I started eating dates (roughly six a day), halfway through my pregnancy with MJ. Isaac’s birth was awful - when they pulled him out of me, white as paint, he went straight to the NICU, and I sat in a hospital bed with a bucket full of blood draining beneath me, floors away from my new baby.
Having learned about the natural benefits dates hold for childbirth, paired with my determination never to be medically induced again, they quickly became my favorite thing to eat. It’s very simple - whole foods devoured in tune with your body’s genuine need for them, will allow for function of all kinds. Dates soften your cervix, and stimulate uterine muscles. This influence of oxytocin receptors, prepare the uterus and cervix for delivery.
MJ came naturally and smoothly a few hours after I went into labor. Home alone with Isaac at the time, my mother came to stay with me. Up late baking her blondies and watching my favorite TV show, I started to feel sick. Alternating between crying and laughing, unable to sit or get comfortable, my mom popped up off the couch and said, “I think this is it!” We gently scooped Isaac from his bed, piled in the car, and drove to the hospital. Checking in around midnight, and at six centimeters, Maddox arrived at 3:36 AM.
Similar with Rowan, my date consumption well rehearsed, I woke just minutes after midnight with the same feeling. I went to use the bathroom, the warm nerves stuck. Giggly with excitement, I gathered a few belongings for whatever disorganized tote I was calling a purse, and ran up to the third floor to tell Miranda I was leaving. Miranda is a woman I met on Instagram… I luckily caught a heartfelt message she sent one day. She and her three sisters had just lost their mother, and we bonded over the passing of a parent. Looking for nanny work and living in Chicago during the pandemic, the solution was obvious - she would come to live with us. So she did - as a very casual “au pair.” I had little to offer financially, but a small cozy room, fridge full of all the same foods she appreciated, and an unwinding home packed with young children was plenty for her. Since I was divorcing my husband, she became my extra set of hands, eyes, and family for the summer and early fall of 2021.
I hopped in the car and drove myself to the hospital, pulling up at six centimeters… again. Rowan’s entrance peaceful, friendly, happy, and welcomed alongside my dear friend Molly (also a mother of three). She rubbed my lower back when pain was at its highest, and made me laugh during moments of insecurity. Her kind nature, playful spirit, and supportive ability both physically and emotionally turned my disheartening situation into a treasured memory. To the mothers amidst turmoil, should you have the opportunity to birth a baby with a woman you adore, it is a moving experience.
So, another boy and eight years later, I am still eating a lot of dates. In the mornings, plain with my coffee, after a savory meal with a spread of natural peanut butter, chocolate, and flaky salt, and now, fried in a pan.
Sautéed dates with Manchego
In a pan over medium heat, drizzle with olive oil (devoted to Partanna right now). Pit whole dates, and place inside facing down (they should sizzle when they hit the pan). Sauté for a few minutes, until tender and browned. Remove, flip, and plate. Grate Manchego cheese over dates and watch it melt perfectly into the most scrumptious bite.
My video for this plate is here!
Sautéed dates with ice cream, olive oil, and salt
Using the same method to fry dates, place into a bowl and pile on a scoop of your favorite vanilla ice cream. Drizzle with olive oil, and top with flaky salt. The temperatures, flavors, and textures are simply flawless.
For those in need of more date ideas, I’ll link my favorite landing page for them by my friend Samah (we also love her baked treats!).
Miranda went back to Chicago to support two of her sisters in winter of 2021, our time together coming to a sweet close. That following March, I called her after booking an Airbnb in Florida for Spring break… my proposal being, “will you join us and help me drive?” The boys and I have since visited her in Chicago, and she is planning to come to St. Louis with her boyfriend, Frankie (who we also adore), later this summer. Chosen family is lucky and important.