This brownies either addictive and soul bearing. I did today to treat my self as remind me to Mr. C who thousands mile apart. I love the story of this recipe from Dorie Greenspan. She said :
After Katharine Hepburn died, eulogies came from every quarter, many including stories about her brownies. In an article sent to me by my friend Bon Appetit editor in chief Barbara Fairchild, Heather Henderson of St. Paul, Minnesota, recalled wanting to quit her studies at Bryn Mawr. Her father managed to get Miss Hepburn, a Bryn Mawr alum and a neighbor, to intervene. The famous Kate invited both the young woman and her father to her home one afternoon. At tea, Ms. Henderson got a taste of the legendary brownies as well as of the actress’s views on education.
In her tribute to the actress, Ms. Henderson wrote, “I’ll always be grateful to Miss Hepburn for making me stick it out at Bryn Mawr and for giving me these rules to live by: 1. Never quit; 2. Be yourself and 3. Don’t put too much flour in your brownies.”
Best chocolate is the key of good brownies. So I am using Forgiveness Newtree Belgian Choc which contains 73% cocoa. Slightly essence of lemon on it give a fruit bite but not overwhelming. On the recipe, choc been added after eggs and dry ingredients. I decided to melted choc first on the butter mix as I don't have time to chop choc in small sizes.
I found Ghiraldelli cocoa powder is enough to adjust with dark choc, also instant coffee need to grind first to achieve finest texture before added to butter mix. For filling I could not find walnuts so pecans is the best choice. On top of brownies I decided to put shredded almond just to give a character.
Tribute-To-Katherine-Hepburn Brownies
Taken from From My Home to Yours book by Dorrie Greenspan.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons finely ground instant coffee
- 2 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup broken or chopped walnuts or pecans
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
GETTING READY:
- Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Butter an 8-inch square baking pan and line the bottom with parchment or wax paper. Butter the paper, dust the inside of the pan with flour and tap out the excess. Place the pan on a baking sheet.
- Whisk the flour, cinnamon, if you’re using it, and salt together.
- Put the butter in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan and place the pan over low heat. When the butter starts to melt, sift the cocoa over it and add the instant coffee. Continue to cook, stirring, until the butter is melted and the cocoa and coffee are blended into it. Remove from the heat and cool for about 3 minutes.
- Using a whisk or a rubber spatula, beat the eggs into the saucepan one at a time. Next, stir in the sugar and vanilla (don’t beat anything too vigorously — you don’t want to add air to the batter), followed by the dry ingredients, nuts and chopped chocolate. Scrape the batter into the pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes, at which point the brownies will still be gooey but the top will have a dry papery crust. Transfer the pan to a rack and let the brownies cool for at least 30 minutes. (You can wait longer, if you’d like.) Turn the brownies out onto a rack, peel away the paper and invert onto a cutting board. Cool completely before cutting into 16 squares, each roughly 2 inches on a side.
SERVING: These are happy being served in all the typical ways — with whipped cream, ice cream or Hot Fudge Sauce or paired with a glass of milk to allow for dunking. I think they are best at room temperature, when they are at their moistest, but they are also very good chilled.
STORING: Wrapped well, the brownies will keep for 3 days at room temperature or frozen for up to 2 months.
