Cornbread
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An easy, moist, and delicious cornbread recipe that is sure to please everyone in the family. You can’t beat the delicate crumb, slightly sweet flavour, and perfectly crispy crust on this cast iron skillet cornbread!
He came home from work one day raving about a brisket, Traeger, and “golden bits of sunshine”.
I knew what exactly 2 of those things were?
Turns out, they had a huge BBQ for everyone at work that day, and Kevin was fed the “best damn brisket” and “these amazing golden bits of sunshine”.
Golden bits of sunshine, AKA cornbread. He was that pumped about cornbread muffins?
I mean, we’re Canadian, and while cornbread is delicious, it doesn’t exactly have a cultural stronghold here.
OR SO I THOUGHT!
I snagged the recipe from Kevin’s co-worker and tweaked it to support my tastes. We have made this cornbread no less than 8 times. I’ve served it with BBQ, I’ve snacked on it in the afternoon with the kids, I’ve served it as appetizers before Friday night dinners, and it was devoured in minutes each time.
Apparently, the only place that Cornbread didn’t have a stronghold was MY house while I was growing up!
This recipe is dedicated to vitamin D and Kevin’s co-worker.
What’s In Cornbread?
- flour
- cornmeal
- sugar
- salt
- baking powder
- honey or maple syrup
- butter
- milk or cream
- eggs
How easy is this cornbread recipe to make?
You might be able to tell from the photos that Aedyn, my 9-year-old with neon orange fingernails, loves this recipe. With a little help around the oven, she can make the entire thing!
There are 5 basic steps:
- Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.
- Mix wet ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients.
- Preheat oven.
- Rest the batter.
- Bake in a heated and oiled skillet for approximately 25 minutes.
Cornbread Best Practices:
LET the batter sit for 15-20 minutes before baking. This allows the baking powder to activate and incorporate more air.
BE gentle!! When pouring your rested batter into the hot skillet, try to disturb the battle as little as possible – once you pop the air bubbles they don’t come back.
START preheating your oven as soon as you set aside the batter to rise, by the time it’s preheated, your batter should be ready to go in.
HEAT your skillet. This step cannot be overlooked. A screaming hot skillet plus a healthy coat of lard (or another oil) makes for the most scrumptious crispy brown crust.
Got Leftover Cornbread?
This recipe is literal make-ahead magic. It freezes and thaws incredibly well.
I’ve found if you turn the cornbread out of the skillet onto a cooling rack and then allow to cool to room temp, you can either wrap it in single-serve wedges OR, wrap the entire cornbread in plastic wrap, slide it into a freezer bag, then pop in the freezer for later!
When ready to use, simply pull the bread out of the freezer, unwrap, and place on a cooling rack 1-2 hours before you want to serve.
What to serve with Cornbread?
This cornbread recipe is wonderful as:
- an appetizer with softened whipped butter
- a side to smoked goodness from the Traeger
- an accompaniment to smoked baked beans
- a Chili side dish
- a straight-up snack on its own.
How To Take Your Cornbread Recipe To The Next Level
SUBSTITUTE regular salt for this amazing Smoked Salt.
SWITCH the milk for buttermilk, OR, for extra brownie points, try Smoked Cream.
USE maple syrup instead of honey.
ADD some interesting mix-ins; we’ve been very successful with pickled jalapeños and bacon.
WHAT’S MY SECRET TO PERFECT CORNBREAD?
Here’s my secret. There are 2.
- Let the batter rest. This allows the leavening power of the baking powder to shine.
- Cook in a preheated and greased cast-iron skillet – this allows the crust on the cornbread to be crispy, but also to cook evenly, as the heat is coming around the entire cornbread, instead of trying to cook in a cold pan, where you’ll get uneven baking.
Now, go forth and make perfect fluffy, delicious, cornbread!
Looking For Cornbread Muffins?
Try my Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread Muffins
📖 Printable Recipe
Cornbread
Ingredients
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup all purpose flour1 cup cornmeal, ½ cup white sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon salt in a large bowl, whisking well. Once combined, make a well in the centre of the bowl, and set aside.
- Combine 4 tablespoon butter, ½ cup honey, 1 cup milk, and 2 large eggs in a medium bowl, whisking well to ensure the wet ingredients are smooth.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the well in the dry ingredients and quickly whisk all the wet and dry ingredients together until just combined. Don't over-mix.
- Allow the batter to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes, meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400f, and place a 10" cast iron skillet in the oven to preheat.
- Remove the skillet from the oven and use a small dollop of lard or butter to grease the pan.
- Carefully pour the batter in the skillet, trying to disturb it as little as possible. Smooth the top, if desired.
- Bake at 400 for 22-25 minutes or until a tester stick comes out of the middle clean.
My family loved this cornbread. Thank you so much for the great recipe. I think you’re on to something with the rest time – that was the fluffiest cornbread I’ve made yet.
While I have not made this yet, I will today. Being from the south, we did not use much sugar. I however, kind of like a light cornbread. With chili I go for the heavier kind to crumble on top. Will definitely try the jalapeno salt today. Thanks for the recipes.
I am a sucker for a sweet cornbread for sure! Though I can definitely see that crumbled cornbread would be delicious on chili! You’re so welcome.