Honey Butter Cornbread

Name: Honey Butter Cornbread
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 22 min
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon salted butter ((for the pan)); ½ cup salted butter ((melted and cool to the touch)); 1 cup buttermilk ((room temperature)); ¼ cup sugar; 2 tablespoons honey; ⅓ cup sour cream ((or plain Greek yogurt)); 2 count eggs ((room temperature)); 1 cup yellow cornmeal ((165g)); 1 cup all-purpose flour ((120g)); 1 tablespoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon salt; ½ teaspoon baking soda; 1 tablespoon salted butter ((melted)); ½ tablespoon honey

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This Honey Butter Cornbread is so soft and moist, with a tender crumb and perfectly sweet flavor throughout each bite! The batter comes together all in one bowl; in less than 30 minutes, you can have a delicious pan of warm cornbread for all your soul food meals.

A plate of honey butter cornbread stacked on each other, with the rest of the baking pan in the corner of the photo.

If you like the sweetness of Jiffy cornbread, but want something homemade with recognizable ingredients, this recipe is for you! It's made with kitchen-staple ingredients and doesn't require any mixers. The end result is a super soft cornbread with crispy golden brown edges... it's so good!

Honey being drizzled on top of a stack of square cornbread pieces on a plate.

The Coined Breakdown

Total Cost per serving: $0.19
Total Cost (about 16 squares): $3.08
Those Other Guys: $3.99 per piece

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Ingredients
Variations and Substitutions
How to Make Honey Butter Cornbread
Recipe Pro Tips
Recipe FAQs
Other Affordable Bread Recipes You'll Love!
Honey Butter Cornbread

Ingredients

Yellow Cornmeal - Of course, we need cornmeal for cornbread. Cornmeal is simply ground field corn. I suggest the fine-textured cornmeal to make sure we have a light, beautiful crumb.
Butter - The batter contains melted butter, plus we brush a little honey butter onto the finished product at the end.
Flour - Helps to give the cornbread structure and lift.
Sour Cream - This gives more moisture to the cornbread. I usually swap for plain Greek yogurt.
Honey - For sweetness; honey is also a humectant, which means it grabs on to moisture in the batter. We add honey to the batter and to the crust after baking.
Eggs - These provide structure to the cornbread and help it rise beautifully.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda - A combination of both gives our cornbread the perfect amount of rise. It also helps with the crumb and texture.

Variations and Substitutions

Shapes: I usually use an 8x8 baking dish for honey butter cornbread. You can also bake it in a cast iron skillet, or turn it into cornbread muffins using a cupcake tin.

Jalapeño Skillet Cornbread: This bread is moist and buttery, with a light crumb and the perfect hint of spice.

Brown Butter Sage Cornbread: Made with browned butter that's infused with sage leaves - this bread is incredible!

Hot Honey Butter Cornbread: Love the spice? Make a batch of hot honey sauce and brush on top while warm. My recipe for Hot Honey Chicken has the steps for it in the recipe card.

How to Make Honey Butter Cornbread

Two hands wearing oven mitts holding a hot ceramic baking dish with melted butter inside.

Step 1: Add a pat of butter to the baking dish and let it melt/brown in the oven while it's preheating.

To get a nice crisp crust on the cornbread, we're going to carefully add the batter to a hot pan.

A mixing bowl with cornbread batter and a wooden spoon inside.

Step 2: Go ahead and prepare your batter per the recipe instructions.

Pour the batter into the preheated baking pan and bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. It's that easy!

Recipe Pro Tips

Start with room temperature ingredients. Make sure your butter, buttermilk, and eggs are room temperature. This helps avoid the batter seizing up for a more cohesive bowl.
Gently mix! Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until everything just comes together. If you overmix your batter, your cornbread will bake up dense and hard.
Use a hot pan. For a golden brown crust with a soft inside, add your batter to a hot, greased pan or skillet.
Tent the pan with foil. The additional sugar in this recipe will cause the top of your cornbread to brown quickly. Tent your baking dish with aluminum foil about halfway through cooking if you want an even color all around.

Recipe FAQs

What if I don't have buttermilk for my cornbread?

If you run out of prepared buttermilk, you can make your own by adding 1 tbsp. of lemon juice to a 1-cup measuring cup. Then, fill the cup up with regular milk. Let it sit for a few minutes until it's slightly curdled.

How do I get a crispy crust on my cornbread?

First, I recommend using a cast iron skillet for even heating. Then, use the technique I list below of buttering the skillet, setting it in the oven until hot, then pouring the cornbread batter into the hot skillet. That helps get a buttery, golden-brown crust!

Can I freeze honey butter cornbread?

Yes, this freezes very well.

If you're freezing after baking, let the cornbread cool completely. Wrap with plastic wrap and then with aluminum foil. Add this to a heavy duty freezer-safe bag or container. Freeze for up to 2.5 months. You can freeze the entire block of cornbread, or individual slices - but just wrap it thoroughly before placing in the freezer.