June: Five Things for Right Now
Embracing the outdoors and looking for simple joys
Five (ish) things For Right Now
“A flower blossoms for its own joy.”
― Oscar Wilde
Cut Flowers / Backyard Bouquets
Flowers are cropping up everywhere outside, and they are so lovely to behold. But how often do you have a vase of cut flowers in your home? This time of year, bouquets of flowers don’t have to be just for special occasions!
This little arrangement pictured above is a mix of flowers from the yard, including some weeds! Its bright, whimsical nature inspired joy every time it caught my eye walking past it in the kitchen. A little handful of flowers is perhaps the simplest way to add positivity and brightness to any room. So pick some flowers and boost your mood!
Pasta Salads for Days and Days
For all of those picnics you’ll be having. Pasta salads are easy to throw together and can be cooling and refreshing on a hot day.
With any pasta salad, go big on the vegetables and easy on the sauce and make sure there is a protein in there. Protein can be a cheese, nut, chicken, tuna, chickpea or other legume. The best pasta salads are when the pasta is an accent to all of the other more exciting ingredients making their presence known. Substitute whole wheat pasta or other grain/bean pastas if you like.
NYT Cooking: Orzo salad by Lidey Heuck
Allison Roman: Pasta Salad with Zucchini, Sizzled Scallion, and Parmesan
Books to Check Out
Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life by Jason Roberts
Newly awarded the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in Biography, this huge (in pages and topic) book explores the complex issues at the heart of the creation of scientific language that will become the area of science known as biology. “In the eighteenth century, two men—exact contemporaries and polar opposites—dedicated their lives to the same daunting task: identifying and describing all life on Earth.” This epic book takes on a this expansive topic by weaving together the history and stories of these two complex, deeply human men in an engaging, entertaining way.
Dad, What's for Dinner? Lifesaving Recipes to Avoid Meltdowns, Have Fun in the Kitchen, and Keep Your Kids Well Fed: A Cookbook by David Nayfeld and Joshua David Stein
Perfectly timed for Father’s Day, of course, here is a dad’s guide to what’s for dinner. A lot of the recipes lean on classic kids favorites — grilled cheese and tomato soup, chicken nuggets, and lots of pastas — but taken up a notch and given a homemade, chef-y flare. (The salad chapter has a paltry four recipes, and one is for croutons, but I appreciate that they are included, as well as a robust Veggies chapter.) Speaking of chapters, a whole chapter is devoted to Batch Cooking and the book offers many other cooking tips as you move through the recipes.
In Season: garlic scapes
Garlic scapes are the top part of the garlic stalk, harvested to drive more energy to the growing garlic bulb. Cut up the entire scape as you would a scallion and toss them in any dish for a fresh, mild garlicky flavor.
Garlic scapes are the definition of a simple joy. Use them as you would garlic in any dish. Just chop finely and stir into anything you like — favorite pasta, salad vinaigrette, stir fry — or blend into a sauce or soup. This instantly elevates any dish, imbued with the freshness of the season.
I prefer the milder flavor of garlic scapes. They add that sweet garlic flavor without being too intense, or pungent. This is especially true when replacing garlic scapes for raw garlic in a recipe.
Garlic scapes are now at the farmers market for a limited time. Stock up soon — their season doesn't last long.
Nutrition notes: Add garlic scapes to any dish to punch up the flavor without adding a lot of salt. Garlic scapes also have anti-inflammatory properties and are full of phytochemicals.
Go for a hike!
National Trails Day is Saturday June 7th. Lace up those hiking shoes or sneakers and hit the trail or field or anywhere outside that makes you happy. Really, it’s just another good excuse to get outside.
One thing I hear repeatedly from clients is how much more movement they feel like they get during the warmer months. That wonderful weather is here, and being outside is inspiring. Enjoy the weather of June!
And if you are looking for some additional motivation to get moving outside of a collective day of action, the NYTimes Well Newsletter has some ideas: 4 Ways to Trick Yourself Into Taking a Walk
And for some giggles, this delicious hiking humor from The New Yorker, “Behold, I Have Returned from a Hike” by Jason Hayes. “I’ve moved beyond the world you live in. I cut the tether. It was just me, the great outdoors, and the phone I relied on heavily for navigation, documentation, and a podcast to take my mind off how much sweat was pooling around my lower back.” 😆 😂
June by the Days
Happy Pride Month! 🏳️🌈
June 4th National Cheese Day: How do you celebrate? Do you make your favorite cheese-a-licious dish? Splurge on your favorite fancy cheese?
June 17th National Eat Your Veggies Day: I’ve never heard of this before, but why not? And really, isn’t every day eat your veggies day? 🙂 🥬🥕🥦🌶️
National Pollinator Week (June 16-22): Plant some bee-friendly plants! 16 Pollinator Plants That Will Attract Birds, Bees, and Butterflies to Your Garden (Martha Stewart)
Thoughtful Food Nutrition is a consultancy that specializes in nutrition counseling and food policy consulting. Appointments and more at www.thoughtfulfoodnutrition.com.