Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip, & Coconut "Lactation" Cookies

Original Recipe HERE

 

This recipe got good reviews from its original baker, and it had plenty of oats involved.  So I figured why not see if it could be converted into a lactation cookie by added the old standbys of flaxseed meal and brewer's yeast.  I'm happy to report that it, indeed, can.  Actually, I can't report on the lactation function yet (you'd think eating six cookies in one sitting would produce immediate results...), but they taste great and are the chewy consistency that I like.  Sometimes the brewer's yeast flavor can be detected in cookies, but not here.

 

I cut the original brown sugar amount by 1/4 cup because I didn't have enough.  With the chocolate chips and coconut, there's already plenty of sweetness being added, so I would try decreasing the white sugar to 3/4 cup, also - maybe even one sugar to 1/2 cup.

 

I got about 36 cookies using approximately 2 tablespoons of dough for each.  Next time I will use my smaller 1-tablespoon scoop and get more.  Also, because of a crying baby who didn't want to sleep, half of the dough sat on the counter longer than expected.  The last batch of cookies spread a lot.  I got the best results with the fresher (colder) dough on the silpat, so refrigerating it before scooping is suggested.

 

Ingredients

3 Tablespoons flaxseed meal

3 Tablespoons water

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons brewer's yeast

3 cups old-fashioned oats

1 cup chocolate chips [I used mini-morsels]

1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

 

Directions

(1) In a small bowl, combine flaxseed meal and water.  Set aside to soak.

(2) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silpat.

(3) In a small bowl, sift together flours, baking powder, salt, and brewer's yeast.

(4) In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy.

(5) Add eggs and vanilla to butter mixture; mix thoroughly.

(6) Add flaxseed meal to butter mixture; mix thoroughly.

(7) Add flour mixture to wet ingredients; mix until just combined.

(8) Add oats, chocolate chips, and coconut; mix until evenly distributed.

(9) Using 1-2 tablespoons each, roll dough into balls.  Space balls at least 2" apart on baking sheets.

(10) Bake 10-12 minutes, or until edges are golden brown but middles are still pale.

(11) Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes.  Remove to cooling racks.

 

Kid Participation:

* Mix flaxseed and water

* Measure dry ingredients

* Sift dry ingredients

* Measure wet ingredients

* Operate mixer

* Make dough balls (but not if you care about uniformity in size and whether your kid gets dough all over themselves from the elbows down)

Chocolate Lactation Cookies

Original Recipe HERE

I'm using baby #4 (henceforth referred to as *A*) as an excuse to gorge myself on cookies.  I love lactation cookies because they (1) help my supply a bit, (2) make large batches, (3) are filling, (4) are easy to grab as a snack - or breakfast if I'm desperate, and (5)  they are healthy enough that I don't feel bad engaging in said gorging.

I don't like to throw a bunch of chocolate chips in, like most recipes suggest, because I do gorge myself on them (have I mentioned that already?).  I read somewhere that you're supposed to have two small cookies for each feeding.  But I don't feel like a cookie is truly a cookie unless it has either frosting or chocolate elements.  The cocoa powder in these satisfies that need and, as far as my tiny bit of research says, is better for you than Nestle morsels.  Don't tell me if I'm wrong about that.

The first batch was good, but practice makes perfect and the second batch was better.  I made a few changes that time, but I'm posting the original amounts below.  The updates were: substituting 1/2 cup coconut oil for half of the butter, reducing both sugars to 1/3 cup, and replacing 1 cup of white flour with 1 cup of wheat.  I also tossed in about 1/3 cup mini-morsels that time...

The cookies come out of the oven very soft, cool and firm up quickly, and then are at their best after they've sat overnight.  They re-moisten themselves somewhat, as many cookies with large amounts of oats tend to do.  Using my mini-dough scoop (approximately one tablespoon size), I got four baking sheets worth of cookies, which was over 50 cookies.
 

Ingredients

1/2 cup flaxseed meal

1/2 cup water

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar 
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 Tablespoons molasses
1/3 cup cocoa
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 cups oats
1 cup chocolate chips, raisins, etc. [I did not use]
4 Tablespoons brewers yeast

 

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2) Mix water and flaxseed meal until thoroughly wet.  Set aside.
3) In a large bowl, butter and sugars until fluffy.
4) Add eggs, vanilla, and molasses to butter.  Mix well.
5) Add flaxseed meal.  Mix well.
6) In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, and yeast.
7) Add dry ingredients to wet.  Mix well.
8) Add oats.  Mix well.
9) Fold in chocolate chips.
10) Drop spoonfuls of dough (1 to 2 tablespoons each) onto baking sheets.  If desired, flatten slightly.  Cookies will spread a bit.
11) Bake about 12 minutes.  Remove cookies from baking sheets immediately; cool on racks.

Kid Participation:
* Add wet ingredients
* Add dry ingredients
* Scoop dough
* Ask if eating the cookies will help them make milk

Wilted Garlic Spinach

Original Recipe found in some magazine like Taste of Home from 2002.

 

I love cooked spinach, but there are no other Popeyes in my family.  Still, even if they only ate a little of this, they'd get some health benefits from the green Super Food.  Everyone ate this except *J*, who whined and procrastinated and wouldn't even take a miniscule bite.  Eventually, he decided he'd give it a shot - and decided it was good.  Maybe not great, but after that first taste, he ate the rest with no negative commentary or delay.

 

I think the kids decided it was OK because any spinach flavor is masked by extreme garlickness and the saltiness from the soy sauce.  Cut back on the garlic if you want something a little less powerful.

 

Ingredients

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1 teaspoon sugar

2 Tablespoons broth

1 Tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

6 garlic cloves, minced or pressed

1 Tablespoon olive oil

3/4 pound fresh spinach [I used a 9 oz. bag]

 

Directions

(1) In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch, sugar, broth, soy sauce, and sesame oil until smooth.

(2) In a medium or large skillet, heat oil over medium heat.

(3) Saute garlic for 1 minute.  Do not let it brown.

(4) Add broth mixture to skillet.  Cook, stirring often, until slightly thickened.

(5) Add spinach.  Cook and stir until spinach is just wilted and coated with sauce (approximately 2-3 minutes).

 

Kid Participation: None.

Korean Beef

Original Recipe found in my mom's recipe collection

 

This is a meal from my childhood that is pretty common.  It tastes just as I remember it, and my kids gobbled it up just as my brother and I did.  This time I served it over barley and with broccoli, though my mom usually used asparagus.

 

The sugar amount can be reduced, depending on personal preference on how sweet versus salty you like your Asian-inspired food.

 

It can be made two ways: as listed below, or just dumping the beef and liquid into the pan and allowing it to all cook together.  It can be hard for me to keep track of the color of the beef when it's cooking in the liquid, so I prefer to separate the two.  Except on nights when I feel lazy and remind myself that meat can be medium-well and perfectly safe to eat.

 

Ingredients

1 lb piece of beef

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup soy sauce [I used low sodium]

3 Tablespoons sesame seeds

4 green onions, chopped

2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

3 Tablespoons sesame oil

 

Directions

(1) Slice beef very thin (less than 1/4").  Put into a large mixing bowl.

(2) Sprinkle sugar over beef.  Toss to coat.  Allow to sit 20-30 minutes.

(3) Add all other ingredients.  Toss to coat.  Allow to sit an additional 20-30 minutes.

(4) Heat a large wok or pan on medium heat.  Use slotted spoon to remove beef from liquid; add to pan.

(5) Cook beef in several batches (if necessary to avoid crowding), tossing and moving it so no sides burn.  Adjust heat as needed.

(6) Remove beef from pan.  If desired, pour liquid into pan and allow to briefly bubble and slightly reduce.

(7) Serve beef and liquid over rice.

 

Kid Participation: None, except giving me deja vu.