Classic Soul Food Cornbread (Print View)

Moist Southern-style cornbread baked in cast-iron and served warm with honey butter.

# What You'll Need:

→ Dry Ingredients

01 - 1 cup yellow cornmeal
02 - 1 cup all-purpose flour
03 - 1/4 cup granulated sugar
04 - 1 tablespoon baking powder
05 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
06 - 3/4 teaspoon fine salt

→ Wet Ingredients

07 - 1 cup whole milk
08 - 2 large eggs
09 - 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
10 - 1/4 cup vegetable oil

→ For Greasing

11 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

→ Honey Butter

12 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
13 - 2 tablespoons honey
14 - Pinch of salt

# Step-by-Step Directions:

01 - Preheat oven to 425°F. Place a 10-inch cast-iron skillet in the oven to heat while preparing the batter.
02 - In a large bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk milk, eggs, melted butter, and vegetable oil until well combined.
04 - Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Stir gently until just combined; avoid overmixing.
05 - Carefully remove hot skillet from oven. Add 2 tablespoons butter and swirl to coat bottom and sides evenly.
06 - Pour batter into hot buttered skillet and smooth the top surface.
07 - Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
08 - While cornbread bakes, beat softened butter with honey and salt in a small bowl until smooth and fluffy.
09 - Let cornbread cool 5 to 10 minutes before slicing. Serve warm with honey butter.

# Expert Suggestions:

01 -
  • It's foolproof enough for a weeknight but impressive enough to bring to dinner at someone's house without apology.
  • The honey butter situation is legitimately life-changing, turning ordinary cornbread into something people remember.
  • A cast-iron skillet creates edges so crispy and golden they'll disappear before anyone can stop eating them.
02 -
  • Do not skip preheating the skillet, because a cool or warm pan makes sad cornbread that steams instead of bakes, and nobody signed up for that.
  • The moment you see bubbles forming around the edges means the pan is doing its job, creating those crispy golden corners that make people go quiet when they eat.
03 -
  • If your oven runs hot or cool, adjust accordingly because every cornbread golden moment depends on proper heat, and 5 minutes too long turns it from perfect to overdone.
  • Make the honey butter while the cornbread bakes so it's ready the moment you pull the skillet out, transforming warm bread into something transcendent.
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