Pretty sure winter came back to bite us the past few days. Our poor trees blooming outside my window as I write this post are so confused... and turning brown. Ah!!

But as much as I am SO ready for spring, I do love cold, dreary days. It's been fitting my mood lately - which hasn't been as sunny. But baking brings me back to normal. And baking brings back memories... 

My family has this family cookbook - filled with my mom's and even grandma's recipes we grew up eating. It's filled with photos, recipes and tips. It's nothing fancy - a bound book that's hand-written. This weekend I sat on my couch, flipping through it and looking at all the photos - all of which were taken in the kitchen. My older sisters, then small, sitting on the counter frosting my dad's spice cake that my mom has made EVERY year for his birthday. My little brother as a baby eating my mom's famous pancakes that she still makes for my nieces today. My sister Sarah and I icing Christmas cookies - which is still my go-to recipe.

I say it time and time again, but I'll say it again because it is always on my mind. Food is so much more than just "food"... it connects us all. It forms memories and those moments in the kitchen stay with us forever. I can still picture the look and smell of my mom's coffee cake that she would make on the weekends.

The family recipes I share on this blog are not so much for my readers, but also for myself... as I sit here and ramble and reflect on my own memories. I think that a lot of what blogging is about is sharing a part of ourselves to our readers, and then each reader relating in some way. Maybe as you read this post you think about your own memories in the kitchen. Heck, even new ones you are forming today! 

So today I am sharing my mom's banana bread from our family cookbook. I turned the recipe into muffins and sprinkled on some dark chocolate chips. I did tweak the recipe just a tad - adding a bit of wheat flour and Greek yogurt. These are so soft and fluffy I think you'll love them as much as our family does!

Banana Bread Muffins

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

• 2 tsp. baking powder

• 1/4 tsp. baking soda

• 1/2 tsp. salt

• 2 eggs

• 1 2/3 cup mashed banana (3 medium ripe bananas)

• 1/3 cup Greek yogurt (I used non-fat Greek yogurt)

• 1/2 cup sugar

• mini dark chocolate chips, optional for topping

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl with a whisk and set aside.

3. In another bowl, whisk the mashed banana until smooth. I keep whisking and add in the eggs and whisk to combined. Then, I add in the yogurt and whisk until smooth. Then add in the sugar and whisk until smooth.

4. Add the flour mixture into the wet mixture and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula until no flour remains. Don't over-mix.

5. Now you can bake these in muffin tins or in a loaf pan.

6. To make muffins, spray 12 muffin tins with non-stick spray and using an ice-cream scoop, scoop the dough into each tin. I like to sprinkle mini chocolate chips on top. You can also mix a 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips right into the batter. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the tops are beginning to turn golden brown and it appears done. Let cool a few minutes then invert on a wire rack to cool completely.

7. If you bake in an 8 or 9-inch loaf pan, bake for about an hour. Let cool before inverting.