This post may contain affiliate links.
With 10 ingredients, this moist cornbread recipe is sweetened with honey, made with olive oil, and uses whole-wheat flour. Plus, frozen corn kernels are folded into the batter to create pops of fresh sweet corn flavor throughout. Ready in about 35 minutes, this cornbread bakes up beautifully in a skillet.
Being from the Midwest, cornbread is in my blood. It’s great all year round with soups, proteins, salads…pretty much everything. And I love baking with whole-wheat flour. But I’ve never seen a whole-wheat cornbread recipe. So, I set out to create a whole-wheat version that’s just as flavorful and moist as regular cornbread.
What I love about this easy cornbread with buttermilk is that it’s quick, baked in a skillet, and is wildly easy to make. I usually have everything on hand and can whip this up in about 30 minutes. Plus, a food processor or blender makes quick work of blending up the batter with minimal clean up.
Second, the batter is made with whole-wheat flour, honey, and olive oil. A cornbread made with good ingredients is a cornbread I’ll make time and time again.
And finally, it actually tastes like corn. So many recipes for cornbread are just cake. This cornbread has actual corn kernels in it, which give it a nice boost of flavor, texture, and sweetness.
Both this cornbread recipe and my flaky cheese biscuits with buttermilk are in regular rotation as my go-to side dish for my quick 45-minute chili.
Reader Review
“Absolutely perfect recipe! Very easy for a novice baker and delicious – a big hit when entertaining. Thank you!”
– Marissa
Reader Review
“Wonderful recipe with great flavor!!! Used a little more corn (1 cup). Very moist. Love cooking with cast iron! Will definitely make again!”
– Melanie
Ingredient Notes
Good news! This quick-baked cornbread in a skillet has only 10 ingredients! Here are a few helpful notes.
- Whole wheat pastry flour: whole-wheat pastry flour is one of my favorite ingredients in baking! I reserve it for tender bakes like this cornbread and my Blueberry Lemon Muffins. Find whole-wheat pastry flour near the other flours—I use Whole Foods 365 brand which you can order online.
- Baking powder and baking soda: this recipe uses quite a bit of baking powder—an entire tablespoon. This is key to giving the bread a lot of lift. Then just a touch of baking soda is needed for a well-rounded lift and some browning.
- Buttermilk: an essential ingredient! Buttermilk activates the baking soda and adds savory flavor to the bread. It’s a great way to impart buttery flavor without using butter.
- Frozen corn kernels: you can also use fresh but I find frozen is more practical. This simple addition elevates the cornbread and gives each bite beautiful pops of fresh sweetness!
- Large eggs: Make sure to use egg labeled as “large.” If you’re using farm-fresh, you can weigh the egg (out of shell) to verify you have the right amount. It should weight 50 grams.
- Honey: you’ll need ¼ cup of honey for this recipe, plus a bit more for brushing over the baked bread. Honey adds more flavor than white sugar would, and helps to keep the bread nice and moist.
- Olive oil: it’s key to use olive oil here! This is what gives the cornbread so much moisture. I like to use extra-virgin olive oil, but any regular olive oil will work too.
- Flaky sea salt: you can also use kosher salt, but flaky sea salt adds a nice bit of crunch to the top of the baked cornbread.
Here’s How Easy It Is To Make
1. Pulse together the wet ingredients and corn either in a food processor or blender.
2. Whisk together the dry ingredients then add wet ingredients and mix to combine.
Note: I’ve tested adding the dry ingredients straight to the processor/blender and it works well (one less bowl to clean!). Pulse just to combine—taking care not to over blend and puree the corn completely.
- Add oil to preheated cast-iron skillet and swirl to coat. Immediately pour batter into oiled pan and spread into an even layer.
- Bake until golden brown. Brush cornbread with warmed honey and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.
How to Get Buttery Flavor Without Butter
My main goal with this cornbread recipe was getting the buttery flavor while using olive oil instead of butter. After numerous recipe tests, here are a few ways I did that:
Bake the bread in a preheated cast-iron skillet.
The moment the batter hits the hot cast-iron skillet, the maillard reaction occurs.
What is that? It’s the reaction of food browning, aka flavor. In this recipe, the buttermilk and honey caramelize and the grains (flour and cornmeal) toast. Together, these ingredients and the maillard reaction combine to create a flavor that’s very similar to butter.
Finish with Flaky Sea Salt
Even if you use unsalted butter, there’s a certain savory, salty flavor that butter adds to baked goods. To maintain that salty bite, I finish this bread with flaky sea salt.
Why not just add it to the batter? Well I do that too, but finishing with a sprinkle of sea salt is a surefire way of bringing that flavor to the forefront.
Add Corn to the Batter
I always add actual corn to my cornbread. The benefits are three-fold; fresh corn adds flavor, texture, and moisture. For this recipe I call for frozen and thawed corn. But you can definitely use fresh, just steam it before using.
Tips for Storing Cornbread
- Don’t store the cornbread in the cast-iron skillet. Once baked you can serve the bread right out of the skillet. But I don’t recommend keeping the bread in the skillet for longer than 12 hours. After that, the bread starts to absorb some of the iron flavor from the skillet.
- General storing: Remove the cornbread from the skillet. Wrap in plastic wrap or store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge. This recipe keeps well for 4 days.
- For the freezer: This recipe freezes like a dream. Cut the bread into individual servings. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze for 1 to 2 months. To serve, be sure to thaw completely at room temperature for several hours or overnight before serving.
- Reheating: Microwave for 20 seconds or so until warm or place in a 200ºF oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
Mix-In Ideas
The best part about this recipe is it’s a base to add so many other delicious ingredients to create endless flavor combinations. Try adding:
- Jalapeno. For a little bit of a kick.
- Cheese. Add grated cheese, any kind will really do. I love cheddar or pepper Jack.
- Scallions. Gives a great light onion flavor.
- Fresh or dried herbs. I love chopped rosemary paired with the honey in this recipe.
What I Like to Serve It With
Soups, Stews & Chilis
Chile Colorado
Pork
Carne Adovada
Pork
Pork Chop Brine
Soups, Stews & Chilis
Quick and Easy Chili Recipe
Skillet-Baked Honey Cornbread with Buttermilk
Description
Video
Save This Recipe!
We’ll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups (160g) whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 cup (136 g) yellow cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- ¾ cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons honey, divided
- ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
- Flaky sea salt
Instructions
- Set a 10-inch cast-iron skillet on middle rack of oven; heat oven to 400°F (204ºC).
- Whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a food processor or blender, pulse together buttermilk, corn, eggs, ¼ cup honey, and ¼ cup oil until combined, 15–20 pulses (corn lumps will remain).
- Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in wet ingredients into well. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold mixture just to combine (small pockets of flour are OK.)
- Carefully remove cast-iron skillet from oven; pour remaining tablespoon oil into skillet, swirling to coat bottom of skillet.
- Pour batter into skillet and smooth top with spatula.
- Carefully return skillet to oven and bake cornbread until golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 24–25 minutes.
- Microwave remaining 2 tablespoons honey, in a microwave-safe bowl, for 30 seconds on medium power.
- Brush warm honey over surface of warm corn bread; sprinkle with sea salt. Let cool 15 minutes.
Notes
Nutrition
I’ll try this, but we eat gluten free. Do you think if I sub in gf all-purpose flour (Bob’s Red mill, mostly rice flour) for the wheat, the ratios would remain similar?
Thanks!
Hey Timothy, great question, I actually developed a gluten-free cornbread recipe using this same skillet technique (also has corn kernels in it like this one). It’s delicious!
Here is the recipe: https://zestfulkitchen.com/gluten-free-cornbread-recipe/
Wonderful recipe with great flavor!!! Used a little more corn (1 cup). Very moist. Love cooking with cast iron! Will definitely make again!
This was very good! Love how the olive oil complemented the dish! Will definitely be adding this to my favorites! Thank you!
Hi Lindsey! So happy to hear you liked the cornbread! Thanks for giving it a try and leaving a review!
Hi, Well, I did make this recipe today and was looking forward to my own “taste test”…..which I just accomplished. I used all the ingredients as called for in the recipe and followed the directions provided. I have to say that it did not meet my expectations for two reasons……it was EXTREMELY dry to my taste…….and I also could not really detect much, if any, “corn flavor”……..The texture was fine…….I did use a medium grind corn meal (Bob’s Red Mill Medium Grind) and Bob’s Red Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour.
I am on a restricted sodium diet and, even though this recipe is not a “low sodium” recipe”, I thought I could use it as a better option to other recipes I’ve seen and might try due to the sodium nutrient level per serving).
I was also looking for a cornbread recipe that would go well with a spicy Instant Pot Chili Recipe I’ve made several times.
If anybody has a comment on how to at least make this recipe more ‘moist’, please post a reply. Thanks very much.
Hi Ron, I’m sorry to hear you found this cornbread to be dry. I’ve tested, and made, this multiple times and have never had an issue of it coming out too dry. I’m curious, did you weigh flour and cornmeal or measure by cup. The reason I ask is that we all measure by cup differently, but weight is always consistent. Depending on how the dry ingredients were measured, a bit too much flour could have been added which would cause it to become too dry. Additionally, I would recommend checking the temperature or your oven with an oven thermometer. Most ovens run about 25 degrees higher or lower than they say which could have contributed to it coming out too dry. Lastly, I would make sure you use eggs labeled and graded as large. I have updated the ingredient list to specify that.
I hope this helps!
My go-to recipe now. I sour almond milk with apple cider vinegar. Sometimes I add a bit of almond pulp (from making the almond milk) as I’m always looking for a way to use it. I’ve used maple syrup, brown sugar- the recipe adapts well to what is in my pantry on any given day. Really terrific.
Hi Andi! I love that you’ve found the recipe adapts well. These are such great tips for other readers. Thanks for sharing!!
OMG!! WOW!! Healthy really is good!! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
This is delicious, I was looking for a heart friendly recipe and this is it. So easy to make, I love the subtlety of the olive oil and the texture of the blended corn.. I did not have whole wheat pastry flour so I substituted Kamut flour.
Hi Dee! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe and am pleased to hear kamut flour worked out well. Thanks for sharing!!
Do you have to make this in a skillet? I was hoping to put it in a one time use aluminum pan for easy storage.
Hi Annie! Great question—I haven’t tested this in an aluminum pan but it should work fine in an 8×8-inch aluminum pan! The cornbread will likely need a few more minutes in the oven since the pan won’t be preheated. Start checking it at 25 minutes, it may need 5-10 minutes more, but keep an eye on it! Let me know how it goes!
The cornbread turned out beautifully!! A great display at the dinner table. My guests gobbled uo, ok new too!! Sea salt & honey made it truly special. I added rosemary which added additional flavors. Thank you so much!! I am so glad to have a healthy alternative which my boys love.
Hi Helen! I love the idea of adding Rosemary—I will definitely do that the next time I make this! So glad you and your guests loved this—thanks for trying it!
We loooved this. the honey brushed over the top at the end is a game changer. Didn’t have flaky sea salt so I used kosher, but have ordered some flaky sea salt for next time!
This was super delicious and easy receipe to follow. Thank you
Hi this was so delicious and easy receipe to follow. Thank you.
This bread is seriously the best I have ever had – thank you so much!!!
A new favorite! This was so good.
OMG the honey + flaky sea salt = perfection! Will make this again for sure.
Absolutely perfect recipe! Very easy for a novice baker and delicious – a big hit when entertaining. Thank you!
Hi! Perfect recipe. I love corn bread. What is the replacement for “pastry” whole wheat flour? I have regular whole wheat flour at home which is called “aatta”
Looking forward to trying your recipe.
Hi Sheenam,
You can use white whole wheat flour instead of the whole wheat pastry flour, though there is a risk the bread will be a bit more dense. You can also use all-purpose flour, if you do opt for that, I recommend decreasing the baking powder to 2 teaspoons. Enjoy!
If we use regular wheat flour, should we decrease the amount of baking powder? or only if we use a different kind of flour?
Hi Xana,
If you use all-purpose flour I would decrease the amount of baking powder to 2 teaspoons. If you use regular whole-wheat flour, keep the measurement as-is.
I hope that helps!
This was SO delicious and super simple to make. Will be making again ASAP! Thank you!
Love cornbread in a skillet. This is an amazing recipe. My whole family loved it!
The perfect, easy to make cornbread! YUM!