This tender, moist and almost cake like Brown Butter Honey Cornbread recipe will be the best bread to grace your supper table. Filled with flavors like nutty rich brown butter and sweet honey, it is sure to impress all who try it! If you love this, you will also love this Corn Pone.
Serve with this Hoppin John or even Collard Greens for a lovely southern meal! Looking for another cornbread recipe, definitely check out this Corn Spoonbread, Southern Cornbread Recipe, Corn Muffins or Hot Water Cornbread!
Irresistible Brown Butter Honey Cornbread!
Brown Butter Honey Cornbread is here Honey Child! Cornbread has been a staple in my household for as long as I can remember. With a corporate working mom, I grew up on Jiffy being the quick bread of choice for weeknight dinners. I would enjoy a homemade batch whenever we visited my big mama in Mississippi or whenever my auntie was making cornbread dressing.
Whether your preference is Southern style cornbread (savory with no sugar added, thank you very much) or Northern style (a nice sweet cake like kick is mighty fine indeed), there is no denying that cornbread is quite the comfort food.
What Is Honey Cornbread?
I set out to create a brown butter honey cornbread recipe that would kick the traditional kind up a notch. I started with adding brown butter to the mix, which is a big fixation for me nowadays if you haven’t quite noticed yet. It just adds so much depth of flavor! Then I threw in some honey to sweeten the deal.
By creating a more cake-like texture with the addition of flour, this brown butter cornbread with honey had me singing with delight after adding a pat of butter. I loved how it melted down the sides as I took a nice warm slice from my cast iron skillet to partake in.
Ingredients for Brown Butter Honey Cornbread Recipe
The key ingredients that truly make this recipe fantastic are the following:
- Cornmeal
- Flour
- Baking Powder
- Sugar
- Buttermilk
- Honey
- Butter
- Eggs
- Vanilla
A combination of both yellow cornmeal and flour makes this cornbread the perfect texture. Too much cornmeal can give a really gritty taste. Flour helps balance this recipe making it perfect.
The use of one leavening, baking powder, gives this cornbread the perfect lift.
There is a nice amount of sugar in this recipe since we want it to be sweet. However we also add the honey which makes the honey stand out most.
Eggs are used for steady structure here, and the egg yolks also add richness. Buttermilk adds delicious moistness and rich tangy flavor. Vanilla extract is a lovely flavor and almost makes this cornbread almost taste cake like, and I love it!
Finally, the butter is essential! And we brown it. It adds a nutty flavor and takes the flavor over the top!
How To Make Honey Cornbread
Cornbread is a very easy batter to mix and bake. It doesn’t require a lot of elements, and this recipe is more of a dump and stir recipe.
The real element that requires more time is the browning of butter.
How to Brown Butter: In a small saucepan, add butter and melt over medium heat. Once melted, a white foam will begin to appear over the top of the butter. You’ll know your butter is ready when it becomes amber brown and wonderfully fragrant then you will allow to cool.
There is no need to over mix the cornbread. Once it combines, it is ready to bake up.
Tip for Adding Honey: I love to spray my measuring cup with non stick spray before adding honey because it slides out quite easily into the mixture.
How to Make Buttermilk: If you don’t have buttermilk in your house, make your own! Add a teaspoon of lemon to milk or even coconut milk and allow it to sour then add to this recipe.
How to Bake Crisp Edges of Cornbread: In my family, we use bacon grease but you can use lard or even shortening and add to a cast iron skillet. We add it to a hot oven and allow it to get hot before pouring in our cornbread mixture. It creates two amazing different textures.
What To Serve Brown Butter Honey Cornbread Recipe With
This winter, try making a skillet of this brown butter honey cornbread or if you want some great fall cornbread, make this Brown Butter Pumpkin Cornbread. Here are some amazing recipes to pair it with:
Brown Butter Honey Child Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup corn meal
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 cup buttermilk I used coconut milk with a teaspoon of lemon juice to sour it
- 1/2-1/3 cup honey This comes down to preference- add less or more depending on how sweet you like your cornbread!
- 1/2 stick salted butter
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
- Shortening
- Cast Iron Skillet
Instructions
- Preheat Oven to 400 degrees.
- In a saute' pan, melt butter over medium heat and wait until butter begins to brown. Be careful not to burn. Remove from heat and cool.
- In a large bowl, whisk together all-purpose flour, corn meal, baking powder and sugar until well mixed. In a separate medium sized bowl, whisk together buttermilk, honey, cooled browned butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and oil.
- Slowly add wet mixture to dry mixture and mix together until well combined.
- Coat cast iron skillet with shortening until fully covered. Place cast iron skillet in preheated oven for 4-5 minutes.
- Remove cast iron skillet from oven and add cornbread mixture to skillet. Place back in oven for 22-25 minutes until cornbread is done. Remove from oven and serve. Happy Baking!
What size cast iron skillet should I use for this cornbread recipe?
A 9 or 10 inch is great.
Super Goodness in a frying pan!
Seriously amazing. Used coconut oil instead & was perfect. The vanilla is unique but I’m obsessed.
So so good. Can I use more brown butter in place of the vegetable oil?
I would suggest instead suggest replacing the vegetable oil with a different oil that you approve in its place.
The BEST cornbread we have ever had, and I have tried many recipes. The kids ate it ALL in one sitting. Can’t wait to make it again!!!
Made this last night and served with chili. First cornbread I’ve made, and it was very good! I baked it in a 9 x 13 ” pan for 22 minutes – worked really well. Thanks for a great recipe!
This was the most delicious cornbread I’ve ever made. Plus, it was super easy to make! Using a cast iron was genius, and that brown butter was key. Ordering more corn meal, so I can make another batch.
Incredibly easy to make and it’s delicious!
This is really GOOD Cornbread, I just made this. My family & I love it, this is a keeper, My husband ask me to fix it again with some chili beans…lol…thank you for another GOOD recipe
So light and fluffy! We did not have the skillet with us and used the 9 X 11 plan, but will absolutely try again with the cast-iron skillet next time! Jocelyn, any ideas on if we were to add blueberries? One of our favorite places on Southport has a blueberry cornbread that we would love to try at home!
Oh yes, I think you can add a cup of blueberries right on in and bake it up and it will be delicious! In fact, let me know how that turns out for you because I might just try it myself!!!