4.64 306 Published Oct 24, 2023, Updated Jun 28, 2024 They are perfectly chewy and soft, studded with chocolatey goodness and have three key ingredients to help with milk production – oats, brewer’s yeast and flaxseed! Before I was even pregnant, I remember looking up lactation cookies to make for friends and I had a really hard time finding any recipes that were actually healthy and not loaded with sugar and white flour. So I decided to created my own recipe, which is what I’m sharing with you today! Knowing that some mamas need to be dairy-free + soy-free and/or gluten-free, I created a lactation cookie that’s vegan, gluten-free and still delicious! When recipe testing for these cookies, I made several batches to make sure they were perfect. Lucky for me, this meant that I had plenty on hand to freeze as part of my pre-baby meal prep. I also had Isaac taste-test them just to be sure the flavor was good and he LOVED them too! Spoiler alert: it is fine for men to eat these cookies… they won’t start lactating. But feel free to tell your hubby that they will make him lactate if you want to keep all the cookies for yourself. 😉 It can be our little secret.
Why You’ll Love These Cookies
May help boost milk supply: These cookies are packed with ingredients known help boost milk production like oats, brewer’s yeast and flaxseed. Absolutely delicious: These cookies have a soft and chewy texture and the perfect amount of sweetness to mask the bitterness of the brewer’s yeast. Made with healthier ingredients: Before I created this recipe I had a really hard time finding any lactation cookies that were actually healthy and not loaded with sugar and white flour. So, I created this recipe that’s made with better-for-you simple ingredients like oats, oat flour, coconut sugar, coconut oil and flaxseed. Allergen-friendly: These cookies are vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free + soy-free so they’re perfect for mamas with allergies or who need to be dairy-free + soy-free due to breastfeeding. Perfect for meal-prep: These cookies are great for pre-baby meal prep! Make a few batches before baby comes to store in the freezer.
Ingredients Needed
quick cooking oats – oats have been shown to help with milk production so naturally oats are the base of our cookies! Quick cooking oats result in softer, chewier cookies, but rolled oats will work as a substitute if that’s all you have on hand. You can also quickly process rolled oats in your food processor for 30 seconds or until they are the texture of quick oats. I like Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Quick Cooking Rolled Oats. oat flour – you can use store-bought oat flour or make oat flour at home. brewer’s yeast – almost every lactation cookie has brewer’s yeast because it’s one of the best foods to help with breast milk supply. It’s a fungus and gets its name because it is used in the production of beer and bread. It’s packed with vitamins and minerals – most notably, vitamin B, iron, zinc, magnesium and potassium. It’s also a good source of protein. One 1/4 cup serving offers 8 grams of protein. While it has a lot of really great benefits, it’s important to note that you should talk to your doctor before adding brewer’s yeast to your diet as it can interact with a variety of medications. cinnamon and sea salt – two flavor enhancers for these cookies. coconut oil – helps to keep these cookies moist. We’re using melted coconut oil in place of butter, but feel free to swap this for melted vegan butter or regular butter if you don’t need these cookies to be vegan. coconut sugar – I personally love coconut sugar but organic brown sugar works too ground flaxseed meal – we’re making a flaxseed egg by combining ground flaxseed with water in place of a regular egg, but you can use a regular egg if desired. vanilla extract – the perfect flavor enhancer for these cookies. Make sure you’re using pure vanilla extract for the best flavor. chocolate chips – I love the addition of chocolate chips in these cookies! I recommend Enjoy Life dark chocolate chips which are allergen-friendly or Lily’s chocolate chips because they are low in sugar and calories.
How to Make
Step 1: Start by whisking together your ground flaxseed and water in a small bowl to make your flax eggs. Set aside to let the flax eggs gel up for about 5 minutes. Step 2: In a medium bowl add your quick oats, oat flour, brewer’s yeast, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir together to combine. Step 3: In a separate large bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients: oil, sugar, flaxseed eggs and vanilla extract until smooth. Step 4: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Gently stir in the chocolate chips. Step 5: Take about a tablespoon of dough and round into a cookie, placing about two inches apart on a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Press each cookie down with a fork a bit to make more of a cookie shape. Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Note! The cookies may seem a little soft when you take them out from the oven, but don’t over bake or they’ll get too crisp. They will continue to set as they cool.
Ingredient Swaps
Quick oats – If you don’t have quick oats on hand, you can quickly process rolled oats in your food processor for 30 seconds or until they are the texture of quick oats. You can also just use regular rolled oats as a substitute. The texture might just be a tad chewier. Oat flour – If you don’t have oat flour on hand you can easily make homemade oat flour with rolled oats. I haven’t tried making these cookies with a different flour, but some people have used all-purpose flour and said it worked well! Flaxseed – If you don’t have ground flaxseed you can make chia eggs or use 2 large eggs instead if you don’t need these cookies to be vegan. Coconut sugar – Regular cane sugar or brown sugar should work well as a substitute. Coconut oil – Feel free to swap the coconut oil for another neutral oil like avocado oil or olive oil or you can use melted vegan butter. Regular butter will also work if you don’t need these cookies to be vegan. Chocolate chips – Feel free to skip the chocolate chips or swap them with a different mix-in of choice. Some ideas: dried cranberries, raisins or chopped nuts like almonds, pecans or walnuts.
Foods That Help Increase Milk Supply
As soon as I found out I was pregnant, I started thinking about breastfeeding and knew I wanted to at least try it. I know women have vastly different experiences with this, so I wanted to go into it with an open mind, but also as prepared as possible. I researched which foods are full of galactagogues, which are substances that help increase milk production. Here’s a little list of the natural foods I found:
Oats – One of the reasons for decreased milk supply is low iron levels. Oats are super high in iron so some studies have shown that oats help with milk production. Barley – Whole barely is the richest dietary source of beta-glucan, a polysaccharide that has been shown to increase prolactin (aka the breastfeeding hormone). Brewer’s yeast – It is packed with vitamin B, iron, zinc, magnesium and potassium. It has a lot of benefits, but you should check with your doctor before adding brewer’s yeast to your diet. It can interact with a variety of medications and can cause some unwanted side effects. Flaxseed – Flaxseed is high in omega-3 fatty acids (which are great for baby) and it also contains phytoestrogens that can influence breast milk production. Fennel – Like flaxseed, fennel and its seeds contain phytoestrogens, which are known to help with milk production. If you’re looking for ways to include whole fennel in your diet, I love these recipes: crackling cauliflower, fennel salad and orange tofu with fennel. Fenugreek seeds – Both fenugreek seeds and fennel can be found in Mother’s Milk tea.
How to Store Lactation Cookies
Store these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days, in the fridge for up to 10 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Can I Make Lactation Cookies in Advance?
Yes! Like I said, I ended up making several batches while recipe testing these cookies and stored them in freezer-safe bags until I needed them. They held up just fine in the freezer and I had peace of mind knowing I had some prepped for when I needed them. They honestly saved me when Olivia was in the hospital for a few weeks after her heart surgery. I was pumping every 2-3 hours and these cookies were one of my favorite snacks! And I swear they helped with my supply.
What Mamas Are Saying
“So I never leave reviews, it’s very very rare that I do. But I had to come and leave a review for these cookies! They were soooo delcious I had to stop myself from eating the whole batch! I ate about 3 a day and definitely notified that I pumped about an 1-2 more ozs per pump session… the cookies are so yummy and chewy, the brewer’s yeast isn’t even detectable.” –Jada “What a delicious and effective cookie! I just had my little one about a month ago and was frustrated that one breast had minimal output and I couldn’t quite keep up with her appetite. This literally tripled my output in one breast within 12 hours of consumption! I’m amazed! Will be making this regularly!” – Britt “I just had a baby almost 3 weeks ago and I’ve struggled trying to keep my milk supply up. I made a batch of these cookies and they are SOOOOO tasty, and so much better than store bought lactation cookies. And I’ve been able to pump twice the amount of breast milk! I will definitely be making more soon!” – Sarah
More Recipes to Help with Milk Supply
Lactation Smoothie Lactation Bites Easy Strawberry Banana Baked Oatmeal Savory Oatmeal Lactation Baked Oatmeal Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies Cinnamon Oatmeal Cookie Smoothie Protein Overnight Oats Lactation Brownies Lactation Baked Oatmeal
Be sure to check out my full list of the best breastfeeding snacks and all of my healthy snack recipes!
