If you didn’t know yet, dates are amazing for pregnant women! You can learn all about the benefits of eating dates during pregnancy in our blog which you can find by clicking here. While there are countless benefits to eating dates during pregnancy, did you know that you could also use dates to make delicious lactation cookies for post-pregnancy?
What Are Lactation Cookies?
Lactation cookies are cookies that contain nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that help breastfeeding moms increase their milk supply. The most beneficial, nutrient dense ingredients in this recipe include dates, oats, flax meal, and brewers yeast and here’s why:
Dates
Dates are packed with vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that your body needs to perform its best! When you consume fresh, organic dates not only are you getting all of the benefits of these nutrient-dense superfruits but you are also passing along all of these benefits to your baby. Dates are also an incredible source of energy which is essential for new moms! The natural sugar, fiber, and carbohydrates in dates provide moms with long-lasting energy to make it through the day.
Oats
Oats are a great source of vitamins, minerals, and protein but they also have a significant amount of saponins. Saponins are an immune-stimulating compound that can help to increase a person’s prolactin levels. This is important because the key hormone for milk production is prolactin!
Flax Meal
Flax Meal is an amazing source of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids! These fatty acids are essential for developing a baby’s immune system and helping prevent allergies. It is also very healthy for the mother as well and even helps to prevent cardiovascular disease.
Brewer’s Yeast
Brewer’s yeast is an amazing ingredient to include because it is packed with vitamins and minerals. It is an amazing source for B vitamins and also includes the minerals selenium and chromium. B vitamins are crucial for facilitating many of your body’s everyday functions.
Now that you know all about how amazing the ingredients are for your body, especially if you are a breastfeeding mom, let’s get into how to make these cookies!
Ingredients:
- 8 Coachella’s Best Organic Medjool Dates (You can order these in bulk here!)
- 1 ripe banana
- 1 cup oat flour or rolled oats
- ¼ cup flax meal
- ¼ cup brewers yeast
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ cup dairy-free chocolate chips
Directions:
- Remove the pits of 8 Organic Medjool Dates and soak in hot water for 5 miutes
- Blend dates in a food processor with 1 ripe banana until smooth paste forms. You can add some of the hot water to help blend.
- Mix in your dry ingredients and fold the chocolate chips in last.
- Scoop 12 cookies onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 minutes.
- Pro Tip: You can also roll this mixture into no-bake balls and enjoy cold!
While these cookies are great for helping breastfeeding mothers, they are amazing for everyone to enjoy because they are packed with nutrients! On top of it they are delicious and will satisfy any sugar cravings. We hope you enjoy these delicious and nutritious cookies as much as we do! Make sure to share your recreation of this recipe and don’t forget to tag us on Instagram @coachellasbestdates.
