For you true Southerners, cover your eyes! This Skillet Cornbread has –gasp– sugar in it! I make no apologies, since I’m a Northern kinda baker. Forget that box mix! This cornbread is easy to make from scratch. You can have this on the table in 30 minutes! It’s moist and so incredibly delicious. (Pssst, it reminds me of Marie Callender cornbread.)
Cornbread is so easy to make that I can’t fathom buying cornbread mix. My Southern friend says that putting sugar in cornbread is blasphemy. I’m a California Yankee– and I prefer my cornbread to be on the Marie Callender side of sweet! If that’s how you like it, too, this is the recipe for you.
Now that cooler weather has finally arrived, my slow cooker is getting a bit more attention. I made a pot of delicious Charro Beans (recipe will be posted next) and I debated how to serve it. With a side salad? Over rice? Then it hit me. Cornbread! This recipe is one that I posted 15 years ago. The pictures were so amateur and in dire need of new photos. I’ve made this recipe multiple times, so the timing to shoot new pics had finally arrived.
I always have corn meal in the pantry, so making cornbread is a no-brainer for me! A cast iron skillet is ideal for this quick bread, because it bakes with a caramelized crust on the outside, yet a tender bread on this inside. Otherwise, go ahead and bake these in a pan, or even as muffins (just check the timing sooner).
Prepare your skillet with a light coating of butter or oil, set into the oven and preheat it to 400F.
The dry ingredients are flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients together.
The wet ingredients are butter, sugar, vanilla, milk and eggs. Using a stand or hand mixer, cream the softened butter and sugar together. Add the eggs and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk.
The skillet handle will be screaming hot, so be very careful when pouring the batter. You might hear a sizzle, and that’s a good thing! TIP: Place an oven mitt, thick towel or these silicone handle holders on the skillet handle so you don’t accidentally grab it and suffer burns. (I’m speaking from past experience.)
Bake for about 15-20 minutes, depending on your oven. Test the bread with a toothpick. It should come out clean.
Cornbread is ideal served hot, with butter. Honey is even better! The next day, the microwave can warm these right up and they taste great. Just store it in container with an air tight seal.
Cornbread goes perfectly with chili, stew and hearty soups. These are the bowl of Charro Beans that I made in a slow cooker.
TASTING NOTES: I need to bake cornbread more often. It’s such a simple bread with so many possibilities. I love it with honey butter or homemade jam. Yum! Who needs box mix? All of the ingredients are in my pantry, and it took just minutes to make the batter. Leftover cornbread can be made into homemade stuffing. I just add cooked vegetables, seasoning and chicken stock.
This recipe is so easy to make, Leave out the sugar if you’re from the South! Either way, this is my keeper recipe.
This post was been edited with updated photos from its original publication date of 2009
Skillet Cornbread (Yankee Style)
Equipment
- 1 10" oven-proof skillet cast iron is ideal
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup butter softened
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 1 1/3 cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly grease 10 1/2-inch cast-iron skillet and place in oven while it is preheating.
- In a large bowl, cream together sugar, butter, salt, & vanilla.
- Stir in eggs and mix well.
- In a separate medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, & cornmeal.
- Alternately stir flour mixture & milk into egg mixture and beat until well-blended.
- Bake in preheated cast-iron skillet for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
- Serve warm with butter & honey.
Nutrition
I’m with you…I like my cornbread sweet. Yours looks wonderful. Your roses are fabulous!! It is so early in the spring here that our weeds haven’t even begun to grow LOL. It will be two months before we see roses.
That macro feature is a Godsend. Your cornbread looks great and using the cast iron skillet is a great idea. I got a set of three at a garage sale for $5 many years ago and I love them!
I am so glad for all the info on castron. I have a pan that I thought was ready for the trash, I will do as yousayand clean it thatway and then make YOUR cornbread in it, it sounds fantastic esp with honey butter..mmmmm
Your cornbread looks deeelish. I don’t have a cast iron, but I always loved when my mom would make cornbread in the cast iron skillet growing up. Oh, and your roses look absolutely gorgeous!! Such beautiful pictures.
“I like my cornbread sweet, with butter and honey.” Me too!
Your roses are beautiful!
I just got acquainted with my cast iron pan recently as well. Funny how something can be so intimidating when you don’t know how to use it! Even though I’m a southerner, I do like sweet cornbread (as well as the traditional versions) with a big smear of honey butter. Although the unsweetened kind is best in a glass of milk! YUM!
I remember when you first made this, using baking soda rather than baking powder! LOL! Glad it worked out for you on the next try!
Bravo. Looking forward to trying these out for Colt's birthday!