This Monster Oatmeal Lactation Cookie Bar recipe is delicious, easy to make, and your whole family will love them! They have three milk-boosting ingredients – oatmeal, brewer’s yeast, and flaxseed – that can help you make more milk.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means if you click a link and purchase something, I may make a small commission at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products I love! More information here.
These bars were inspired from this recipe from Half-Baked Harvest. I just made a few changes to add as many galactagogues as I could (brewer’s yeast and flaxseed) without affecting the taste.
I love cookie bar recipes because it’s so much easier to just press all the cookie dough into a pan rather than roll out tons of little balls and manage multiple baking sheets. Especially when you’re baking during your baby’s nap and have limited time to get these made.
It also uses just one bowl.
To make this, you just put all of the ingredients (other than the chocolate chips and M&Ms) in a mixing bowl and beat in a stand mixer until well-combined.
Then you stir in the candy, and press the dough into the pan.
The dough is so sticky that stirring the chocolate chips and candy in can be a challenge. If the bowl is too small, the candy will go flying everywhere, so use a larger bowl if possible.
Here are some common questions.
Can I use all chocolate chips or all M&Ms or Reese’s Pieces?
You can use two cups of any mix of chocolate chips/M&Ms/Reese’s Pieces that you’d like.
Can you substitute rolled oats, old fashioned oats, or steel cut oats?
I liked these best with quick cooking oats, but both rolled oats and old fashioned oats will also work.
Steel cut oats have a different texture and nutritional profile. If you try it, let me know how it goes!
What if I don’t have brewer’s yeast?
The easiest way to get brewer’s yeast is on amazon.
However, if you want to make it without brewer’s yeast, you’ll still get a benefit from the other two galactagogues in the recipe. You can substitute three tablespoons of flour for the three tablespoons of brewer’s yeast.
Enjoy!
Monster Oatmeal Lactation Cookie Bars
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cup oats quick cooking
- 1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 3 tbsp brewer's yeast
- 2 tbsp flax seed ground
- 1 cup brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup canola oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup chocolate chips
- 1 cup M&Ms or Reese's Pieces
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13 pan with butter, cooking spray, or line with parchment paper.
- In a stand mixer, beat all ingredients except the chocolate chips and M&Ms until everything is combined. Then stir in the chip and candy.
- Pour the dough into the prepared dish and press it down so it is evenly distributed.
- Bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes until the edges are set and the dough appears golden.
Comments & Chitchat
Taya says
I made these for my self a few weeks after my pregnancy. I thought they were great but my husband loves them more! He ate a lot of them too!
J.c says
Is Iit really 1.5 cups of sugar?! Has anyone tried it with 1/2 or even 3/4 cups and it not affect the taste?
Faith says
Hey!! I absolutely love this recipe and have referred to it for so many friends – it’s my turn to make them for myself again – curious if anyone has tried freezing them at this point and how they turned out ?? I’m due in November and I’m planning a major baking/cooking weekend to prep for the first few weeks postpartum
Amanda Glenn, CLC says
Thank you so much Faith! I have not tried freezing them but I think you could. You could let them cool, cut them, and then separate with wax paper, like described here:
https://www.quakeroats.com/cooking-and-recipes/baking-101/bar-cookies/storage-and-freezing-bar-cookies
CONGRATS on your pregnancy!!!
ROXANA says
What if you don’t have a stand mixer?
Tiffany says
Tried the recipe as is and omg so good! My next batch I’m gonna try the coconut oil in place but I had a question about the sugar.
Can I replace that with anything to make it not so much sugar?
Amanda Glenn, CLC says
Hi Tiffany! I haven’t tested it with anything else but if you try something let me know!
Cynthia says
I just made it with 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup white sugar. I also used 1/2 cup of oil and 4 oz of unsweetened applesauce. This was my first time to make it, so I don’t have anything to compare it to. I think it taste good.
Heather says
YUMMY!! I also used 1 cup melted coconut oil and didn’t have M & M’s but used chocolate and butterscotch chips
Using coconut oil I feel you need the bars completely cooled before cutting into them – once I was able to cut them without them falling apart, I stored in a zip lock bag on my counter. It is cool in my house so they have set even better trying them the next day.
I will be trying these again but mixing in Chocolate Chips and Reeses Pieces
Rebecca says
Can I substitute coconut oil for the canola oil?
Rebecca says
Just an update for anyone else who may have this question–I subbed coconut oil for canola oil and they came out great! I’ve made them this way a few times now and my nursing daughter loves them!
Rachel says
These are so yummy! I’ve made them a few times and they’ve always turned out great. My husband and 3 year old love them too. I definitely saw an increase in my supply. So much so that I had to cut back on eating them because I was making so much more milk. Thanks for the great recipe!!
Brianna says
I followed the recipe exactly but my bars didn’t turn out. I feel like 1 cup of oil was too much and thats why my bars came out mushy. I even baked them longer and nothing changed.
Amanda Glenn, CLC says
So sorry to hear that Brianna!
Jolene says
Hello, how many should I have per day for it to work? but the recipe turned out great! I used peanut m&ms which peanuts is another one that helps boosts milk, i just had to cut it up into smaller pieces as they were big haha (the m&m). Thank you for the amazing recipe!
Amanda Glenn, CLC says
Thank you so much Jolene! I would try 1-2 per day. Good luck!
Elizabeth says
Can you substitute applesauce for some of the oil?
Amanda Glenn, CLC says
Hi Elizabeth, I haven’t tested it that way, I’m sorry! If you try it, let me know how it goes!
Jennika Warner says
Would you be able to make this, and then freeze them ahead of time? How long would they last in the freezer?
Amanda Glenn says
I haven’t frozen them, but if you tried it I would freeze after baking and then thaw at room temperature. Good luck!