This Honey Cornbread Recipe is one of my family’s most-requested sides — it’s sweetened with real honey instead of sugar, so it comes out moist, tender and just sweet enough. My kids will clear a whole pan of this before dinner is even served! It takes about 30 minutes start to finish, so it’s an easy way to round out any weeknight dinner or big pot of soup.
Unlike my Southern Cornbread Recipe, which isn’t sweet, this version gets its sweetness from real honey instead of white sugar. That swap gives it a softer, more tender crumb and a flavor that’s just a little more special — perfect if your family likes their cornbread on the sweeter side.
This honey cornbread comes together with pantry staples you likely already have, for about $2 a pan — that’s roughly 22 cents a slice. It’s one of the easiest ways to make a homemade side feel special without adding to your grocery bill.
I love making this cornbread because it’s just as easy to mix up on a busy Tuesday as it is for a Sunday dinner. It comes out moist and tender every time, with golden, slightly crisp edges — no dry, crumbly cornbread here.
Why Make Cornbread From Scratch?
This recipe costs about $2.02 for the whole pan — just $0.22 a slice — using pantry staples you likely already have on hand. That’s cheaper than a box mix. Plus, you know exactly what’s going into it, and you can control the sweetness yourself.
Tips for making Sweet Honey Cornbread:
Here are some tips and different ways of making this Sweet Honey Cornbread:
- This recipe works great if you want to make cornbread muffins in a muffin tin. You can use the mini muffin pan or a regular size works great also! Making in the muffing pan, you will only bake for about 15 minutes.
- Another way I like the honey cornbread is in my cast iron pan. Cooking it in the cast iron gives it a more rustic quality.
- When mixing your cornbread, try to not over mix the batter. If it’s over mixed, the batter could come out tough.
- Don’t overcook your cornbread. Cook until your toothpick inserted comes out clean and the center is done.
- If your cornbread comes out dry, it likely baked a few minutes too long — start checking at the 20-minute mark next time. If it didn’t rise well, double check that your baking powder isn’t expired, since that’s the most common culprit.
Ingredients:
- Flour
- Yellow Cornmeal
- Sugar
- Salt
- Baking powder
- Egg
- Milk
- Vegetable Oil
- Honey
A few easy substitutions:
- Vegetable oil: Swap in ⅓ cup melted butter for a richer flavor.
- Milk: Buttermilk works great in place of regular milk if you want a slightly tangier, more tender crumb.
- Cornmeal: Fine or medium-grind yellow cornmeal gives the smoothest texture. Coarse cornmeal will work, but the cornbread will be a bit grittier. White cornmeal works too.
How to make Honey Cornbread from scratch.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Spray a square baking pan (9×9) with non stick spray.
In a large mixing bowl combine all the dry ingredients.
Then in a separate bowl whisk your egg, milk, oil, and honey. Stir well all ingredients.
Easy kitchen tip! Spray your measuring cup with nonstick spray before you try to measure out your honey. The honey will not stick to the measuring cup at all!
Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 20 minutes in your preheated oven.
You’ll know it’s ready when the top is golden brown, the edges pull slightly away from the pan, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Every oven runs a little differently, so start checking around the 20-minute mark.
Allow to cool, and then cut. Serve with our Homemade butter recipe.
How to Store Leftover Cornbread
- Store leftover cornbread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. For longer storage, keep it in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze it (see freezing instructions below).
- Have leftover cornbread? Crumble it up and use it in my Cornbread Salad — it’s one of my favorite ways to use up extra slices.
Can I freeze Cornbread?
Yes! Let it cool completely, then wrap individual pieces in foil or plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to enjoy it, let it thaw completely at room temperature, then warm it in the microwave for a few seconds before serving.
Make a double batch on a weekend and freeze half — future you will be glad to have homemade cornbread ready to go on a night when soup or chili is already on the stove.
Cornbread Variations:
There are lots of different types of cornbread, they can be sweet almost cake like or you can add in jalapenos, cheese and other fun ingredients. The options are endless!
- If you want to make your cornbread cheesy, try adding in some cheddar cheese! My cheese loving kids love when I make a batch with cheese in it!
- Do you want a little kick to your cornbread, try adding some jalapeno’s to the cornbread mix. My family loves it when I combine the cheese and jalapeno in the cornbread mix. It is the perfect combination!
- The cornbread muffins is great to make too! They are easy to grab and they are the perfect size that you will be going back for more!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! Buttermilk works well in this recipe and adds a slightly tangier flavor.
Yes, use ⅓ cup melted butter in place of the oil.
Pour the batter into a lined muffin tin and bake for about 15 minutes, checking for a clean toothpick.
The best dinners to serve cornbread with!
Here are some of my favorite dinner recipes to serve this delicious honey cornbread recipe along with. Adding Sweet Honey Cornbread to chili or a big pot of beans is my absolute favorite!
- Crockpot Chili Recipe
- Delicious ground Turkey Chili recipe
- White Chicken Taco Chili Recipe
- Crock pot Veggie Soup
- Quick Chili Recipe
- 15 Bean Soup with Ham
- Crock Pot Pinto Beans
Sweet Honey Corn Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- ½ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 egg
- 1 cup milk
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- ¼ cup honey
See how we calculate recipe costs.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and spray a 9×9-inch baking pan with nonstick spray.
- In a large bowl, combine 1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup yellow cornmeal, ½ cup white sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 3 teaspoons baking powder.
- Add 1 egg, 1 cup milk, ? cup vegetable oil, and ¼ cup honey to the bowl.
- Stir the mixture well until all ingredients are fully combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until the cornbread is golden brown.
- Allow the cornbread to cool slightly, then cut and serve with butter. Enjoy!
Can buttermilk be used in place of regular milk?
Yes that would be delicious!
Yum, i added an exta egg & vaila extract! So delicious! Taste like cake!
Tricia – So glad you loved it. Thanks for sharing your additions!
Hiw does this do in the freezer?
This cornbread will freeze great. Let it cool completely at room temperature. Wrap individual pieces in foil or plastic wrap and then store in a freeze bag. When ready to enjoy, defrost the pieces completely at room temperature and then reheat in the microwave! I hope you try it out and let me know if you enjoy the recipe!
Always my go to! Didn’t have veg oil tonight, so subbed out melted bacon grease!
YUM!
I have made this a few times and the family absolutely loves it. Thanks so much for the recipe.
Hey Diona – You are welcome! That’s wonderful the family enjoys!
This recipe was so easy to make. Everyone enjoyed it. It tasted just like I bought a mix at the store. I will be making this recipe from now on. No more box mixes for me!
Woohoo! You just made my day Michelle! Thank you so much for sharing and for the positive review!
How long to cook mini muffins and regular muffins, please?
Wow! I had to send this recipe to eveyone who ate a piece. This is the best corn bread we have ever had. And it was easy to make! Delish!
We drizzled honey on top when it came out of the oven
An actual moist corn bread. Thank u for this recipe
Christina – You are so welcome! I’m glad everyone enjoyed this. Thanks for letting us know!
I’ve made this recipe several times now. I serve it with homemade honey cinnamon butter, and it is delicious every time!
Yum! I’m so glad you enjoy it. Thank you so much for the positive review and for sharing – I love hearing this!
Can i substitute butter for oil?
Stephanie – Yes, you can use 1/3 cup melted butter instead of the oil in this recipe.
Very yum
Very enjoy
Very fluffy
Very honey like
I enjoyed it
Splendid
Havne’t made this yet but plan to soon. Does it freeze well?
Kurt – Yes, you can freeze the cornbread up to a month. Allow to cool and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and then in aluminum foil. Place in a freezer-safe airtight container. When ready to enjoy, thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for a few hours. Then warm in the oven (about 300°F for 10–15 minutes) to refresh the texture. You can also reheat in the microwave for several seconds. Hope this helps!
My favorite cornbread was from a box mix: Krusteaz Honey Cornbread and I have unsuccessfully looked for a copycat recipe for a long time until now. This recipe duplicates that taste and I’m very happy that I can now make it whenever I want.
Thanks for sharing Janice – I’m so glad to hear this. I haven’t tried to this brand yet but I’m glad that this one is close to one of your favs. Thank you so much for the positive review!
This is my second time cooking this cornbread using your recipe. I am totally addicted! Thanks for sharing!
Woohoo! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe Michele! Thank you for sharing!
I followed this recipe, simple and to the point. It came out so good. Not as sweet as I’m used to but I’m happy with it. I wouldn’t change a thing.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for sharing and thank you so much for the positive review!
This is the best cornbread I’ve ever had! Super light and fluffy, even when made with GF flour. Next time I’d experiment with cutting some of the sugar called for, but it’s excellent as is.
I’m so glad you enjoy this recipe. Thank you for sharing and thank you for the positive review!
Delicious corn bread! It seemed too runny at first but it baked perfectly! Very moist!
Woohoo! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the positive review Amy!
Hi..what size pan would be best if I would like to double recipe?
I would use a 9X13 baking pan.
Hi Carrie. I’m making this tomorrow. Do you think I could add some canned corn to it without changing your recipe?
I haven’t tested it yet so I’m not sure. I’m thinking you would need less liquid so if you try it out, then I would reduce the milk to about 1/4 cup instead of the whole cup as the creamed corn would add moisture to the cornbread. Let me know how it turns out!
Sweet & moist. This is my new go to recipe for cornbread.
I’m so glad you like it!
Just made this! Incredible!!
I added 2 mashed sweet potatoes and made sweet potato cornbread and I cant stop eating it, have to triple the batch next time or else there wont be any to share!
Yum! That sounds delicious – Thank you for sharing!
Love this recipe. I use my Cast Iron Corn pans and they are the cutest most delicious little corn breads. I only bake for 10 minutes. I don’t think I’ll ever use another recipe
That is awesome! I’m so glad you love the recipe.
I only had white cornmeal and it was still great! I also melted a little butter in my cast iron skillet before pouring the mix in: PERFECTION!!
So glad it worked with the white cornmeal. Thank you so much for sharing!
Another great recipe!! Delicious and turned out perfectly. Thank you!
Next time if I want to double the recipe should I use a 9 x 13 pan? Should I increase the bake time?
You might have to increase it a little. I would just keep an eye on it.
Amazing! A little sweet so I’ll cut a few pinches of sugar next time. Thanks for sharing!!
THIS is the cornbread recipe I’ve been searching for for what seems like forever! It’s sweet, has a soft crumb, and the muffins come out perfect when baked for 15min. Great recipe, can’t wait to make it again!
I’m so glad you love it
Good sweet honey tasting cornbread. It was a little too sweet so I’ll reduce the amount of sugar used depending on what I’m having the cornbread with and it was a little fluffier than I wanted so I’ll reduce the amount of baking powder used as well. I cooked it in a preheated 10″ cast iron pan and it worked out well. I’ll be keeping this recipe.
Delicious corn bread. It wasn’t too sweet and had a nice taste. Mine turned out a little crumbly and dry but I added honey on top to fork together and it worked great.
I Lov your Cornbread recipe !!!
My Family will Lov this Bread for Thanksgiving this year !!!