I forgot I had a potluck to attend last weekend, so I reached for an easy, reliable and always welcome recipe: Katharine Hepburn Brownies. You can find these brownies all over the Internet (at Patti Cakes, at Angelnina’s Cottage and The Gourmet Project, to name three). I found it in my Gourmet cookbook. You cannot, however, find these brownies left over after a potluck.
Katharine Hepburn brownies
- 2 squares (ounces) unsweetened chocolate
- 1 stick (1/4 pound) butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)
1. Melt the chocolate with the butter over low heat in 2-quart saucepan.
2. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar, eggs and vanilla; blend well.
3. Stir in the flour and salt and walnuts, if desired.
4. Pour the batter into an buttered and floured 8-inch square pan. Bake 35-40 minutes at 325 degrees F or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool, then cut and serve. Makes 16-20 brownies (depending on how you cut them).
Patti // Oct 1, 2008 at 9:42 am
HA! You’re so right . . . there are NO leftovers when you make these.
We could polish off a batch of those brownies ourselves.
Our piece of New York City Katharine Hepburn chocolate trivia: Up until a few months before her death, Hepburn had a standing order at Mondel Chocolates, a shop near Columbia University. If you’re not in New York’s Manhattan, you can follow Katharine Hepburn’s tradition in a way that she could not — on line. The website is http://www.mondelchocolates.com/.
Janet Majure // Oct 1, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Patti, I recommend holding one back for yourself (as I did!).
Thanks for the tip, Steve & Seanan (even if Mondel misspelled her name)!
. . . but they delivered her chocolate in a timely fashion. (I’m always spelling Mondel’s name incorrectly. Maybe it’s justice. — Seánan)
sara angel // Oct 6, 2008 at 4:16 pm
these look phenomenal!
megan // Oct 6, 2008 at 9:12 pm
YUM! these are exactly like the brownies i had earlier tonight-i also sprinkled a layer of chocolate chips on top :) great recipe!
mimi // Oct 6, 2008 at 11:27 pm
i have been craving brownies all week and these look so fantastically delish!
Fearless Kitchen // Oct 7, 2008 at 9:03 am
This looks delicious. I can almost taste them!
Olga // Oct 7, 2008 at 9:04 am
Love chocolate and nuts: great combination!
Janet Majure // Oct 8, 2008 at 11:56 am
sara angel, Megan, mimi, Fearless & Olga—Thanks for stopping by, and you must try the recipe. They are wonderful!