Lactation cookies that actually taste good!

     Most nursing moms, especially working, nursing moms, will encounter supply issues at some point or another. I have no problem feeding my baby when I am able to nurse all day, but when I'm at work and pumping, it's an entirely different story especially since as a teacher, I don't get frequent breaks to pump, like some other working moms may. One of the best ways to increase milk supply is the consumption of certain foods and herbs that are natural galactagogues (stimulants of milk production) along with frequent nursing and/or pumping. Oatmeal, brewer's yeast, and flax seed are the 3 galactagogues that are used in this recipe.

     These 2 ingredients, Brewer's Yeast and Milled Flax Seed, were ingredients that I was unfamiliar with until recently. I was able to find the Flax Seed Meal at my local Walmart in the baking section, but because there aren't an abundance of health food stores nearby, I had to order the Brewer's Yeast on amazon.com.
      To boost my supply, I've tried taking fenugreek (9 capsules per day), drinking Mother's Milk tea (3-5 cups per day), and I recently made a recipe of lactation cookies that I had found online(3-4 cookies per day). The cookies worked the best for me, but I thought they were kind of gross. The texture was weird, and the flavor was just bland. If I'm supposed to be eating 3-4 cookies per day to stimulate milk supply, I want to eat something I like. So I was determined to make some lactation cookies that tasted good! My mind immediately went to a no bake chocolate cookie recipe my mother used to make, and I had to tweak it to add in the milled flax seed and brewer's yeast (I used the same amounts that were used in the other lactation cookie recipe I had tried to be sure I would get the same results), and also some extra sugar to balance the bitterness of those 2 ingredients. They turned out divine, so it no longer feels like work to eat the recommended 3-4 cookies per day! :)

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups              Granulated Sugar

1/4 cup                   Milk

1/2 cup or 1 stick  Butter

1/4 cup                  Baking Cocoa

3/4 cup                  Milled Flax Seed (Flax Seed Meal, Ground Flax Seed)

4 tbsp                     Brewer's Yeast

4 tbsp                     Peanut Butter

2 tsp                      Vanilla Extract

3 cups                   Old Fashioned Oats

Directions:

-Stir together sugar, milk, butter, and cocoa in a saucepan over medium heat.

-Add milled flax seed and brewer's yeast.

-Bring to a boil and boil for 1 minute.

-Add peanut butter and boil 2 additional minutes.

-Remove from heat and add vanilla and oats.

-Immediately drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.

-Cool on countertop (not in fridge or freezer) until solid and then enjoy!

*Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

**Eat 3-4 lactation cookies daily to boost milk supply. Eat 1-2 cookies daily to maintain supply.

Disclaimer: No amount of galactagogues are going to stimulate your milk supply without frequent nursing and/or pumping on your part. Typical nursing mothers need to completely empty their breasts every 3-4 hours to maintain adequate supply. (source: kellymoms.com)