This made from scratch Sweet Cornbread has a tender, cake-like texture and just the right amount of sweetness. Serve it warm from the oven with a bowl of soup or chili for an exceptionally comforting meal.
There’s nothing quite like homemade cornbread, but for a quick and absolutely delicious alternative, try my Mexican Cornbread.
There are just as many opinions on the correct way to make cornbread as there are recipes for cornbread, and the subject can evoke quite a bit of passion. The ratio of corn meal to flour, sugar or no sugar, skillet or baking dish; these are items that have and will be debated by cornbread lovers forever.
This Sweet Cornbread recipe is the cornbread I’ve made on repeat in my kitchen for decades. It was a favorite of my boys when they were little and a mainstay in our house through the fall and winter soup and stew season.
There is just enough sweetness but it’s the texture that really sets it apart. It isn’t dry and grainy, like many cornbread recipes. You still get that bit of crunch from the cornmeal but this lovely cornbread bakes up moist and tender with a fluffier texture. It’s absolutely heavenly warm from the oven slathered with honey butter, which is precisely how I always serve it.
Table of contents
Northern Cornbread vs. Southern Cornbread
How sweet you like your cornbread may just be a regional thing. Sweet cornbread recipes, like this one, are associated with the Northern parts of the US. They call for a higher ratio of flour, creating a tender, less grainy texture. Varying amounts of sugar are added for sweetness.
Traditional Southern cornbread recipes typically contain very little to no sugar and have a higher ratio of cornmeal to flour, resulting in a coarse and crumbly texture. Buttermilk adds a bit of tang and it’s baked in a cast iron skillet to create a crispy edge.
I’ve combined my favorite elements of Northern and Southern cornbread into this recipe. It has just the right amount of sweetness and the texture appeals to both kids and adults. I use buttermilk to add richness and tang and bake it in a cast iron skillet for those wonderful crisp edges. The best of both worlds!
Ingredient Notes
Dry ingredients: All purpose flour, yellow cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Yellow cornmeal has a more robust corn flavor than white cornmeal and is responsible for adding the nice golden color to cornbread.
Wet ingredients: Softened butter, granulated sugar, large eggs, and buttermilk.
Optional honey butter: Softened butter, honey, and powdered sugar.
How to Make Sweet Cornbread
- Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Place the sugar and 5 tablespoons of softened butter (save remaining 1 tablespoon for later) in a large mixing bowl. With an electric mixer, beat until well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue mixing until well incorporated.
- Using a spoon, stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture in increments, alternating with the buttermilk, just until combined.
- Melt the remaining butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet on the stove. then remove the pan from the heat and swirl the melted butter around to evenly coat the bottom of the pan. Carefully spoon the cornbread batter into the hot skillet and bake it in a preheated 375 degree F oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Serving Suggestions
Honey Butter: Add a dollop of honey butter to the warm cornbread and allow it to melt over the top. It is the perfect finishing touch. See the recipe card below for the easy instructions.
Maple Syrup: For an extra layer of sweetness, drizzle the cornbread slices with warm maple syrup. This is a nice touch for serving leftovers with scrambled eggs and bacon in the morning.
Chili or Soup: Sweet cornbread is an excellent complement to hearty, spicy chili. I frequently serve this cornbread with my Turkey Chili, Halftime Chili, and White Chicken Chili. It’s also excellent with thick and creamy soups like my Creamy Southwest Chicken Soup or Instant Pot 15 Bean Soup.
Barbecue: Cornbread is a classic side for BBQ. Add it to the menu with my Oven Baked Baby Back Ribs, Smoked Pork Tenderloin, or Oven Roasted Brisket.
Storage Tips
I don’t recommend storing leftover cornbread in the cast iron skillet. Instead, transfer it to an airtight container or wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or aluminum foil to keep it from drying out. Leftovers can be stored at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. For longer storage, place the wrapped cornbread in the refrigerator for up to 5 to 7 days.
For that fresh from oven taste, rewarm slices of leftovern cornbread briefly in the microwave.
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Sweet Cornbread
Ingredients
For the Cornbread
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons butter, softened and divided
- 2 large eggs
- 1 ¼ cups buttermilk
For the Honey Butter
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set it aside.
- Place the sugar and 5 tablespoons of softened butter (save remaining 1 tablespoon for later) in a large mixing bowl. With an electric mixer, beat until well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue mixing until well incorporated.
- Using a spoon, stir the dry mixture into the wet mixture in increments, alternating with the buttermilk, just until combined.
- In a 10-inch cast iron skillet, melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter over MEDIUM-HIGH heat. When the butter has melted, remove the pan from the heat and swirl the butter around to evenly coat the bottom of the pan. Carefully spoon the cornbread batter into the hot pan and transfer it to the preheated oven.
- Alternately, if using a baking dish, coat the bottom of the dish with softened butter or nonstick cooking spray and pour cornbread batter into dish.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
- Slice and serve warm with honey butter.
Honey Butter
- Using an electric hand mixer on LOW speed, combine the softened butter, honey, and powdered sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Transfer the honey butter to a small serving dish and refrigerate until ready to use.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated using generic ingredients, and is an estimate not a guarantee. For more accurate results, please refer to the labels on your ingredients at home.
This post was originally published on October 8, 2013. It has been updated with new text and images.
My husband wanted the sweet cornbread versus my standard southern cornbread and he loved this!
Can I make this in a 9×9 or 13×9 pan? If so what would the bake time be?
The recipe is scaled to work for a 10-inch skillet and would also work well in a 10-inch baking dish.
If you prefer honey as a sweetener, just reduce to amount of milk to one cup and substitute 1/4 cup honey for the sugar. If you don’t have buttermilk, add 1 Tbsp white vinegar to the milk.
This cornbread is delicious. I served it with vegetarian chili.