Pumpkin Turmeric Oat Bake

I made these for a friend that is currently breastfeeding. Mostly because I thought it was funny to make the pun about pumpkin and pumping. I have the maturity and comedic capacity of an 11 year old boy. You can read more why oats are great galactagogues (foods that increase milk supply), as well as why should get turnt with turmeric below!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups oats
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tbsp turmeric
• 1.5 cups almond milk
• 1/2 cup pure pumpkin
• 2 tbsp pure maple syrup
• 1 large egg
• 3 tbsp melted ghee
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Get this going:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Combine oats, sugar, salt, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl.
3. Combine and whisk almond milk, pumpkin, maple syrup, egg, ghee, and vanilla extract in another bowl.
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients.
5. Bake for 40 minutes.
6. Let cool before cutting.

Recipe adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod.

Turmeric (curcumin) is an and immunomodulatory agent that can modulate the activation of “T cells, B cells, macrophages, neutrophils, natural killer cells, and dendritic cells.” This is just a fancy way of saying it kicks ass for your immune system. It’s a plant-based chelating agent, meaning it binds to and removes the build-up of heavy metals in the body. It’s even reported to be more effective than NSAIDs in terms of relieving pain and inflammation. Furthermore, curcumin has had reported beneficial effects in arthritis, allergy, asthma, atherosclerosis, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and cancer. Like I said. Lover. and. Friend.

While these oats are extremely nourishing and satiating, I made them for a friend who’s breastfeeding. While I can’t find any studies that report a direct link between oat consumption and boob milk increases, according to some blogs the saponins in oats are antibiotic and anti-inflammatory, supporting the immune system. They also impact the milk-making hormones produced by the pituitary gland. Furthermore, oats contains iron, and low iron levels have been linked to a decrease in milk supply.

Jagetia, G.C. & Aggarwal, B.B. (2007). “Spicing up” of the immune system by curcumin. Journal of Clinical Immunology, 27(1), 19-35. doi: 10.1007/s10875-006-9066-7