*BEST* Cornbread Recipe

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Fluffy, buttery, and moist, this easy, homemade Cornbread Recipe is the perfect addition to your family dinner table. Or as a delicious snack! Looking for another Thanksgiving worthy corn dish? Try this Buttery Corn Casserole!

Cornbread | Perfect for Thanksgiving!

Cornbread is one of the ultimate comfort foods. It is slightly sweet, buttery, soft and moist. It can be eaten at any time of the year but most prefer it during the colder months or during the holidays. This cornbread recipe has earned its way into my Thanksgiving meal plans and I know it will be a fabulous addition to yours too!

Northern vs. Southern Cornbread

The main difference between northern and southern cornbread is texture. Northern cornbread is crumbly due to using less cornmeal and eggs, plus it is overall less sweet. While southern cornbread is more cake-like. It uses more eggs and has hints of buttery flavor. Today’s recipe most closely lines up with southern cornbread, nice and traditional.

Cornbread Ingredients

• Yellow Cornmeal – use yellow cornmeal for the color and texture of cornbread. Be careful that you don’t buy any of the cornmeals that are used to make tamales or corn flour. The texture will be all off.
• Flour – if you want to make gluten-free cornbread just replace the all-purpose flour with your favorite gluten-free flour blend.
• Salt – to season and to balance out the sweet.
• Baking Powder + Baking Soda – helps balance out the acids and also helps the cornbread rise.
• Butter – melted and cooled. Used for flavor.
• Sugar + Honey – to sweeten. Honey is used to add honey flavor and moisture.
• Eggs – for structure.
• Buttermilk – this brings a slight tang to it but also helps with the overall moisture of the bread.
• Creamed Corn – for texture and taste.

What is the best cornmeal for cornbread?

I really liked using Arrowhead Mills Yellow Cornmeal for this recipe. It’s organic and comes in a resealable bag!

How I Keep this Cornbread Moist

The first thing I did to keep this cornbread recipe moist was to use moist and flavorful ingredients. These include melted butter, honey, buttermilk, and creamed corn. There is no way this bread is drying out with this combo of ingredients.

The second thing was to bake the whole thing in a glass baking dish. Because the sides aren’t metal they don’t get as crispy and the whole thing turns out soft and cakey. If you’d like crispy edges to be sure to bake this in a cast-iron skillet!

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How to Make Cornbread

This Cornbread Recipe is an easy side dish that can be made in 35 minutes! It’s a one-bowl, tasty and moist recipe that gives you amazing results every single time. Find all of the measurements down below in the printable recipe card 🙂

Preheat + Prep

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. Be extra sure to grease your pan well!

What do I bake cornbread in?

I used a glass 9×13 baking dish but you could also use a large cast-iron skillet. This recipe yields a very moist and tender cake-like cornbread. If you’d like a more traditional cornbread, be sure to bake this in a cast-iron skillet to get crispier edges.

Make the Batter

In a large bowl, whisk cornmeal, flour, salt, and leavenings together until well combined.

Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and measure and pour in the remaining wet ingredients. Slowly stir together until a uniform batter forms. Pour into prepared baking dish.

Bake + Cool

Bake 20-25 minutes or until the edges and top have browned slightly. Remove from oven and cool at least 15 minutes before serving.

Storing + Reheating Cornbread

Cornbread can be stored either at room temperature or in the fridge. However, both methods need to use an airtight container to seal the cornbread away.

At room temperature cornbread will last 1-2 days while storing in the fridge extends its shelf life up to a week. This means that you could make this cornbread recipe ahead of time! Perfect for holiday preparations!

Or if you’re looking for a way to use leftover cornbread, I’d suggest making this Cornbread Dressing!

Freezing Instructions

Another way to make this cornbread recipe ahead of time is to freeze it.

Freeze. Simply place your baked and cooled cornbread into a freezer bag or wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. The trick is that you want to make sure the cornbread is sealed off from the atmosphere of the freezer. If you are freezing more than one cornbread loaf, place parchment paper between the layers to avoid sticking.

Defrost. Set the cornbread on your counter at room temperature for about 30 minutes.

Reheat. Wrap it in foil and throw it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

What to Serve with Cornbread

This Cornbread Recipe is best served fresh and warm. Traditionally it is served as a side dish to soups and stews. But it can also be served alongside other main dishes such as  Tangy Baked Beans, Easy Oven Baby Back Ribs or The Best Chili Recipe.

During the holiday’s cornbread is served with all of the traditional dishes. Turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and much more. It’s an early American dish that has stayed on the Thanksgiving table for centuries.

As stated before cornbread is also super tasty on its own. It makes an amazing snack or a great addition to your Thanksgiving leftovers. Slather with butter, honey butter, jams or jellies!

For more Thanksgiving carby side dishes, check these recipes out: Garlic and Herb Pull-Apart Biscuits, Pumpkin Drop Biscuits, and Sweet Potato Rolls!

Make sure to save this recipe for your Thanksgiving plans! The recipe card for this tender and delicious Cornbread Recipe is below! Print it, pin it, or bookmark it. Happy Holidays!