Banana chocolate chip cake

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I started cooking and collecting recipes in 1988, when I graduated from college and moved to New York. Banana bread is one of the first things I learned to bake. I know this because of the writing on the recipe card in my steel box. The box has a lot of yellowed clippings from The New York Times and some index cards with my handwriting.

I remember the blue Flair felt-tip marker I used to write down this banana bread recipe. The marker lived in a can on my desk in my Upper West Side apartment. I remember looking at this recipe card often in my tiny galley kitchen. What I don't remember is where the recipe came from, and it doesn't say on the card. But it's a great recipe, very flexible and forgiving. Over the years I've made changes that stuck - more banana, butter for margarine, yogurt for lemon juice. Now I use this master recipe as a base for muffins, cakes and sometimes even cookies.

Adding chocolate, by the way, was a change I made only after meeting my husband, a confirmed chocoholic. As far as he's concerned, nothing without chocolate qualifies as dessert. He's a wise, wise man.

Banana chocolate chip cake

• 4-5 medium bananas
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 4 cups flour (a combination of white and whole wheat is fine)
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup wheat germ
• 2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set it aside.

Put the bananas in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment and turn it on for about 30 seconds. The paddle will break up the bananas nicely. Stop the mixer and add the butter, yogurt, sugar and eggs; turn it on again and mix until everything is well combined, about 1 minute.

Onto a piece of parchment paper, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Fold up the sides and, with the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients a little at a time, until they are just incorporated. Stop the mixer and remove the bowl from the machine. With a spatula, mix in the wheat germ and chocolate chips. Spread the batter into the prepared baking pan.

Bake about 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (except for the melted chocolate). Let cool at least 30 minutes before serving. No need to unmold the cake - serve it right from the pan.