Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies

My mom stole this recipe from a magazine in a doctor’s office for me. I feel bad for the other patients in the waiting room now who will see the brownie article referenced in the index, turn the pages to look for it and silently curse when they discover that my mom has ripped the page out of it’s binding cause she knows her daughter, who is a chocoholic, will make these brownies and post them on her blog. Thanks Mom.

Apparently my mom has done this before because she managed to make sure she ripped out the header and footer of the page so I know what magazine she defaced. It was Saveur and this is what it says at the top of the brownie article.

"A version of this recipe accompanied an interview with the actress Katharine Hepburn in the August 1975 issue of Ladies Home Journal. This brownie recipe produces incredibly chewy bars with a full but mellow chocolate flavor".

I made this for a Labor Day party that I am having today, just as a little something extra (these aren't brownies to feed a crowd unless you make two batches). These weren't what I expected. I tasted a tiny corner as they crumbled coming out of the pan, and they were good, but I think 1 cup of walnuts is too much for this size pan. I'd cut it to 1/2 a cup if I made these again. They were a crumbly mess to get out of the pan, even with the parchment on the bottom. The top cracked pretty badly too. Not a good looking brownie at all, but they do taste good and I'm certain they will be gobbled up at the party, crackly top and all.

Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies
Printable recipe
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing.
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
¼ cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 325. Grease an 8x8 baking pan with butter then line with parchment paper, greasing the paper also.

Melt the butter and the chocolate in a 2 quart sauce pan on low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon over low heat. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and stir to make a smooth batter. Add walnuts, flour and salt; stir until incorporated. Pour the batter into the pan and spread evenly. Bake 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool on a rack.