Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies Recipe (2024)

This has been my go-to brownie recipe for 30 years, even after going to baking school! I agree that using the best cocoa possible makes a difference. These days, I use Callebaut. In the 80s, an acquaintence in Germany to whom I brought some of the brownies, and who considered herself a great cook, asked for the recipe but was never able to get it to work. She kept asking me what she was doing wrong and I was never able to solve her problem. Eventually, she moved to the US and stole my husband!

Bake it like Kate: Food & Wine published this recipe in a dessert book published in the late '80s. They left the method in Miss Hepburn's original rendition. Step 1 calls for the eggs and vanilla to be added to the melted cocoa/butter mixture, and then you "beat it all like mad." This you must do with perfect posture and cheeks sucked in, of course.

No one else has mentioned how important it is to let the chocolate batter cool sufficiently before adding the egg mixture. If the batter is too hot you will cook the eggs and the brownies will not rise or set up correctly when baked.

I substituted applesauce for the butter; you lose the crispness that butter provides, but I didn't have butter. Also didn't have vanilla. I substituted 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) bourbon. Add 1 teaspoon to the batter, reserving 7 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons in a glass of your choosing. Add the best ice you can find. Sip while brownies bake. Find inner peace

Use good cocoa, not Dutch. I use Penzey. Mound the cocoa measurement a little and underfill the sugar a bit. Toast the nuts, preferably pecans. Throw in a couple more pinches of salt, and 1/8 tsp of espresso powder. Easy and amazing and very popular.

This is the go-to brownie recipe for so many people, including me, that I wasn’t planning on commenting. However, it seems like all the other people who love this recipe are swimming in a sea of Valrhona chocolate like Scrooge McDuck diving through piles of gold coins. Just wanted all the other bakers getting cocoa powder at Trader Joe’s and Walmart to know that everyone loves these brownies, even if made with regular ingredients. *Everyone* loves fat and sugar. Sincerely, a broke grad student

The sugar should be added to the melted butter before the eggs. Not with the flour mixture. The sugar reduces the temperature of the butter so the eggs don't scramble. I've been making this recipe since my Mom worked in the food department at McCall's magazine.

Hello all, we have retested and adjusted the baking time on these brownies to reflect your notes. The original baking time was 40 minutes; you'll see the recipe now suggests 30 to 35 minutes. These are best when they are gooey and fudgy, so as the recipe says, take care not to overbake!

I, too, have made these brownies for years and think that they are the perfect mix of nuts and gooey chocolate. I have always used 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate. I also cut the sugar down to 3/4 cup. I make sure to use the full cup of walnuts, and even those who don't like nuts in brownies, love these. Have to watch when the brownies are in the oven, particularly when using a square glass Pyrex pan, because they cook more quickly. As soon as you smell them, they are nearly done!

Best brownies ever! I followed the recipe exactly except for a small adjustment--I melted the butter and cocoa in a large glass bowl in the microwave, thus saving myself the task of having to wash a saucepan. Lined the pan with greased parchment paper for easy removal. Baked for 29 minutes.

Add some dark rum. Dark rum makes everything better.

The melting point of butter is about 95°F--well below the temperature required to "cook" eggs. Do not rush the melt by setting the stove to frying temperatures. Cut the butter into small pieces to melt faster at low temperature. It is actually faster than waiting for hot over-heated fat to cool!

I have been making these for years. I use one teaspoon of espresso powder in it. Everyone's favorite.

Have tried many brownie recipes, but this one, which I have used for years, is the best. I started out using 2 oz of the unsweetened chocolate, but recently began using 3 oz unsweetened choc and found this to be an even more delicious brownie. No need to increase the sugar if using 3 oz.

Good point about salt. I use about an 1/8 teaspoon Maldon salt. Also I find it necessary to line well buttered pan with foil and then lavishly butter foil. I let foil overhang sides of pan and lift out when cool for easy cutting.

You can nix the need for a dirty saucepan and make this a true one-bowl recipe by simply using 2-3 oz of unsweetened baking chocolate instead of cocoa powder and melting it and the butter in the bowl over the saucepan of hot water on the stove.

Perfect recipe. Have made with at least 4 different kinds of cocoa, including Hershey’s, all delicious. Have also made this recipe while tipsy quite a few times and not once have I ended up with scrambled eggs in the batter, but always a crackled top and a luscious fudgy middle in the end.

Can anyone tell me how many grams of butter is in 1 stick? Thanks!

I am grateful to the NYT for keeping this recipe in circulation. I just made a batch of these for my fellow Bryn Mawr College alumna's May Day celebration. IYKYK: it doesn't get more Bryn Mawr than Kate the Great and May Day.

I made these and my husband and I ate the whole pan. so moist and gooey. I have a favourite recipe that call s for molasses but I think this recipe will beat it. Do not overcook !

Highly recommend. One Warning: Based on my multiple experiences, watch the baking time like a hawk. Any time over will create hockey pucks.

As many have noted, the sugar goes in before the eggs and must be whipped until smooth. Then add the eggs one at a time ‘beating them to death’ as in the original KH recipe. The bake time is too long as well. PS don’t be afraid to double the recipe if making for friends, they won’t last long…

I made Katharine Hepburn's Brownies for ages. They are fabulous. The original recipe calls for 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate, but cocoa sounds interesting. The original also calls for 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, but a full teaspoon may be better. I also add 1/4 teaspoon of instant espresso to the melted butter and chocolate. The espresso is an improvement.KH's recipe is great, but I stopped searching for the best brownie recipe after I found David Lebovitz's "Best Brownies." It's perfect.

Find the recipe for NYT Triple Chocolate Brownies, the best, I make no other...

Any notes on salted vs. unsalted butter?

What I love about this recipe in addition to the taste and texture is the fact that you don't need to dirty another bowl. Just add sugar to the melted butter/cocoa mixture in the pan after taking it off the heat. The sugar cools the wet ingredients sufficiently.I also find that lining the pan with buttered parchment really helps get the cooked brownies out of the pan without damage and facilitates cutting them once cooled.

Sub Flax meal for gluten free.

You’re going to luv these

Didn't expect much, so was pleasantly surprised. Ghiradelli cocoa and 1 tsp. of instant espresso powder long past their expiration dates. I toasted and chopped pecans, and added a cup of semi sweet chocolate chips, but otherwise followed recipe (except that I forgot to add the vanilla). 30 minutes in an 8 x8 glass Pyrex lined with foil and sprayed with baking Pam. Texture was fudgy -- close to perfect. Tasted pretty good despite my inferior ingredients. Ina Garten's recipe is the all-time best.

I've made these a few times, very nice brownies. I just use one large pyrex bowl set over a sauce pan of simmering water in which I melt the butter and cocoa and then take it from there to complete the recipe. Works fine, one less bowl to wash.