It seems media outlets are always printing recipes that purport to be a recipe that is special to some celebrity. Reading the recipe, along with info about the celebrity, makes one wonder if the celebrity has ever tasted the recipe result, much less claimed that as their favorite.
Through the years only two recipes have carried the name of the celebrity who claims that dish in a credible way. The first is former first lady Rosalyn Carter. For more than 30 years there has been a recipe floating around titled “Rosalyn Carter’s Favorite Cheeseball.” The appetizer is a combination of sharp cheddar cheese, pecans, mayonnaise, green onions and strawberry preserves. It is usually styled in a ring.
Plains, Georgia, where the Carters are from, is a small, rural town, rather like Columbia. This type of recipe is entirely plausible given Mrs. Carter's life and choice of foods.
The other recipe is for Katharine Hepburn's Brownies. Ms. Hepburn, magnificent star of movies for a large part of the 20th century, presented a persona who didn't seem to be a home baker. However, the opposite is true. Ms. Hepburn and her brother worked on this recipe for brownies until it was just right. She often talked about her love for chocolate, especially her brownies.
The New York Times printed an interesting anecdote about Ms. Hepburn and her brownies in an article about her life and career the week she died in 2003. It seems the author of the article grew up around the corner from Ms. Hepburn. As her father walked to the neighborhood market, he often saw the actress. As time passed, they would nod to each other while buying groceries.
When his daughter was having trouble at Bryn Mawr College, he remembered that Ms. Hepburn was an alumna of that college. Emboldened by concern for his daughter, he telephoned Ms. Hepburn and asked if she would speak to his daughter about staying in school. She agreed and invited the father and daughter to tea at her home. In her inimitable fashion she encouraged the girl to complete her education.
The visit concluded with tea and a plate of her special brownies. She spoke to them about her love for chocolate and the development of this particular recipe. Following this visit, the father was invited to visit Ms. Hepburn from time to time. After she was in a car accident and seriously injured, the father made his own recipe for brownies and took a plate to her house.
She received him warmly and ate a brownie. After one bite she adamantly stated his recipe contained too much flour. Then she proceeded to give him her special recipe with the admonition, “Don't overbake! The brownies should be moist, not cakey!”
There are thousands of brownie types and recipes floating around the food world. Some are cake-like, some are fudge-like, some have frosting, some have nuts.
These brownies are not tall; they are dense, moist and very chocolately. Just perfect when a serious “fix” of chocolate is needed. In fact, yesterday, about three o’clock, in the midst of an extremely stressful day, I decided I HAD to have some chocolate or I might throw a chair through the window. A wonderful attribute of this recipe is the very simple ingredient list. No fancy ingredients, very little time required, no mixer needed. The only stringent requirement is an 8 x 8 baking pan. I went to my kitchen and had the brownies in the oven in under 10 minutes. The difficulty was waiting until the brownies were cooked before digging into the pan with a spoon.
Aaaahhh… wonderful chocolate.
Katharine Hepburn's Brownies
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup broken walnuts or pecans
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• pinch of salt
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease an 8 x 8 baking pan. Melt butter in a heavy saucepan with cocoa and stir until smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. Mix in eggs, one at a time until they are fully combined. Add the vanilla and salt. Set aside to cool. In a separate bowl mix sugar, flour, and salt. Pour the chocolate mixture over the dry ingredients until just combined. Pour into the prepared baking pan. Place pan in the oven. Bake for 35 minutes. While waiting for the brownies to cook, be sure to lick the bowl. Don't let all that chocolate goodness go down the drain. Remember not to overbake. They should be gooey. Be patient and let the brownies cool, at least a little. Cut into bars. Ms. Hepburn cut 12 servings. I cut 9 pieces.
Even if the 8 x 8 pan sits unused in the cabinet between brownie makings, just one taste of these heavenly chocolate confections is worth the price of the pan.
Fran Ginn is former chef/owner of The Back Door Café, who retired after 31 years in the food industry to be a grandmother. She can be contacted at fran@franginn.com.
