Katharine Hepburn was a brownie purist: How the Hollywood legend perfected her favourite treat

Hollywood legend Katharine Hepburn, celebrated for her four Academy Awards and fiercely independent personality, was just as particular about her brownies as she was about her acting roles and her standards were famously exacting.

While many people enjoy a range of brownie styles, Hepburn reportedly only approved of brownies that were moist, chewy and rich, anything resembling cake was instantly rejected. According to those who knew her, she had a specific version she loved: a gooey, walnut-studded brownie that was more fudgy than cakey, with very little flour and plenty of chocolate.

In the book At Home With Kate: Growing Up in Katharine Hepburn’s Household, her family’s cook recalled that Hepburn would frequently request her signature brownies, asking the kitchen to keep them on hand both for guests and to send out in tins to friends.

The recipe, nearly fudge in texture, used minimal flour alongside classic ingredients like sugar, eggs, butter, and chocolate.

Not surprisingly, if someone else offered her a brownie that didn’t meet her standards, Hepburn didn’t hesitate to critique it. She was known to take a bite, pronounce whether it was chewy enough or had too much flour, and immediately follow up with her own recipe suggestions, often encouraging the baker to jot them down.

Hepburn’s love of sweets wasn’t a quiet preference, she admitted in her memoir to having such a boundless passion for chocolate that she could eat a pound in a sitting. This love translated into her brownie style, which emphasized gooiness and depth of chocolate flavor rather than light or cakey textures.

Over the decades, her brownie recipe has lived on through food writers and home bakers alike, often celebrated as one of the most iconic celebrity recipes in culinary lore. Rediscovered versions emphasise minimal flour and careful baking to achieve a chewy, rich treat beloved by fudgy brownie fans everywhere.