This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Jill from Find Us Faithful whose comment number was chosen via random.org. Thanks to all who participated!

We are in the second full week of summer and have already marked several things off of our 2012 Summer Bucket List. It has been a great one so far!

Today we had the opportunity to head out to Happy Valley Farm in DeSoto, Kansas to do some blueberry picking. We were slightly too early in the season to get a whole gob of blueberries, but we can’t wait to go back! If you live near DeSoto and are looking for a small, family owned, chemical free farm to experience picking all different kinds of berries, you’ll be treated great and will love the personal experience you get at Happy Valley Farm.

I was bound and determined that this summer, I was going to make jam. We didn’t get enough berries picking today to make a batch of jam, so I stopped at the store on my way home and bought some blueberries. I came home, expecting jam to be a huge long process, only to discover that with this new Ball Automatic Jam Maker appliance I received from Kmart, it’s a quick, 30 minutes at the most, kind of deal. I gave a few jars of the jam out to neighbors and hope they think I slaved all day over a pot of berries to make their jam. I love them enough to do that, but in reality, this jam making project was quick and easy!…

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The post Berry Picking and Jam Making {Giveaway: Ball Canning Discovery Kit from Kmart} appeared first on Dine and Dish.

Last weekend, I spent a few days in New York City hanging out with other bloggers and Sandra Lee. We were all brought together to celebrate the launch of Sandra’s beautiful and functional new housewares and small appliance lines with Sears and K-Mart. Make sure to check out the beautiful products she has as a part of her new line.  As a gift, they have provided a coupon to Dine & Dish readers for $5 off any $15 purchase of any of Sandra Lee’s new products at Sears.com.

I’ll write more about this trip and my favorite products from her line very soon… in short, Sandra was so kind and personable! I honestly didn’t know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised at how real and genuine she was… she treated us all like long time friends.

If there is one thing Sandra is known for it is her love of a great cocktail. The drinks we were served at this event were pretty awesome, but the one cocktail that stood out to me was this Meringue Margarita. I knew I needed to share it with you before Cinco de Mayo as it might just be the perfect cocktail for your weekend festivities! Who knew that crushing a simple meringue cookie and adding it to the rim of your glass could make such a difference in a simple margarita!

(And although there is nothing wrong with using pre-made margarita mix, if you want to whip some up on your own, try this killer habanero margarita recipe from my friend Jeffrey Saad or this Blue Margarita Recipe from Dinners Dishes and Desserts).

Thanks to the Sandra Lee and her photographers for the photos!

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Sandra Lee

The simple addition of a crushed meringue cookie makes this margarita a memorable one!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 ounces margarita mix
• 4 ounces crushed ice
• 1 teaspoon meringue cookie crumbs
• 1 fresh lime wedge

Instructions

• Combine margarita mix and ice in a blender.
• Rub the rim of a cocktail glass with lime and dip into crushed meringue cookies.
• Pour blended margarita into cocktail glass and garnish with a lime wedge.

The post A New York Kind of Cocktail {Recipe: Meringue Margaritas} appeared first on Dine and Dish.