Moist buttermilk and honey cornbread
Ingredients
Method
- Put the butter for the skillet in a 25 cm cast-iron skillet and place it in the oven while it preheats to 220 °C.
- In a large bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
- In another bowl, whisk the eggs with the buttermilk, honey and cooled melted butter.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ones and stir with a spatula just until no dry flour remains.
- Take out the hot skillet with oven gloves, swirl the butter to grease the sides and pour in the batter. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the top is golden and a knife comes out clean.
- Leave to rest for 10 minutes before cutting into 8 wedges. Serve warm with butter and a drizzle of honey.
Notes
A golden, crisp crust, a moist crumb that tastes of corn, a pat of butter and a drizzle of honey: cornbread is the warm bread served with every meal in the American South. Here is our cornbread recipe, baked in a cast-iron skillet as in Louisiana or Texas, for a real homemade cornbread in under an hour.
Southern cornbread, the bread of the American South
Corn was grown by Native American peoples long before Europeans arrived, and settlers learned from them how to grind it and bake it into flat cakes. Southern cornbread is the heir of these simple breads. In the South, it is traditionally made in a cast-iron skillet, with little or no sugar. In the North, people prefer it sweeter and closer to a cake. Our version, lightly sweetened with honey, sits between the two.
Which cornmeal for cornbread?
Cornbread is made with cornmeal, ground yellow corn. The best cornmeal for cornbread is a fine or medium yellow cornmeal; in Europe, fine polenta or fine maize flour works well. Do not confuse it with cornflour, the white, very fine starch used to thicken sauces, which will not work here. A little wheat flour is added for a lighter, less crumbly result.
Moist cornbread thanks to buttermilk
The secret of a moist cornbread is buttermilk. Slightly acidic, it reacts with the bicarbonate of soda to make the batter rise and gives a tender crumb. You will find it in the chilled section of most supermarkets. If not, mix 380 ml of milk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and leave for 10 minutes, or use half natural yoghurt, half milk.
The cast-iron skillet secret
In the South, cornbread is baked in a cast-iron skillet. It is heated in the oven with a little butter, then the batter is poured in and sizzles on contact with the hot metal. This burst of heat creates the golden, crisp crust on the sides and underneath. An ovenproof frying pan or a thick preheated tin gives a similar result.
Quick and easy cornbread
This quick and easy cornbread takes 15 minutes to prepare, with no mixer and no kneading, since it is a quick bread raised with baking powder. Mix the dry ingredients on one side and the wet on the other, then combine with a few strokes of the spatula. To go even faster, make cornbread muffins: fill buttered muffin tins two-thirds full and bake for 15 minutes at 200 °C.
Honey cornbread
Honey cornbread is the most indulgent way to serve it. Honey in the batter adds a gentle sweetness and helps the crust brown. For an American-style honey butter, mix 50 g of soft butter with 2 tablespoons of honey and a pinch of salt, plus a hint of cinnamon if you like. Spread it on the still-warm slices: it melts into the crumb.
Jalapeño cheddar cornbread
Jalapeño cheddar cornbread is Texas’s favourite savoury version. Add 100 g of grated cheddar, 2 seeded and chopped jalapeños and, if you like, 150 g of drained sweetcorn to the batter. Reduce the honey to one tablespoon. If you cannot find jalapeños, half a teaspoon of Espelette pepper gives a gentle, fragrant heat.
What to eat with cornbread
Wondering what to eat with cornbread? In the South, it goes with stews and saucy dishes, and is used to mop up the sauce. It is perfect with our Louisiana gumbo, our Creole jambalaya or a chili con carne. It also pairs very well with barbecue, like our pulled pork with coleslaw. For breakfast, it is eaten warm with butter and maple syrup.
Thermomix cornbread
Thermomix cornbread is very simple. Put the eggs, buttermilk, honey and melted butter in the bowl and mix for 10 seconds on speed 4. Add the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt, then mix for 15 seconds on speed 3, no more, helping with the spatula. Pour into the hot skillet and bake as in the recipe.
Gluten-free cornbread
Corn contains no gluten: for a gluten-free cornbread, replace the wheat flour with the same amount of rice flour, or make it with 325 g of cornmeal alone for a more rustic, crumblier bread. Check that the cornmeal and baking powder are labelled gluten-free, as they can be produced in facilities that also handle wheat.
Cornbread calories
As for cornbread calories, count about 290 kcal per slice, for 8 slices, without the butter and honey for serving. It is a fairly rich bread because of the butter in the batter, but it provides complex carbohydrates and some fibre from the corn. To lighten it, reduce the melted butter to 50 g and partly replace it with natural yoghurt.
Storing cornbread
When storing cornbread, wrap it in foil or keep it in an airtight container once cooled: it keeps for 2 days at room temperature, or 4 to 5 days in the fridge. It freezes very well for up to 3 months, cut into slices. To reheat, put it in the oven at 180 °C for 5 minutes, or fry the slices in a little butter. Stale cornbread makes excellent croutons.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my cornbread dry and crumbly?
It was probably overbaked, or the cornmeal was too coarse. Take it out as soon as a knife comes out clean, and choose a fine cornmeal. Buttermilk and a share of wheat flour also help keep the crumb tender.
Can you use polenta?
Yes, fine or instant polenta works well. With coarser polenta, soak it for 10 minutes in the buttermilk before mixing: the cornbread will be less gritty.
