Oct 6, 2013

Katherine Hepburn Brownies - the best brownies ever!


I should ideally be sharing something that has to do with Apples or Pumpkins or Halloween to stay with the seasonal craze that's going on all over blogosphere with the onset of Fall.  Our green lawn is completely filled with yellow and orange maple leaves and all kinds of other colorful leaves that's fallling away to glory and I must admit, it does look pretty even with all the added work of now blowing away the fallen leaves and collecting them apart from lawn mowing!

But there’s one thing that definitely ‘all-time and any season’ to me, and that’s Chocolate!!!  I’m very much a chocoholic in every sense. Give me a choice of desserts and you’ll always see me pick up something that has chocolate in it. 

            " Whether I’m happy or sad, yellow or blue, all I need is you…Chocolate! 

Hey that rhymed…well, somewhat….and I totally just made it up :-D 

Lil’Appu has started learning about colors at his daycare so I spend all my time asking him what color is your shirt, what color is your spoon, what color is your toothbrush etc, hence the mention of colors in the rhyme as well, yellow and blue being his current fav ones, which keeps changing every other day!


Lil’Appu has his mommy’s taste buds and is ready for a chocolaty treat anytime. So I have company at home…or should I say competition with Manish included? ;-) 
And the fact that my b'day is just 2 days away I'm already considering something chocolate for the day, but I donno if I'll prepare my own b'day cake (I kinda find that weird) and I'd rather have someone pamper me with something they made or brought than me cooking/baking on my b'day...anyways its a working day for us, so plans are limited :-)

These brownies are popularly known as Katherine Hepburn Brownies, named after the legendary American actress Katherine Hepburn, ‘coz its believed she is the creator of this marvelous recipe. They are so smooth, chocolaty and fudgy and absolutely melts in your mouth. I mean like literally melts in your mouth...trust me!


They are so simple to make and I even read somewhere that the consistency is such that even if you over-bake these brownies a bit, they still remain fudgy & chewy…now, I have NOT verified this point, but isn’t that good ? They turn out with a crusty top and a soft and chewy interior and are just yumm!  These will forever be my go-to recipe for Brownies for sure.

Read this before you start:
These brownies may stick to your pan like crazy, especially in the middle….I had to literally scrape them off the pan, breaking the brownie into bits and pieces to get them out the first time I baked these, inspite of greasing & flouring my pan.
So cut out a wax paper or parchment paper that will cover the bottom of your pan. Grease your pan, put in the wax paper, grease the wax paper and dust with flour and then add brownie batter. Once baked, the brownie will come out easily and just peel the wax paper away…simple!


Katherine Hepburn Brownies

Recipe source: Joy of Baking

Makes approx 16 brownies if cut into squares

You'll Need
Unsweetened Chocolate, coarsely chopped - 2 ounces (60 grams)
Unsalted Butter, cut into pieces – ½ cup (113 grams)
Granulated white Sugar - 1 cup (200 grams)
Eggs - 2 large
Pure Vanilla extract – ½ teaspoon
All-purpose flour – ¼ cup (30 grams)
Salt - a pinch
Chopped Walnuts or Pecans (optional) - 1 cup (100 grams)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 325F (165C) and place rack in center of oven.
2. Cutout a wax paper to cover bottom of an 8” square baking pan. Butter the pan on all sides, put in the wax paper, butter the wax paper and dust with flour  on all sides.
3. Melt the chocolate and butter in a stainless steel/glass bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water.
4. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar. Next, stir in the vanilla extract and eggs. Finally, stir in the flour, salt and chopped nuts (if using).
5. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for about 30 - 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. Serve at room temperature or chilled. 

Some points:
1. I have used Semi-Sweetened Chocolate as well for these brownies and they still taste great.
2.  I have baked these in my 9”round cake pan as well with a reduced baking time, and though it was thinner, the brownies tasted great and you can cut them into triangular wedges and pretend it’s a cake slice instead ;-)
3. A scoop of vanilla Ice Cream or some whipped cream would really be good on these brownies…yeah!


I made these for our close family friends who were leaving from Minneapolis and they had planned to drive down to another state where they would be settling down with their 3 small children. As the drive was long I felt it would be nice for them to have something to munch on and I made these brownies for a chocolaty snack. As I wasn't sure if any of the kids were allergic to nuts, I omitted from adding walnuts for them. I later tried these for ourselves with the Walnuts, and trust me, both ways these brownies will blow your mind. 

So try them out any time you crave for Brownies or anything Chocolate :-) 

Happy Fall you All !!  Another rhyming sentence, I guess I'm in a mood for rhymes today...Teehee...

-Manju

18 comments:

  1. Early BIRTHDAY WISHES!!!
    Loved reading your post thoroughly, especially asking color part. Like mama, like son huh...so sweet.
    Katherine Hepburn,..wowo..so I will surely love these created by her and you have done a great job, looks real good.

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  2. brownies look absolutely delicious!

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  3. WOW!!!! Looks so tempting manju. Nice clicks.

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  4. aah... i'm dying here at the sight of these brownies!!! so fudgy... yum yum... inch pinch on the chocolaty bit, my HD keeps saying that i'm chocolate color bcoz of all the chocolate I eat!!! :D but then now, i've bid adieus for sometime till I manage to lose some weight that I've promised him to lose, so :( :( hehe... but wouldn't mind biting into those brownies just for a craving... i don't think it would hurt, would it??? ;)

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  5. These definitely look super chewy and delicious.... loved your clicks...
    BTW the flowers look so beautiful...looks like you have a lovely garden !

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  6. Brownies look so delicious... they are so fudgy and decadent !

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  7. Omg, i can die for a huge slice of these super moist brownies..just killing me Manju..

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  8. Hey Manju...while reading the post, the first thing that came to my mind is 'Pineapple Penne Chocolate piece se' song...hahaha.. The brownies looks soft and chewy, got to show this to Nathan, he will pester me to make it :) He is a chocolate 'payyans'.

    Its Marygold with Dahlia leaves, right? Looks beautiful!!!

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    1. Oh my god Shibi...how did u figure out they were Dahlia leaves...U r an expert gardener I bet! :-) I'm simply amazed...

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  9. I love this recipe too and brownies have come out perfect...super fudgy! I have a brownie post lined up too, love to try a different recipe each time.

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  10. your clicks are so gorgeous Manju. love these brownies, have heard a lot about them and such soft texture.

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  11. They do look super fudgy and very very yummy! Lovely clicks and your kid looks cute!

    Shobha

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  12. These are the only brownies I can bake with some success and they never look this gorgeous!! Love the post and happy to be here :)

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  13. I've never heard of Katherine Hepburn's brownies before, but this definitely looks regal and very glamorous :)

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  14. Ditto Kiran...I too had never heard of these brownies but they sure look fabulous and I wish I could grab a slice right away :-D

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  15. What an interesting brownie story, I love that it might have come out of Katherine Hepburn's kitchen.

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  16. they looks so yummy manju.. giving it a try this weekend :)

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