Lactation Cookies

After giving birth to my daughter, someone made these cookies for me.  I laughed at the thought of them actually helping my milk supply, but they really did…and I had absolutely NO problem eating at least 4 of them a day.  I was pretty disappointed when I ran out, and fussed at my husband if I caught him eating one.  I made a batch for my best friend after she had her baby.  I spooned about a tablespoon full of batter, and this made a little over 5 dozen cookies.  Personally, I did have some issues with getting my daughter to latch on for feeding…and after 3 days of her barely getting anything and her weight dropping, I gave in and bought a breast pump.  Best money we spent.  These cookies truly helped me turn into a milk maid, and the breastpump bra made pumping even easier.  I couldn’t have made it nearly as long as I did without that bra, because having to hold those suckers on yourself while pumping was a bit of a pain in the rump.  If I can make a recommendation to a mom who’s pumping it would be this:  Pump as much as you can, because you never know if/when you’ll have to stop!  I had some medical issues that forced me to stop sooner than I wanted, but I was able to store some of the milk in a deep freezer in storage bags.

The three most important ingredients that make these cookies so successful with improving lactation are the oats, flaxseed meal and brewer’s yeast.  The oats are full of fiber and iron, and are a great source of added calories.  And let’s face it, nursing mothers NEED calories in order to produce milk!  The flaxseed is also packed with fiber and helps improve lactation…which brings us to Brewer’s yeast.  Most moms wouldn’t feel comfortable downing a heavy beer at least once a day while breastfeeding/pumping (although they might want to), and Brewer’s yeast is what is in the beer that helps improve lactation.  So, why not put them in a cookie with no alcohol, also packed with a lot of fiber and calories, AND it tastes good??  Can’t go wrong with this.  🙂

*Thick cut oats, flaxseed meal and Brewer’s yeast are available at health food stores.

Recipe:

1 cup butter (2 sticks, softened)

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

6 tablespoons water

3 tablespoons flaxseed meal

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 tablespoons Brewer’s yeast

2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups thick cut oats

1 bag chocolate chips