Nutella Banana Bread and Chocolate Chip Cookies

 I recently did a little baking with two very classic recipes. I've been making banana bread and chocolate chip cookies since I was a child. No, I don't have the recipes memorized, but the motions while I'm baking feel so familiar and take me back to my childhood. 

We had some bananas that went ripe. I froze them and then my sister- in- law gave me some more ripe bananas. Okay, the universe wanted me to make Banana Bread. So I decided to whip some up with a twist. I added Nutella. Because, why not Nutella? I added a generous amount on top of my banana bread batter after I poured it into my bread pan. Then using a butter knife, I swirled the Nutella around the top portion of the batter. I used about four tablespoons of Nutella. While it was baking, my home smelled like bananas and Nutella and that made me happy. The final result was a banana bread with a sweet and crackly top that balanced out the soft bread nicely. The bread is perfect for starting your day off right. Just don't forget a cup of coffee to go with it. 

For the banana bread recipe I've always used, see my post here. I've made it before with chocolate chips and that was my favorite way to have it. I think using both Nutella and chocolate chips would be a winner. This is the recipe my mom has always used and what I grew up eating. There are so many different banana bread recipes and most people already have their favorite. But it is fun to look at different recipes and see what else it out there. 

For my chocolate chip cookie recipe, I pretty much always use the one from Toll House. It's easy to find the recipe in my old school recipe box and its always been my go to. You can see an older post I did here from when Toll House celebrated 75 years and you'll find their recipe. Is there anything like a hot and fresh chocolate chip cookie out of the oven? 

What kinds of foods are you cooking and baking? It's fun to discover new things in the kitchen, but there's something comforting and homey about making the classics.