This honey cornbread is the ultimate cornbread recipe! It’s slightly sweet, perfectly tender and absolutely delicious. Use it as a side dish or crumble it up to make cornbread stuffing.

You can never go wrong with cornbread, especially when paired with complementary dishes such as smoked pork tenderloin, Texas chili, ham and beans, Hoppin’ John, Shrimp Creole and honey glazed ham.

A stack of cornbread topped with butter and honey

There are so many types of cornbread out there, everything from sweet cornbread that’s so sugary it’s almost like cake, to super savory cornbread with cheese, jalapenos and other fun add ins. This honey cornbread is the perfect in between cornbread – not too sweet, not too savory, perfect to use in Southern cornbread dressing or enjoy as is. It’s also super easy to make and only uses a single bowl! How can you go wrong with what? It’s the ultimate side dish recipe!

Honey Cornbread Ingredients

To make this recipe, you will need butter, yellow cornmeal, all purpose flour, baking powder, sugar, buttermilk, salt, eggs and honey.

How Do You Make Honey Cornbread?

Start by preheating the oven and greasing a baking pan or large skillet with butter. Place the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a large bowl and mix. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients of buttermilk, eggs, melted butter and honey. Stir everything together until it is combined. Be careful not to overmix the batter! Bake until the cornbread is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the bread comes out with just a few crumbs attached. Cool, then cut into pieces and serve.

A cast iron pan of honey cornbread.

Tips For The Perfect Dish

  • You can bake this cornbread in a cast iron skillet or in a square baking pan, whichever you prefer. This recipe also makes great cornbread muffins. If you’re more in a muffin mood, divide the batter equally into a greased 12 cup muffin tin, bake for 15 minutes, then enjoy!
  • Don’t skip the step of using an extra tablespoon of butter to grease the dish – it creates the most delicious golden brown crust! I know the inclination is to use cooking spray, which I typically use, but in this case, go for the butter. Because let’s be honest, cornbread is basically a vehicle to consume lots of butter and jam and honey, am I right?
  • I love to serve this cornbread alongside a hearty bowl of tortellini soup or as a side to a holiday meal such as Instant Pot ham or Thanksgiving turkey.
  • Have you heard of cornbread in milk? It’s a Southern thing and when I mentioned it on my Facebook page I got a huge reaction! You can even add sugar to the milk to enhance the experience. It’s definitely a unique way to eat cornbread!

Quick Tip

Leftover cornbread will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. You can also freeze it for 2 months.

A plate full of squares of bread made with cornmeal.

Recipe FAQs

What is the difference between Northern cornbread and Southern cornbread?

Southern cornbread contains sugar and/or honey, and also has eggs which give it more of a cake like texture. Northern cornbread is not as sweet, and contains less eggs which makes it crumbly.

What can I add to cornbread?

You can add a variety of sweet and savory ingredients to cornbread. Some popular options are shredded cheese, jalapenos or corn kernels.

Is homemade cornbread better than Jiffy?

Homemade cornbread tastes much better than boxed mixes such as Jiffy. It has a more pronounced flavor and also a light and fluffy texture.

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A glass of milk with cornbread crumbled into it.

Flavor Variations

This recipe is fabulous as-is, but you can add other ingredients to customize the flavors to your tastes.

  • Sweetener: Instead of honey, try maple syrup for a different flavor.
  • Buttermilk: No buttermilk on hand? You can make your own by mixing together 1 cup of milk and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes, then use it in the recipe as directed.
  • Add-Ins: Feel free to add up to 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese, cooked crumbled bacon, or corn kernels. You can also add 2 tablespoons of roasted green chilies or diced jalapenos.

This cornbread recipe is so versatile. I love that it’s easy to make, and it produces perfect results every time!

More Recipes You’ll Enjoy

Honey Cornbread Video

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Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.

5 from 69 votes

Honey Cornbread

AuthorSara Welch
A stack of cornbread topped with butter and honey
This honey cornbread is the ultimate cornbread recipe! It’s slightly sweet, perfectly tender and absolutely delicious.
Time
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Serves 10

Ingredients 

  • 1 tablespoon butter softened
  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 tablespoons butter melted
  • 1/4 cup honey

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Use the softened butter to grease a 9 or 10 inch square baking pan or cast iron skillet.
  • In a large bowl, mix together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar and salt.
  • Make a well in the middle of the dry mixture and add the buttermilk, eggs, butter and honey.
  • Stir until just combined – do not overmix!
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached. Cool for at least 10 minutes. Cut into pieces and serve.

Notes

  1. You can bake this cornbread in a cast iron skillet or in a square baking pan, whichever you prefer. This recipe also makes great cornbread muffins. If you’re more in a muffin mood, divide the batter equally into a greased 12 cup muffin tin, bake for 15 minutes, then enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 230kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 322mg | Potassium: 234mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 260IU | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 1.4mg

Hello! I’m Sara!

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Comments

    1. That should be fine, or you can stir 1 tablespoon lemon juice into 1 cup of milk and let it sit for 10 minutes to make your own buttermilk.

  1. 5 stars
    This recipe is so good, I would like to double it!! Have you ever tried that? Do you think you could double this recipe and bake in an 9×13 inch pan?

  2. What could i use to replace eggs in thus recipe? I want to make it for my boyfriend who lovessss cornbread and all things buttermilk but he’s allergic to eggs 🙁

  3. This recipe and procedure is spot on for this Southern man. I have spent the better part of my married adult life working on a simple way to get a “not too sweet” and “not too savory” cornbread. I used Alton Brown’s recipe for many years but was often flummoxed when it stuck to the bottom of my cast iron pan. While researching cornbread stuffing recipes for this Thanksgiving I came upon this little gem. I made the cornbread and then used it to make the stuffing and boom. I realized that I had something. I was so excited that I made a second batch of cornbread for my wife to try and Boom, the seas parted and Daddy had now walked on water. We enjoyed this cornbread recipe so much that it was instantly written into the holy lexicon of our family recipe book. Sara, thank you so much for this jewel. I plan on making zero changes (which I don’t often do). Happy Thanksgiving!

  4. I’m eager to make this recipe but because of my health am unable to consume baking powder. In many recipes I can substitute 1/4 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp lemon juice for 1 tsp baking powder. How do you think that would work? I can already smell the cornbread baking. Yum!

    1. You bake it in a cast iron skillet because the oils and fats in the cornbread are great for maintaining the seasoning of the skillet. The cast iron also creates a phenomenally even cooking temperature and the cornbread has a nice crisp texture when treating the skillet with butter as the recipe recommends.

    2. What I did was warm up the butter and the pan on the stovetop, then put in the oven. I achieved a perfect, even brown color all around the bottom and sides. Too often when I have tried cornbread on the stove top with a cast iron skillet, the bottom becomes tough and dry as well as very uneven browning. Stick to the procedure in the recipe. it’s a winner for sure.

  5. Thank You So Much for posting the recipe I’ve been searching for. The Best Ever!!! Perfect amount of sweetness & the honey addition takes it to another level of perfection!! I’m going to try it w ur dressing recipe!! 🙌🏼 Thx again – Happy Holidays!!

      1. I used the self rising aunt jemima cornmeal 2 cups and added everything else .it turned out delicious

  6. 5 stars
    I didn’t have buttermilk so used kefir and, wow! It’s one of the most delicious cornbread recipes I’ve tried! SO moist, so tasty. Thank you!

  7. 5 stars
    Delicious with a great moisture balance. I’m lactose intolerant and I used lactose-free skim milk. Came out perfect in a square ceramic baking dish.

  8. You don’t list baking powder in the recipie but mention it in the assemblage of the dry ingredients? How much making powder?
    Thanks
    Rob

    1. did you use self rising corn meal or all purpose? The recipe doesn’t say. I’m thinking plain. TIA!!