Sweet Cornbread Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between southern cornbread and sweet cornbread? ›

Northern cornbreads tend to be more cake-like, on the sweet side, with a finer crumb due to more flour in the mixture. Southern cornbread is flavored with bacon grease, and cooked in a cast iron skillet, a perfect side for barbecues, or chili. It also tends to be rather crumbly.

Cornbread came about as more ingredients were added to the basic corn pone recipe: buttermilk, eggs, and a leavener such as baking soda or baking powder (or both). However, modern cornbread recipes, even in the South, now include wheat flour and sugar.

Combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Mix egg, sour cream, milk, and butter in a small bowl. Fold egg mixture into flour mixture until just moistened; pour into prepared baking dish.

Sugar: I prefer granulated sugar as it enhances the pure flavor of the cornmeal. You may substitute a little brown sugar for the granulated sugar for a touch of molasses flavor but it will dilute the corn flavor.

Northern cornbread isn't very sweet and is made with fewer eggs and yellow cornmeal to achieve a crumbly texture. Southern-style cornbread can be made with white or yellow cornmeal, has a buttery finish and calls for more eggs, which produces a cakelike texture.

Southern cornbread has traditionally been made with little or no sugar and smaller amounts of flour (or no flour), with northern cornbread being sweeter and more cake-like. Southern cornbread traditionally used white cornmeal and buttermilk. Other ingredients such as pork rinds are sometimes used.

A Johnny cake recipe makes a thinner batter that is fried into rounds, essentially making cornmeal pancakes. Cornbread is made with baking soda or baking powder to give it a bread-like lift and texture and is oven-baked in a baking dish and cut into squares for serving.

The term "pone" most likely entered English from Native American language terms like apan, oppone or supawn, meaning baked, possibly related to earlier ash cakes baked in hot coals. A "corn pone" is usually a small round loaf of cornbread, about the size of a biscuit, traditionally baked in a round cast iron skillet.

The simplest are hoecakes, a mixture of cornmeal, water, and salt, so named because they were originally baked on the flat of a hoe over a wood fire. Johnnycakes and corn pone are somewhat thicker cakes that may have added ingredients such as fat or wheat flour.

While many enjoy cornbread as a sweet snack or dessert, others may be looking for a savory alternative to serve as a side dish or even just on its own as a snack. Many variations of the recipe in fact (including many from the Southern United States) have little to no sugar.

Is Jiffy cornbread the same as cornmeal? ›

Jiffy cornbread mix, in case you really are standing in the baking aisle wondering, is wheat flour mixed with some cornmeal, a lot of sugar, lard, baking soda, and a handful of preservatives. (Note that because of the wheat flour, it's not gluten-free.) Use it to make creamy, cheesy Corn Pudding.

Yes, corn will raise your blood sugar because it contains carbohydrates. However, it has a low glycemic index and is a good source of fiber. Pairing it with foods rich in fiber, protein, and fat can help reduce the rate at which your blood sugars rise and promote blood sugar management.

In contrast to the dryer, less-sweet nature of Southern cornbread, Northern cornbread is much more cakey and sweet. Indeed, colonial Americans made their cornbread with molasses to sweeten it. Also, Northern cornbread sometimes uses milk rather than buttermilk.

The most common theory is a change in cornmeal itself. Until early in the 20th century, Southern cornmeal was made with sweeter white corn and it was water-ground. When industrial milling came along, that changed. The steel-roller mills used yellow corn that was harvested before it was ripe, so it had less sugar.

Although it's relatively high in carbs and sodium, it contains several important nutrients, including phosphorus, selenium, and B vitamins. It's also versatile, easy to make, and can be enjoyed in moderation as part of a healthy diet.

Types of cornmeal: Cornmeal can be categorized primarily by two factors: color and grind size. Yellow cornmeal has the most prominent corn flavor, while white cornmeal has a more subtle, delicate flavor (it's especially nice in a ricotta cornmeal cake).