problems and advises patients to continue using them as directed by their doctors. thunderstorms forced nasa to postpone this morning's launch of the space shuttle "discovery." nasa will try again early tomorrow. you're up to date right now. five minutes past the hour. back outside again to matt and ann. >> thanks, natalie. >> mr. roker a right behind you. >> got a couple of young ladies who want to let some folks know back home something? >> hi. >> we're pretty good. >> both of you. >> yeah. >> your husbands are -- >> chris. >> how far apart? >> two weeks. >> man! you guys really believe in double dating. let's check your weather, see what's going on. eye on the tropics, got a tropical wave interacting with an upper-level low east of san juan, could become a tropical cyclone in the next two days, that would become danny. closer to home, showers and

thunderstorms from minneapolis back into parts of the dakotas and nebraska. shuttle launch could have more problems in the southeast with thunderstorms again tomorrow. the shuttle's supposed to go off at 1:10. >> nice, sunny skies today, temperature range between 85 and 80 degrees. nice overnight as well, with clear skies. we get back down into the low >> just so happens to have some really cute children right here.

natalie? thank you, al. this morning on "today's health," the the hidden health hazards lurking in college dorms. beside packing on the freshman 15, there might be a few other dangers your son or daughter could be exposed to this fall. an assistant professor of medicine at new york university medical center and medical editor for "health" magazine. it comes a question of close contact and different things foreign policy innocuous like athlete's foot to the more serious. how did health.com come up with a list? >> basically, very close quarters, college rooms are not known for their cleanliness or safe behavior. we came one a top ten list of dangers to warn your kids about. >> one doctor described a dorm room as a petri dish. >> it is a breeding ground for bacterias, viruses. people are eating together,

sharing utensils, roommates, a lot of infections can spread. >> first health hazard, meningitis. how is this contracted and is it extremely contagious. >> we're talking viral and also bacterial. basically meningitis means inflammation of the covering of your brain or spinal cord. could be very serious or potentially fatal. can be spread through respiratory secretions. do a lot of hand washing, be careful about sharing glasses, toothbrushes, things like that. if someone's sick in the dorm you need to isolate them until they're fully recovered. >> the next one, the kissing disease, mono nucleosis. this can knock someone out for a couple of weeks. >> four to six weeks which can impact your academic year. it is a little bit harder to contract but very close contact. the kissing disease. be careful who you kiss. unfortunately this is something that you spread before you actually start to have symptoms. it is really important for your kids to know that they really need to be choosey about how

they share saliva. >> don't share glasses -- >> exactly. >> what are some symptoms of mono? >> fever and extreme fatigue. a lot of kids are feeling tired in college but this is more profound. if there is any question of it, they should see a doctor. >> next, colds and flus. of course we've been hearing the grim statistics already from the government, presidential panel that put out that they expect half of the u.s. population can be infected with the swine flu this season. this will be a particular concern for college campuses. >> this year it is particularly important for college kids to be aware. colleges are where we expect to see the most cases, close quarters. colleges lynn instruct their children to probably go home any sign of symptoms, not stay in the dorm, maybe get food delivered to them so they don't go to the dining hall and infect other people. best thing to do, frequent hand washing. >> the vaccine probably won't be available until mid-october fof

some. >> but when it is, they should get it. >> students are notorious for those all-nighters, as we remember those good old days. i can't do those anymore, but sleep deprivation is a big concern. >> yeah. we've all done all-nighters once in a while. if it becomes a habit, studies have shown it can affect your gpa, lower it, and can also lead to long-term sleep problems. it is important to have a steady sleep routine, avoid long naps during the day, exercise, it helps you sleep at night, and avoid the caffeine fix. that can also become a long-term fixation. >> i know. it started in college. binge drinking. this is a huge one on college campuses. every year sadly we seem to report stories of the students that end up dying because they go out for a night of partying and in fact a study showed that more than 90% of the alcohol consumed by people under the age of 21 is in the form of binge drinking. >> these are young people who are not experienced drinkers. binge drinking can lead to alcohol poisoning, can also lead to drunk driving accidents, date rape. there are a whole host of other

things and it can expropose you to alcoholism. speak to your youngsters about responsibly drinking. really it is illegal under the anl of 21. >> binge drinking is defined as how many drinks? >> depends on your weight but anything i would say more than two if it's making you feel very drunk. it's a problem. >> especially if you're underweight or lightweight. lastly, sexually transmitted diseases. this is a statistic kids need to wake up to. 25% of college students get some kind of std. >> that's been reported. it's probably even more. it's rampant on college campuses. we are pauking about hpv, herpes which will be with you for life. kids should know that and can also impact fertility. chlamydia, of course hiv can be spread. >> parents need to have the talk. what else should they be doing? >> instruct their kids they can come to them with questions. condom use is very important. birth control pills do not protect against any stds. >> doctor, good information as all. check out our website at

todayshow.com. are you overscheduling your kids? we'll help you figure out when after-school lessons are maybe too much of a good thing. but before the craziness starts, great ideas for some last-minute summer getaways right after this. when it comes to being more like the original, some 100-calorie snacks just fall flat. ( thud, ding, applause ) 100 calorie right bites. make the most of every bite.

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well, now there's a prize inside the prize. pecans! pecans! baked into crunchy oat bunches. taste the delicious surprise in every spoonful. new honey bunches of oats with pecan bunches. beautiful. kids who don't eat breakfast aren't getting the nutrition they need to keep their bodies strong. ( bell rings ) a nutritious start to the day is essential. that's why carnation instant breakfast essentials supplies all the nutrients of a complete breakfast. so kids get the protein and calcium they need to help build strong muscles and healthy bones. carnation instant breakfast essentials. good nutrition from the start. >> announcer: today's "travel on the road" is brought to you by goodyear. get there on new fuel max tires.

this morning on our special series, today's travel on the road, end of summer weekend road trips. the senior editor at "travel and leisure" has some picks for great, quick getaways. a lot of us plan those week-long trips but you say weekends, you can pack a lot in as well. >> absolutely. summer's not over yet. even if you did take that week-long trip, you can also squeeze in one last getaway before the season changes. >> now is the popular time to do that. >> yes. >> what criteria did you guys use for these picks? >> we looked for road trips that were easy to get to from major urban destinations, places with great scenery, lots to do and are also affordable. that's a key element. >> great idea with this economy. starting off in maine, portland, maine. why did you like portland? >> we love maine at the end of the summer. this is when the crowds are gone, prices are dropping so you get more bang for your buck. horse fines are gone, too. the water's at its warmest. it is not caribbean warm but as

close as can you get in maine. portland is a great city to explore. it has the portland museum of art which holds the works of artists like andrew wyeth and homer, both of whom inspired by the rugged coastline that you can go off and explore in your car. it also has this fantastic burgeoning restaurant scene. they say they have more restaurants per capita there than in new york city which really testifies to this culinary energy that's there. >> you like a cozy inn, the inn at park springs. rooms are just $135 a night, set right in the center of town. just a short wake away from museums and restaurants and everything you want to do that. >> head down to austin, texas. known for its music and some pretty good food. >> "travel and leisure" readers love austin. we most america's favorite city survey every year where we like people what they like about cities across the country. for austin they consistently say they love the friendly residents, the fun and night life in the bars and the the live music. it is a little toasty but we

recommend texans go there. they know a thing or two about air conditioning. >> nice place to see, the san jose hotel? >> the hotel san jose is hip, modern, has a fun look. it is set in the hippest area, the south congress district. there is lots of great bohemian bars and restaurants and it is also right next door to town lake, a big reservoir in the center of town. you can explore on a bike if you like. >> charlottesville, georgia. >> we like charlottesville. this is a great destination for people that live in the beltway and want to get out and get into the countryside quickly. it is just two hours outside of d.c. and all of a sudden are you in this landscape of rolling hills, picket fences, historic sites and there's also this really great wine scene that's been developing there. the place is earning a reputation as one of america's emerging wine destinations. >> the clifton inn? >> it is fantastic. it is this 100-acre estate.

it is an historic inn. thomas jefferson's son-in-law actually built the foundation. it has tennis courts, a pool, its own private lake with a dock. there is a lot to do just there on the estate itself. >> great spot in this country, pacific northwest and oregon. >> yes. a lot of people when they think about driving the pacific coast, they think about california. we want to remind people if you go a little bit north into oregon you can also hit beautiful roads that hug the coastline. you've got views that seem to go all the way out to asia, deserted stretches of beaches and lovely, cute little beach towns that you can explore. >> you like the canon's beach area, a surf sand resort. >> very easy to get to from portland. set on the four-mile stretch of sand. what i like about it, it has a great family-friendly vibe. on saturday afternoons they have ice cream socials. on sunday evenings they have a hot dog roast, then a beach bonfire. i can't really think of a better way to end your summer vacation

than with a pacific coast sunset and bonfire on the beach. >> sounds good. amy farley, thanks. still up ahead, a performance from the world-famest radio city rockettes. a whole performance. right after these messages. radi. a whole performance. right after these messages. worl rockettes. a whole performance. right after these messages. more like the original, some 100-calorie snacks just fall flat. ( thud, ding, applause ) 100 calorie right bites. make the most of every bite.

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sweet! sweet! (announcer)splenda no calorie sweetener with fiber. now for the first time, a gram of healthy fiber in every packet. sweet! (announcer) splenda no calorie sweetener, starts with sugar. tastes like sugar. but it's not sugar. no calories and a little fiber. how's that taste? (together) sweet! sweet! (announcer) splenda with fiber. imagine life sweeter. the sparkly flakes. the honey-baked bunches! the magic's in the mix. my favorite part? eating it. honey bunches of oats. taste the joy we put in every spoonful. yes, it's still summer but we're going to have a taste of the holiday season with the world renowned radio city rockettes. we are joined by amanda, a veteran rockette.

good morning to you all this morning. you're going to be touring, i understand. but how do you bring in christmas in august, darling? >> well, it's christmas in august. we're officially kicking off the season as the 2009 radio city christmas spectacular presented by capital one bank. the show is going to run from november 13 to december 30th this year. today at 3:00 we'll form the longest kick line ever on 6th avenue. we're going to literally stop traffic on 6th avenue. >> but before we get to that, you'll stop traffic this morning. let's get off the stage, everybody, and take a look at this. the rockettes christmas in august. ♪

♪ 12340e9 ♪ smote ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪

>> the radio city rockettes. thank you so much! you know, i loved it. >> in today's kitchen, gourmet mexican cooking and so much more. venus spa breeze. new pencils, new books... new backpack... looks good. just trying to look our best. eh, gonna take more than looks. from what i hear, ms. haskins is a toughy. oh, we had a good breakfast so we're ready. gonna be another great year, huh guys?! you bet your 8 layers! yeah! long-distance high 5! oh, careful! hey, watch it. start the school year with an excellent source of fiber. a clinical study showed kids who had a filling breakfast... of kellogg's® frosted mini-wheats® cereal... had 11% better attentiveness...

compared to kids who missed out on breakfast. ( shouts ) keeps 'em full. keeps 'em focused. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy december. baltimore county police are trying to find whatever shot and killed and owings mills man. scott greenberg, the victim in the shooting inside a home on velvet valley way, had two sexual abuse complaints leveled against him, one by an 9-year- old, the other by an 18-year- old, dating as far back as 1991. he was shot multiple plot lines and he may have known his attacker. in howard county, and 87- year-old man was charged with second-degree murder and assault in the first murder of 2009. he was accused in last monday's fatal attack on a fellow

assisted living resident. police said that the two men were outside when he began hitting the 91-year-old with his fists. let's look at the forecast with sandra shaw. >> a nice start of the day. plenty of sunshine this afternoon. mostly sunny skies, 85 to 88. it will feel like the mid-to- upper-80's. not a lot of moisture in the air, thanks to a nice dome of high pressure. there is a tropical system that we are monitoring just north of the island that will affect the area by the weekend. >> thank you for joining as. we will have another update at 9:55.

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an end-of-the-summer celebration live on our summer concert stage friday on "today." come on down, bring the kids. coming up in this half hour, school's getting underway, so are all the extracurriculars. >> that's right. we all want to give our kids the very best, but scheduling too many activities after school from all their sports practices to dance lessons, actually getting their school work done can be overwhelming. how less can actually be more not only for them but for you too. >> i can say it is kind of beneficial for them just to sort of sit and think. it is a little bit of something for them to do. also coming up in "today's kitchen," authentic mexican cooking. cooking with apricots and perhaps a dash of tequila. perhaps more than a dash if i have something to say about it. >> i'm very proud of you.

>> why? >> in the script there, there was a diss for our director joe michaels about the tequila and you avoided that. >> thanks for bringing it up, al. >> i'm sorry, joe. i tried to protect you. give us the weather. >> let's show you what's happening for today, we will see that we're looking at sunshine up and down the eastern seaboard, cold front bringing showers and thunderstorms to the upper great lakes, back into the plains. some clouds in the pacific northwest. tomorrow mild through the great lakes and pacific northwest, >> plenty of sunshine today, things looking nice, temperature up to 87 degrees. 84 for august 25. it is not going to be so humid out there.

>> that's your latest weather. thank you. coming up next, a school lesson on how not to overschedule your children. on how not to overschedule your children. but first these messages. my doctor. he told me i had choices in controller medicines. we chose symbicort. symbicort starts to improve my lung function within 15 minutes. that's important to me because i know the two medicines in symbicort are beginning to treat my symptoms and helping me take control of my asthma. and that makes symbicort a good choice for me. symbicort will not replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. and should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol may increase the chance of asthma-related death. so, it is not for people whose asthma is well controlled on other asthma medicines. see your doctor if your asthma does not improve or gets worse. i know symbicort won't replace a rescue inhaler.

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tell your doctor if you are taking other medications, or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. i learned the hard way. but you may be able to do something. have a heart to heart with your doctor... about your risk. and about lipitor. that's why there's lysol dual action disinfecting wipes. they go beyond ordinary wipes because they have two different sides. a scrubbing side with powerful built in fibers that easily lifts tough messes and a wiping side that cleans and kills 99.9% of germs. lysol dual action disinfecting wipes. lysol. disinfect to protect. that's why i got them pillsbury toaster strudel. warm, flaky, pastry with delicious sweet filling my kids will love. plus i get two bonus boxtops for their school. toaster strudel. the one kids want to eat.

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>> announcer: today's back-to-school," brought to you by totino's pizza rolls. this morning on "back to school today," how now to overschedule your kids once school begins. does the constant shuttle of kids drive you crazy? it's probably driving them more crazy. you want them to have all kinds of opportunities in life and experiences but when do you say enough is enough? dr. janet taylor is a family psychiatrist and contributor to momlogic.com. we are all guilty of wanting our kids to be busy. how do we know we aren't really enriching their lives and crossing the line and overscheduling them, making them do things that they don't want to do? >> there are so many opportunities. the key is to focus on enriching

them and not overscheduling them. that means we remember our primary task as parents is to support them and provide them an emotional and environment that's secure but by overscheduling them, we cause too much pressure and too much stress so we kind of undo that benefit. >> it puts a lot of pressure on parents as well. we do all the carpooling to take them everywhere. by taking a little less -- you say that's your next tip, take 10% away. minus 10% meaning whatever you had planned, subtract 10% of that. >> make your school, look at it and take 10% away. again we are creating these pressures that cause undue stress and burden. family time, carpooling time. for kids, the benefit can be outweighed by the burden. we don't want that. >> we really want our kids to try just a little bit of everything, but you say it's important for them to have the choice, to let them do what interests them. if it were left to my kid though, he might be sitting in

front of the wii all day. how do you get them out there to really explore what they like? >> talk to them, get their suggestions, let them come up with solutions. remember you're not trying to recreate your experience or what you didn't have in them. let them figure it out. that way together you can come up with a plan that hopefully is not too stressful. >> if you wanted to be a gymnast, don't try to push that on them if that's not what they're into. our dreams are not their dreams. as parents it is our opportunity to talk about what it means to be committed to an activity and what it means to be a supportive teammate and that relationship. but the most important relationship is the one they have with you. that's based on communication and you listening to what they want. >> that's important when you start hearing complaints, too, speaking of the commitment. you sign them up for something, they're committed to it but midway through it they may say i don't want to go, i don't feel like it. i got a headache. how do you know when to take the complaint seriously? >> pay attention to both verbal

an non-verbal cues. we don't want to teach our kids to quit, but at the same time listen, let them offer solutions. if they're falling asleep, they feign illness, just completely become ambivalent to what they're doing, it is time to not let them drop out but the next time you schedule for the spring, really back off and just pay attention to what they absolutely need to do. >> pay attention to their key behavior or attitude changes, if there's anything that doesn't seem like it is normal for them. >> bottom line, they're kids. teenagers. you want them to still have fun. they need down time. they need to learn how to play creatively and play outso much support and structure. but on the other hand, we don't want to drag them kicking and screaming to every activity. >> then you also say, you also want them to try a little bit of everything so that they're well rounded. so does this mean signing them up for different kinds of things or again just trying to keep their interests in mind? >> there is a lot out there. you want them to have varied

interests but you don't want to put them in everything. it is okay to back off and say, okay, instead of doing five things we'll focus on one or two and you'll do it well. >> lft, but not least, family time. so important. you say for everyone to help alleviate the stress. >> absolutely. the key relationship that they need is not what their coach or teacher, it's with you at home. family time is so important. at the end of the day, your fourth-grader's not going to remember what their club soccer team remember was. they'll remember the experiences that they had, the memories you had together and time you shared as a family. that's got to be the principle point. >> sit down to dinner. that's the key. >> just talking. >> thank you so much. gene shalit's take on the new hit movie "district 9." his review is right after this. don't throw away food, protect it in the freezer.

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office already. gene shalit says this story of aliens stranded on earth takes off. >> welcome "the critic's corner." people are talking about "district 9," a dramatic wirl wind of surprises and jolts that add luster to science fiction. >> breaking news, the whole world is watching. the course of human history has changed today. >> reporter: some 20 years ago the story goes, living entities from planet somewhere landed in downtown johannesburg, south africa. to make sure they know their place, and don't get any ideas about equality, they're segregated into a slum that's called "district 9." did somebody say apartheid? the aliens resemble human-size prawns with sub-titled language, good brains and powerful weapons that can be fired only by those who possess their unique dna. and that's a crucial key to the story. charged with controlling the

aliens is a ruthless conglomerate who puts his own son-in-law in charge. the son-in-law botches the job, opening the way to a terrific action movie and personal ter r terror. originality, talent and freshness permeate the film. >> christopher,dy not know they were doing this to you guys. >> reporter: "district 9" is a "10" though its excitements and pleasures are so good, they're beyond number. that's the "critic's corner" for today. he liked it. coming up next in "today's kitchen," an authentic mexican meal featuring game hen, apricots and tequila. but first, this is "today" on

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>> announcer: "today's kitchen" brought to you by new dove therapy conditioners. expertise for damaged hair. this morning in "today's kitchen," authentic mexican meals made by our hot chef. she's out with a new book, "fresh mexico 100 simple recipes for true mexican flavor." there's no yellow cheese in mexico? >> there is none. no. we don't have any in mexico, al. >> i guess we'll have to get on with this. today you are making cornish game hens with a little mexican flair. >> they're the perfect serving size. we have a great mexican recipe, great little sweet and sour recipe i think you're going to love. what we're going to do first, we have a mixture of chicken broth, tequila and butter. we have a big old kitchen syringe. don't worry, you'll be fine.

we're going to inject the game hens. they tend to dry out in the breast area. we're going to inject this liquid so that when it comes you get a nice and moist -- it totally plumps up. you'll get a nice, juicy not-dried-out chicken whether it comes out. >> do you that on each side. >> all over the place. mostly you want to get the breast. you saw it plump up. you want it to plump up all over so it is nice and moist when it comes out of the oven. we're going to make our glaze. this is going to make it caramelize. this is apricot marmalade right here. this is chile, dried and drained. this is what you get. mix that up. there you go. like i said, with the high oven temperature, this is the apricot marmalade high sugar content will caramelize, great golden, crispy skin. >> add any seasoning? >> a little salt and pepper.

that's perfect. then follow me this way. here we have the hens that already came out of the oven. 350 for about an hour. reach an internal temperature -- >> you just brush that on first? >> just kind of brush that on first. then you cook it until it's 160 degrees internal temperature. you can poke it in the thigh, if juices runs clear it means we're ready. >> that's what people should do with me but that's another story. >> it comes out of the oven, then you take all the yummy pan drippings with all the flavor, reduce them down. add some more of that chile paste. some tequila. you get this right here. take the sauce -- >> like you're double glazing. >> even when it is cooking, open up the oven and brush that in. that apricot marmalade will caramelize beautifully. the more on there, the better flavor. great sweet and sour combination.

apricots, cilantro. >> i might brush some of that and put these on the grill. >> that would be a great idea. >> it just came to me. i love these. >> yes, people don't think of beets -- sometimes they are afraid because of their earthy flavors or whatever. but when you roast them, natural sweetness comes out. they get all nice and buttery. you slice them up thin and then you pair them with this red jalapeno infused chile oi oil. it is a great flavor combination that pairs so nicely with the beets. >> tell us about this dessert? >> my mom used to make this for me when i was growing up. it is a strawberry tartlet. >> who you calling a tartlet? >> everybody's been asking me about this. it is mexican raw sugar. or can you use dark brown sugar to make the crust, mexican maria

cracker or use a graham cracker. this is a traditional crust. >> marcella, thank you so much. the recipe's on todayshow.com. solutions to your hair problems after your local news and weather. >> live, local, latebreaking.

this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. here's a look at some of our top stories. ravens linebacker maintains his innocence in judges of assaulting a police officer over the weekend. while declining to go into specifics, he told reporters last night that he is certain he will be exonerated. he was taken into custody after allegedly getting into a shoving match with a police officer. the ravens of the mark sanchez to the nfl in typical fashion, giving him present battered at m&t bank stadium. they stormed the jets early and managed to beat the former defensive coach 24-23. the next preseason game is

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>> let's take a look at the forecast with sandra shaw. >> things are looking very good, weather-wise. but it is a dry heat. 85 to 88. things are going to remain nice at least through tonight as well. we will be mostly clear and seasonable. 63 to 64. 67 downtown. sunset time is 7:48. tomorrow, rebound of the heat for sure. 90 degrees. there's they come back down into the mid 80's.

-- thursday, back down into the mid-80s. >> thank you for joining us. see you back here for 11 news at noon. a dull metal clanking sound. bear groans. ♪ ominous music

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