Tender, moist, and sweet, this gluten-free Sweet Potato Cornbread contains just the right amount of cinnamon and nutmeg. Serve it drizzled with honey and topped with a pat of butter. So yummy!
A Sweet, Homemade Cornbread Recipe That’s Gluten-Free and Good for You!
If you like Southern food, you have to try this amazing sweet cornbread recipe. I know, I know – there’s a whole huge debate about whether or not you should add sugar to cornbread. But all arguments aside, there’s no doubt that sweet potatoes, warm spices, and cornmeal are ingredients that go really well together. That’s what this easy recipe is all about.
Like most cornbread recipes, this one is super-simple and comes together without a lot of fuss. You will need cooked, mashed sweet potato as one of your ingredients, so you might want to plan ahead and have that ready to go before you start baking. This is a great way to use leftover sweet potatoes!
What Ingredients Do I Need?
You’ll need some basic pantry staples for this recipe, including your favorite gluten-free flour blend, some buttermilk, and of course, the cornmeal.
- Cornmeal: Use fine yellow cornmeal, not coarse meal and not corn flour.
- Gluten-Free Flour: Your favorite 1:1 gluten-free flour blend.
- Brown Sugar: Light brown sugar is my favorite, but dark brown sugar would also work (it will give the bread a more intense molasses taste).
- Rising Agents: Both baking powder and baking soda are needed for this sweet potato cornbread.
- Salt
- Warm Spices: Cinnamon and nutmeg.
- Eggs: Large, whole eggs bind the cornbread together and give it a good texture.
- Buttermilk: Full-fat buttermilk works best in this recipe.
- Sweet Potato: Cooked and mash enough sweet potato to make one cup – that’s roughly one medium sweet potato.
- Butter: Melt the butter before adding it to the recipe.
How to Make Sweet Potato Cornbread
Sweet potato cornbread is a great dish for a beginning baker to make – it’s a very simple mix-and-bake recipe. You just mix the dry ingredients, then the wet, and then combine both mixtures together. Here’s the step-by-step process:
- Prepare to Bake. As always, start out by preheating the oven to 400°F, and generously greasing a cast iron skillet. (You can also choose to bake the cornbread in a 9×9 inch square baking pan lined with parchment paper, and coated with butter or baking spray.)
- Mix the Dry Ingredients. Measure the cornmeal, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg into a bowl, and whisk together.
- Mix the Wet Ingredients. Next, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, and mashed sweet potato puree until fully combined.
- Combine Both Mixtures, and Add the Butter. Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, and use a rubber spatula or big spoon to fold everything together until just combined. Add the melted butter, and fold it into the batter as well.
- Bake! Scrape the batter into your skillet (or baking pan) and smooth out the top. Place it in your preheated oven, and bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cornbread comes out clean.
- Enjoy! Serve immediately with extra pats of butter and drizzled honey.
Tips for Success
- Cooking the Sweet Potatoes: My favorite way to cook the sweet potato is by roasting, although you could also boil the sweet potato, or just use canned sweet potato instead.
- How to Roast a Sweet Potato: Poke holes in your sweet potato with a fork. Wrap it with foil and bake it for 25-30 minutes at 400°F, or until the sweet potato is soft. Unwrap the foil and cut the sweet potato in half. Peel away the skin, place the sweet potato in a bowl, and mash it up with a fork.
- Testing for Doneness: Because this recipe contains sweet potatoes, it’s not always easy to tell whether or not it’s done based on the golden brown color. Instead, try testing sweet potato cornbread with a toothpick or cake tester. If it comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs sticking to it, then the cornbread is done.
What to Serve with Cornbread
Cornbread makes a fantastic snack with just a cold glass of milk, but you can also serve it as part of a hearty meal. Whether you pair it with holiday classics like ham or roast turkey, or serve it alongside a simple weeknight dinner, you really can’t go wrong. Need a recipe? Try one (or more) of these!
- Sausage and Peppers: This is a busy cook’s secret weapon! Savory sausage and fresh veggies combine to make this stick-to-your-ribs Grilled Sausage, Peppers, and Onion Casserole. The cornbread makes a temptingly sweet addition to the meal.
- Chicken: The Southwestern flavors in Cilantro Lime Roasted Chicken marry perfectly with this sweet, cinnamon-scented cornbread. Together, this is one satisfying dinner.
- Salad: Usually, the bread served with a main course salad is something like garlic bread, or a breadstick – but sweet potato cornbread would go beautifully with Peach Prosciutto Mixed Green Salad. Cinnamon and peaches, sweet potatoes and prosciutto ham… yum!
How to Store and Warm Up the Leftovers
You can keep this sweet potato cornbread in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 – 3 days. It will keep a bit longer in the fridge. If you need to store it longer, check out the freezing instructions below.
Does Homemade Cornbread Freeze Well?
Homemade cornbread freezes fairly well, although it might not be as moist once you thaw it and reheat. If you still want to freeze this one, be sure to cool it down completely first, to prevent moisture in the bread from turning into icy crystals as it freezes. Wrap tightly in a double layer (for example, two layers of plastic wrap, or a layer of plastic wrap plus a freezer bag). Freeze for up to three months.
Gluten Free Sweet Potato Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 cup fine yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup gluten free flour
- 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 large eggs
- 2 cups whole buttermilk
- 1 cup cooked and mashed sweet potato 1 medium size sweet potato
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Generously grease a cast iron skillet, or line a 9×9 inch square baking pan with parchment paper and coat with butter or baking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the cornmeal, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, and mashed sweet potato puree together until fully combined.
- Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Use a rubber spatula to fold everything together until just combined.
- Add the melted butter and fold it into the batter until combined.
- Empty the batter into the prepared skillet or baking pan and smooth out the top.
- Bake for 35 – 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cornbread comes out clean.
- Serve immediately with extra pats of butter, and drizzled honey.
Notes
