Banana Buckwheat Chocolate Chip Muffins

We like bananas around this house of mine, but we each have our own personal preference on the degree of ripeness that one should eat a banana.  I like a banana that still has a little green at the top.  Todd likes them like me, but doesn't mind eating a banana that is nearing the speckle stage.  Noah on the other hand, thinks that a banana that has a little green on it is gross and prefers a speckled banana because it's sweeter (I think it's just more mushy).  Preston only likes a banana in the actual banana form.  Sadly, he doesn't enjoy them in baked goods and Stella likes a banana one day and the next she doesn't.   One thing I know for sure about all of us (with the exception of Preston), once the banana is dotted with brown spots; we all can enjoy them in the form of a smoothie or a baked good of some sort.  On Saturday morning, I was browsing Instagram when I came across a picture of a muffin tin filled with banana buckwheat muffins that looked lovely and very tasty.  I glanced at my counter and there sat three brown speckled bananas calling out to be made into muffins.  I don't know if the deliciousness of these muffins was due to the fact that they gave me an excuse to eat chocolate for breakfast (they are filled with chocolate chips) or simply because they really are that dang good, but for whatever reason, I thought these muffins were amazing. 

Banana Buckwheat Chocolate Chip Muffins

3 ripe bananas
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of cloves
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup buckwheat flour
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips
Dark brown sugar
Toasted walnuts, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line muffin tin with liners (I made 18 muffins); set aside.  Mash the bananas in a large bowl, add butter and stir to combine.  Mix in brown sugar, egg, milk and spices.  Next, add the baking soda, salt and flour and beat until just incorporated.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Distribute batter evenly into muffin liners (I use a spring loaded ice cream scoop).  Sprinkle the top of each muffin with a teaspoon or two of dark brown sugar, toasted walnuts and a sprinkle of coarse sea salt.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.  Eat warm with butter.  Heaven!

Recipe slightly adapted from Reclaiming Provincial