Hi! Welcome to “good mood food” from Kale Me Maybe’s Carina Wolff. If you’ve made it here and aren’t yet a subscriber, come join! You can expect recipes, musings, and faves in your inbox every Wednesday! Paid subscribers get even more on Fridays — right now I’m doing a 30-minute budget meal series! Learn more about the paid tier of my newsletter here. You can also try a week for free!

Sorry I’m a day late on this week’s newsletter! We were out of town, and then I had a prenatal appointment yesterday, and I was just drowning in tasks, and time escaped me!

In case you missed last week’s announcement, I’m pregnant! Now that things are out in the open, I have much more that I can openly talk about. Part of me wishes I’d been able to write about the experience in real time, but I needed to get to a place where I was more comfortable before releasing everything out into the world.

The duality of this experience has been interesting. On the one hand, I feel calmer than ever. A weight has been lifted off of me, and the relief I feel to finally be pregnant leaves me in awe. Yet, at the same time, I also have a deeply embedded fear that the other shoe is going to drop at any moment.

When you go through infertility, you are used to everything going wrong. Add in a couple of losses, and that feeling is worsened. The trauma of infertility sticks, and it’s something I’m actively working through. I also think that some level of anxiety is normal for any pregnant person who has fallen in love with the person growing inside of them, so I try to give myself a little grace!

With each scan, each milestone, and each week, I am becoming more relaxed, but it sometimes doesn’t seem real. Without much of a baby bump or any movement yet, it can be hard to remember that I’m really, truly pregnant. It’s a little crazy to say considering my first trimester was filled with nausea and food aversions, and my second trimester started with some throwing up. That’s mostly all behind me now, but it almost feels like I’m still processing my reality. I’ve just now started to allow myself to look at baby clothes, think about a nursery, etc. I want to make the most of this experience because the journey to get here already robbed me of enough joy.

I just love a good earring to help accentuate an outfit, and as part of my recent Sezane purchase, I got these Mother of Pearl Hoop Earrings. I love the organic edges, and of course, the pearls. They’re so chic and perfect for dressing up sweaters, cardigans, etc.

I love my Lululemon Align Yoga Pants, but I’m not willing to spend the money to buy them in multiple colors. However, Crz Yoga Butterluxe Leggings on Amazon are an awesome dupe, and I just bought my second pair! Great for the preggos too! Super stretchy and buttery soft like the Aligns.

My food processor broke recently, so I went deep into the trenches of the internet to find the most recommended food processor, and the answer seemed to be unanimous: The Cuisinart 14-Cup is the way to go. Supposedly this model should last a lifetime, which is great because I sure don’t want to have to buy a new one again!

I’ve been really into cooking with dates this year, especially mixed into savory dishes. This vegetable side dish is one for my sweet and savory lovers — the garlic yogurt balances out the sweet potatoes, dates, and pomegranate seeds, and the harissa butter ties it all together with a little bit of spice.

I tend to struggle with exciting fall and winter dishes, but this one feels both cozy and bright at the same time. I will forever love the flavor of a roasted Japanese sweet potato, so of course, I had to plate it over yogurt, my favorite way to eat my veggies.

• 1 medium Japanese sweet potato, diced

• 2 1/2 tbsp olive oil, divided

• Pinch of salt & pepper

• 1 1/2 cups full-fat Greek yogurt

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• Pinch of salt

• 5 Medjool dates

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter

• 1 tbsp harissa sauce

• 1 tbsp roughly chopped parsley

• 1 tbsp roughly chopped dill

• 1-2 tbsp pomegranate seeds

1. Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and add the diced sweet potatoes. Toss the potatoes in 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper, and then bake for 25-35 minutes, flipping halfway, until potatoes are soft on the inside and crispy on the outside.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together Greek yogurt, minced garlic, and a pinch of salt. Set aside.

3. To prepare the dates, heat up 1 tbsp olive oil in a medium skillet on medium heat. Spread the dates open, remove the pits, and add to the skillet, making sure the dates are coated in the olive oil. Cook for 1 minute on each side until dates get slightly crispy and browned, and then remove from pan. Once cooled, roughly chop the dates.

4. Spread the yogurt on the bottom of a plate, and top with roasted sweet potatoes and dates.

5. To prepare the harissa butter, heat up 2 tbsp butter in a small pot on medium heat. Once butter is beginning to melt, add the harissa, and mix together until butter is fully melted and harissa is incorporated.

6. Spoon the harissa butter over the potatoes and dates, and top with parsley, dill, and pomegranate seeds. Finish off with a drizzle of olive oil and some black pepper, and serve warm or room temp.

We’re adding more breakfasts to my 30-minute budget meal series! Last week, paid subscribers received a recipe for a High-Protein Breakfast Scramble! Going to work on some non-egg recipes for this series as well!

Just a reminder that anytime you become a paid subscriber, you get access to ALL of the past recipes in the archive. You can always do a free 7-day trial as well!