The Breakfast Dish Katharine Hepburn Loved To Eat

Katharine Hepburn had a fierce spirit, intelligent wit, and trailblazing reputation — and she's still considered one of the most legendary women of Hollywood. Hepburn led an active life in many ways, and just as iconic as she is, so was one of her favorite breakfast foods: pancakes. Given Hepburn's inimitable nature, an ingredient the movie star liked adding to her pancakes was cottage cheese, as explained by her goddaughter Katharine "Kat" Kramer (via Hollywood Kitchen). Of course, cottage cheese isn't the only way to enhance pancakes, as there are many additions that can elevate any basic homemade pancake recipe.

To make these Hepburn-favorite pancakes, add a cup of cottage cheese to a traditional recipe of flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, milk, egg, and butter. In addition to boosting the pancake's protein content, cottage cheese gives them a fluffier, soufflé-like texture. It also incorporates a tanginess to the breakfast staple's mildly sweet and savory taste. While not required, Hepburn's favorite version swaps the usual all-purpose flour for whole wheat. This helps add a little more density to the pancakes, as well as providing a boost of nutrients like fiber and iron. As a tip for working cottage cheese into a pre-packaged pancake mix, it may be worth halving the required water and then making up the difference with cottage cheese, since it naturally contains a bit of moisture. Otherwise, the excess liquid could potentially lead to runny batter, producing flat pancakes, which can often be fixed.

Like any other variety, cottage cheese pancakes can be upgraded in a variety of ways. There's the classic drizzle of maple syrup or topping of fresh fruit and berries that's tried and true. However, if cottage cheese proves to be too tangy, a dash of vanilla extract and cinnamon can round this out with earthy, spicy sweetness. Though it may seem unorthodox, melting a spoonful or two of peanut butter, as The Rock does to top his banana pancakes, could be an ultra-rich, savory upgrade to zingy cottage cheese, balancing out the flavors. Bonus points to anyone that leans in Dwayne Johnson's direction and tops all of this with a diced banana.

In addition to cottage cheese, Katharine Hepburn's other trick to up her pancake ante was mixing in chocolate and chopped nuts. This may lean more in the dessert direction, but integrating nuts like walnuts or almonds adds an extra crunchy texture to fluffy pancakes, as well as added nutrition from the healthy fat content and nutrients, like magnesium and zinc. In tandem with swirling in melted chocolate, these pancakes introduce a triple hit of sweet, salty, and savory flavor notes. For an interesting finish that's a zestful twist to a familiar favorite, top these with sweet strawberries, balsamic glaze, and dusting of powdered sugar. This helps emphasize the chocolate's sweetness, while balancing it with the tartness of the balsamic glaze.