The Best Cornbread on the Planet {and Fluffy Honey Butter}

This really is the best cornbread on the planet. It’s been my go-to tried-and-true recipe for over a decade. Fluffy, moist, PERFECT!

Sometimes a recipe comes along that changes your life forever. 

Dramatic? Not at all. Especially when it comes to this cornbread. It is honestly, truly the best cornbread on the planet. 

I am guilty of claiming to have found “the best” recipe and then inevitably find myself still trying other versions. Chocolate chip cookies, I’m looking at you. 

But when it comes to this cornbread, it has been my go-to recipe for over a decade.

Once I tried it, I knew it was the one. And I have never had a desire to make or try another cornbread recipe again. 

If you’ve made it, you know what I mean. 

It is fluffy, moist, and super easy. 

Now, I know when it comes to cornbread, there are southern cornbread fans (sweet and cake-like) and northern cornbread fans (not sweet and crumbly). I like my cornbread fluffy, thick and sweet. 

Cornbread batter

This is a one-bowl cornbread batter. It comes really fast. 

The batter is simple: 

• cornmeal (I use yellow cornmeal)
• flour (all-purpose or a mix of all-purpose and whole wheat)
• sugar (the amount in the recipe can easily be halved for a less sweet, but still delicious, cornbread)
• baking powder
• salt
• wet ingredients: oil, melted butter, eggs, and milk

The batter is runny. And it’s ok if there are a few lumps here and there. 

It bakes up super fluffy and soft.

Fluffy Honey Butter

Now, let’s talk about this honey butter for a sec. Is it mandatory for this best-ever cornbread. 

Nope. I make the cornbread all the time without making the honey butter. But when I do make the honey butter, it is a combo that can’t be beat. 

There’s nothing quite like it. 

The honey butter is three simple ingredients: butter, honey, and marshmallow fluff. You can add a bit of vanilla, too, if you like. 

Sure, you can omit the marshmallow fluff and just go with honey and butter, but the marshmallow adds a light and fluffy texture that can’t be beat. 

Delicious served with everything from chili to tacos, here are a few other comments from people who have fallen in love with this cornbread:

Samantha says: I’ve been meaning to write a review for this recipe for awhile now. It is fantastic! Everything I’ve ever wanted cornbread to be! 

Maggie says: Fantastic. Over the past few years I’ve tried every cornbread recipe I could get my hands on had given up making it from scratch. It’s my new fav recipe.

Devanie writes: I loved this recipe. It came out perfectly moist and the texture was great. And so delicious. This is the only recipe I will use going forward. Thanks for sharing!

There are hundred more comments and reviews below (including readers who have made this recipe dairy and gluten-free).

So go ahead. Make the cornbread. Make the honey butter. Or JUST make the cornbread. 

Either way, this cornbread is life changing. It has become a staple and a tried-and-true favorite. 

While I may play around with a million other recipes for a million other things, this is the only cornbread I’ll ever need. It’s the best of the best of the best.

The Best Cornbread

Yield: 12 pieces of cornbread

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 35 minutes mins

Total Time: 50 minutes mins

4.81 stars (224 ratings)

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Ingredients

Cornbread:

• ½ cup (85 g) cornmeal
• 1 ½ cups (213 g) flour (see note)
• ⅔ cup (141 g) granulated sugar (see note)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup oil
• 3 tablespoons (42 g) butter, melted
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 ¼ cups milk

Honey Butter:

• 1 cup (227 g) salted butter, softened
• ½ cup (170 g) honey
• ½ cup marshmallow fluff

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Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease an 8X8- or 9X9-inch baking pan (I always use metal; glass pans will bake differently).
• For the cornbread, in a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the oil, butter, eggs, and milk and stir with a whisk or rubber spatula until just combined. The batter will be runny.
• Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
• For the honey butter, whip all the ingredients together with an electric mixer. Best served at room temperature so it is soft and spreadable.

Notes

Flour: I often use half to 3/4 finely ground white whole wheat flour with good results – and sometimes I get crazy and use 100% whole wheat flour (always finely ground white wheat); the cornbread is a bit more dense with all wheat flour but still delicious.

Sugar: the sugar can be decreased by half with less sweet, but still good, results.

Doubled Recipe: this recipe doubles for a 9X13-inch pan (or 1 1/2 the recipe for a 9X13-inch pan for slightly less thick cornbread).

Author: Mel

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Method: Bake

Serving: 1 Piece, Calories: 423kcal, Carbohydrates: 46g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 26g, Saturated Fat: 12g, Cholesterol: 80mg, Sodium: 387mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 27g

Recommended Products

Mixing Bowl

9X13-inch Metal Baking Pan

Electric Hand Mixer

Measuring Cups

Recipe Source: My brother Nate and his wife, Kylie (love you forever!)
Recipe originally published August 2009; updated April 2020 with new photos, commentary and recipe notes

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