Sweet Buttermilk Cornbread

This cornbread is soft, but not too soft like a cake because of its 1:1 ratio of flour and cornmeal. The crumbs are moist and tender. The texture is nice and fluffy. The taste is sweet and a little bit savoury with a lovely rich corn flavour. To prepare this cornbread recipe, add flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

Add in some oil, an egg and of course, buttermilk. Mix everything quickly, bake it, and in less than 30 minutes, you’ll have hot, freshly baked cornbread. The most important part of making cornbread into something spectacular is heating your pan or dish in a preheated oven before doing anything else. This is where that amazing crisp/crunchy edge begins.

If you’re using a cast iron pan, melt your butter on the stove over medium heat. This way, you’re melting your butter, seasoning your pan and heating it all at the same time. Once the butter has melted, turn the heat off but keep your skillet on the burner. This way, you allow your butter to melt slightly to add to the batter, but your skillet stays hot enough for a perfect sizzle when the batter is poured in. If in doubt, after you’ve added the slightly cooled butter to the cornbread mixture, place your skillet back onto your burner and turn it on again to keep it hot before adding the batter. 

Ingredients

1 stick (8 tbsp./ 4Oz) unsalted butter melted ½ cup (100grams/ 3.5Oz) granulated sugar 2 eggs room temperature 1 cup (236ml) buttermilk, room temperature 1 cup (120grams/ 4.2Oz) all-purpose flour 1 cup (150grams/ 5.3Oz) cornmeal ½ tsp. salt 1/4 cup honey ½ tsp. baking soda

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly butter a bundt pan or an 8×8 inch glass or metal baking pan, and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, sugar and honey. Whisk in the eggs one at a time, beating until the mixture is smooth. Add the buttermilk and mix to combine. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking soda. 

Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring with a spatula until only a few lumps remain. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with the spatula to create an even layer. 

Allow the batter to sit for 3 minutes before placing it in the oven to bake. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven, brush the top with butter and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving.