Scattered Sundays

With a very sunny May and 1-2 weeks of June that put the “gloom” in June Gloom, I don’t know if this month’s solar production will outpace last month’s. It will top last June, which was the coldest and dreariest since the 1940s.

Almost 70% of our yearly solar production happens April-September, so this is go-time, people! This is not a drill!

With only clear and sunny skies and warm temps in the forecast for the next 10 days, I’m excited to see how much we can produce in the final days of the month with the most daylight hours.

Troy and I spent yesterday morning on the roof of our local library cleaning their solar panels. With pollen, other debris, and bird droppings being abundant this time of year, a quick and gentle scrub helps to keep the panels performing at their best.

We’ll do another scrub of the library’s panels and our own at the end of summer or in early fall when months without rain and weeks of wildfire smoke leave them coated with grime.

I celebrated the final photo shoot of the school year by doing, what else, copious amounts of dishes! It was a good and productive day of photos and I’m so thrilled to be packing up the equipment and tucking it into a closet until mid to late September.

Just a reminder that I’m on vacation until July 3rd. Brand new posts are scheduled to roll out on Tuesday and Saturday and they’re good ones! No comments will be reviewed or approved until I get back.

HOUSEKEEPING

Hey, did you know that Emmeline from always use butter and I wrote a mocktail ebook? No?

Well, that’s because we made this ebook and the platform we made it on has made it IMPOSSIBLE to insert it into our blog posts. I spent three laborious days last week on chat with tech help from the platform, and NOTHIN’.

But that’s ok because I am telling you now! Emmeline and I compiled our favorite mocktail and simple syrup recipes together in one ad-free book. It’s a wealth of tastiness for a super-affordable $5.

Now here’s the stupid part. If you want to purchase our ebook (and you should), you have to click the super lame “buy my product button” below. I know, lamesauce with a dollop of lame-whip on top. And a dusting of lame sprinkles

READER SPOTLIGHT OF THE WEEK

Long-time reader, Izzy, left this five-star review on our Instant Pot Mac and Cheese {Pin this recipe}:

Made this for Father’s Day & it was a big hit. I will NEVER make Mac n cheese any other way. Soooo easy. I did the breadcrumb topping, it was perfect. I absolutely need to try this with GF noodles next time so I can eat it 

ON SUSTAINABLE COOKS THIS WEEK

Some reader favorites got a glow-up this week! New content, more in-depth instructions, storage and reheating notes, oh my!

Instant Pot Potato Salad – This loaded Instant Pot Potato Salad is the dish that everyone will love. This recipe has mayo-free options for a healthier potato salad and is the perfect make-ahead side dish for your next BBQ. No pressure cooker? You’ll also find stovetop instructions include in the post. {Pin this recipe}

Cabbage Salad – This delicious Cabbage Salad is a powerhouse of veggies with a touch of {optional} bacon. A hearty make-ahead salad that is packed with so much flavor, it might just become your new favorite side dish. {Pin this recipe}

And just including this photo because I think it’s fun and colorful:

How to Freeze Pesto – Learn all the tips and tricks for freezing pesto to save money and prevent food waste. A freezer stash of frozen pesto opens the door to amazing meals packed with flavor. {Pin this tutorial}

THE FIVE MOST POPULAR POSTS THIS WEEK