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    Homemade Cornbread

    Irresistible all year long, the old-fashioned comfort of a pan of homemade cornbread—served with salted butter and honey, of course—makes nearly any meal just a little bit better.

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    homemade cornbread in a baking pan with butter

    A Fabulously Moist Cornbread Recipe—Nothing More and Nothing Less!

    Cornbread is probably the first bread most of us learn to make. It’s so simple—mix the wet ingredients, mix the dry ingredients, combine and bake. The batter is hard to screw up. Like any cake batter—and really, cornbread is like a savory cake—it’s good to not overmix the batter. But beyond that, ours is a cornbread recipe that’s really built for success! Warm, tender, moist cornbread, fresh from the oven with plenty of salty butter and honey on the side—an absolute must—is a pleasure that few can pass up. Plus, it really goes with anything! That slightly sweet—our cornbread has a little honey in it, to echo cornmeal’s natural sweetness—buttery-crisp crust and moist, dense inner crumbly goodness makes any meal just a little better, including our Award Winning Chili or Black Bean Soup. Check out cornbread’s cousin, Spoon Bread, for another great bake.

    egg, flour, cornmeal, butter, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sour cream and sugar
    egg, butter, sour cream and sugar in a bowl for corn bread

    What Goes in Cornbread?

    A lot of recipes call for buttermilk, but our cornbread recipe stays moist and tender thanks to the magical baking powers of sour cream! Because sour cream is fattier than milk or buttermilk (which are perhaps more traditional cornbread ingredients) it adds a lot of richness without thinning the batter at all. Combined with the fat in the butter, this cornbread is sure to stay nice and moist with a really lovely, slightly dense crumb. In other words, it’s pure cornbread perfection. Here’s everything you’ll need to make our easy cornbread recipe:

    • Cornmeal

    • All-purpose flour

    • Baking powder

    • Baking soda

    • Salt

    • Unsalted butter

    • Sugar

    • Honey

    • Egg

    • Sour cream

    • Milk

    flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl for cornbread
    egg, butter, sour cream and sugar in a bowl for corn bread
    cornbread batter in a 9 inch baking dish
    homemade cornbread in a baking dish

    How Do You Make Cornbread From Scratch?

    This cornbread recipe is easily the best we’ve ever made. And we’ve made lots of them over the years! We’re no strangers to cornbread mix—sometimes when you’re hungry for cornbread, you just need the shortest distance between two points and that’s using a mix. But you know that homemade cornbread is always, always going to be just a little better. Fresher, richer, more satisfying. And it’s really not much harder than a mix! Here’s how to make the best cornbread recipe ever:

    1. Butter and flour a baking pan. This is super important! You want your slices of cornbread to just slide right out of the pan, so take a minute to really get that butter, then flour into every corner. If you’re new to prepping a pan like this, here’s a handy how-to video.

    2. Mix the dry ingredients! The cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

    3. Mix the wet ingredients! Melted butter, sugar, honey, egg, milk and sour cream.

    4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. This is your one moment of focus—remember not to overmix the cornbread batter. Once you see a relatively cohesive batter, STOP stirring.

    5. Spread the batter in the pan and bake!

    6. It’s done after roughly 25 minutes, when a toothpick inserted into the middle of the pan comes out clean.

    homemade corn bread in a baking dish with a slice taken out and a pat of butter
    homemade cornbread in a baking pan with butter

    What to Serve With Cornbread

    Cornbread goes with so, so many things! And we’re happy to just have it around as a snacking bread—can you even imagine a better after-school snack than warm cornbread with butter and honey?! But we also think cornbread goes really well with:

    Tools You’ll Need

    homemade corn bread in a baking dish with a slice taken out and a pat of butter

    There’s Nothing Corny About How Much We Love This Cornbread Recipe!

    Except maybe this headline. But yeah, it’s a great recipe. We just adore it—it’s foolproof and it’ll make you feel like a master baker, even if you’re just getting started. And who wouldn’t love that!? When you make it, let us know how you like it, OK? Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!

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    Homemade Cornbread

    September 15, 2021

    • Serves: 6
    • Prep Time:  15 min
    • Cook Time:  20 min
    • Calories: 343
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    Ingredients

    • 1 cup fine cornmeal
    • 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
    • 2 tsp baking powder
    • 1/2 tsp baking soda
    • 1/2 tsp sea salt
    • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
    • 1/2 cup sugar
    • 2 Tbsp honey
    • 1 large egg, at room temp
    • 1/2 cup sour cream
    • ¼ cup whole milk

    Method

    1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease and lightly flour a 9x9-inch baking pan.
    2. In a large bowl, whisk the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together.
    3. In a medium bowl whisk the melted butter, sugar, honey, egg, sour cream and milk together until smooth.
    4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until just combined. Don’t over mix it.
    5. Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden browned and cooked through. Use a toothpick to test the center for doneness. Allow to cool slightly before serving with butter and honey if desired.


    Note: Do not buy medium grind cornmeal. You’re looking for cornmeal in the flour section of your grocery store, not in the grain section. Bob’s Red Mill corn meal (for example) is listed as medium grind and while we love their products, medium grind or polenta style cornmeal doesn’t get tender enough in this recipe and you’ll be left with dry gritty bread.

    Nutrition Info

    • Per Serving
    • Amount
    • Calories343
    • Protein3 g
    • Carbohydrates38 g
    • Total Fat20 g
    • Dietary Fiber1 g
    • Cholesterol52 mg
    • sodium817 mg
    • Total Sugars24 g

    Homemade Cornbread

    Questions & Reviews

    Join the discussion below.

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    • Nina

      I’m a savory cornbread girl. Do you think you could cut the sugar from this recipe and it would still work? Or decrease the amount?

      Hmm we haven't tested it but you could try to cut it in half

    • Christine

      Is there a cornmeal you would recommend? I can't fine one designated as fine ground...

      Goya sells one. If you look it up on amazon you can see a lot of brand options. Hopes this helps Christine!

    • Piper

      Does this recipe make enough cornbread for your cornbread stuffing recipe?

      It will take 1.5 batches of this cornbread for the cornbread stuffing. Hope you enjoy Piper!

    • Kylee

      So good!! I used brown sugar and they were almost like a dessert. Delicious! I will definitely make these again and again!

      Thanks Kylee, we are so happy you loved it!

    • Alana

      I used medium ground cornmeal and baked in a muffin tin for about 14 mins and they turned out perfect — not dry at all!

      Thanks Alana, so glad you loved it!

    • Katie

      This is my go to cornbread recipe now. I don’t even need to try any others.

      Thanks Katie! That is so wonderful to hear!

    • Jenn

      LOVE THIS CORNBREAD!

      Thanks Jenn!

    • Rebecca

      Best cornbread I’ve made! Moist, sweet, great flavor. Made it to go with your Simple Chili. Cozy, delicious dinner.

      Yay, thank you Rebecca! This is so great to hear!