Oatmeal - the lactation superfood!

Cold mornings call for warm breakfasts. And when there's snow on the ground, the wind is blowing and you've got 22 animals needing breakfast you better buck up buttercup. 😜 

Honestly, I never was a huge oatmeal fan. But, I found out it was a lactation superfood! My milk starting going away at about 4 months after having Evie. I was so disappointed. I only made it three months with my other two girls and I was determined I was going to nurse Evie an entire year. So, I tried the oatmeal. And do you know what happened? My milk went NUTS. For those of you wanting to do the same, I also increased my water supply and for about 2-3 days I took the advice of my doctor and nursed every hour on the hour during the day. But, I will say I didn't do those things until I realized what the oatmeal did. Evie is 8 months and we're still going strong! 

So, how did I go from hating oatmeal, to actually loving it? Well, for one....consistency. I cannot have some watered down oatmeal. Here's how I make it.

1/4 cup quick oats

1/4 cup milk

1 tbsp peanut butter

1 1/2 tsp honey

Heat on stovetop until cooked to desired consistency about two minutes for me. Then I too it with chocolate chips. It's delicious. It's like a cookie. In fact, I need to go make a bowl right now just thinking about it! Enjoy! 

Have you been struggling with your milk supply? Have you given this a try? Let me know! 

Sunrise Skillet Breakfast

Eggs are abundant around here - and heading out to collect them in the mornings brings me such joy.  Especially on a beautiful winter morning like this.

This wasn't today, but it's one of my favorite snowy morning photos from earlier this winter.  On the cold mornings I try to collect eggs twice a day so they don't freeze and bust.  And, they get a handful of MealWorms for extra protein to help them keep laying in the winter.

This recipe is an easy, everyday skillet breakfast.  I used my small cast iron pan so I could finish it off in the oven and perfectly cook those eggs.  

I started with a small handful of hot sausage.  We raised two pigs here on Rockfish Farm last year and ended up with about 100lbs of sausage.  50lbs mild and 50lbs hot.  They're both great but the hot brings so much flavor to the eggs without being overly spicy.  I'll spare you the picture of the pigs in a recipe post.  They were really great to raise and we're about a month out from getting the next round of pigs.  I miss having pigs on the farm.  

Chop the sausage into small pieces in the pan on low heat and let cook almost completely.  Add in chopped green peppers - about a tablespoon.  If you're using a yellow or sweet onion, you can add that in now.  I used spring onion, and wanted them not so cooked, so I added them last.  

Then, turn off the heat, add in a handful of spinach (it cooks down, so get your greens in for the day and go for the 1/2cup), two scrambled eggs, green onions and top with cheese.  Place into a 350 degree oven for about ten minutes until eggs are cooked and cheese is bubbly.  Let cool, and enjoy! 

Sunrise Skillet Recipe:

1/4 cup of hot or mild sausage

1-2 tablespoons chopped green peppers

1/4 to 1/2 cup spinach

2 eggs 

1 tablespoon chopped onion

1 tablespoon shredded cheddar cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Cook sausage, chop into small pieces as cooking.  Add in the green peppers.  Cook sausage almost completely.  Turn off the heat and add in layers: spinach, stirred eggs, chopped onion and top with cheddar cheese and salt and pepper.  Place cast iron pan into 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes until eggs are set and cheese is bubbly.  Enjoy!