Although most of my family looks forward to the side dishes more than the turkey on Thanksgiving (especially this healthy sweet potato casserole—it tastes like pumpkin pie!), the exact opposite scenario occurs with our main entrée at Christmas. Nearly every year, we purchase a honey baked ham from a specialty shop in town, along with an assortment of chutneys and stone ground mustards.
We typically cut a few slices to serve the day before as part of celebrating my grandparents’ wedding anniversary (yes, they were married on Christmas Eve!), but we save the majority of the ham for our regular Christmas dinner. Everyone reaches for those thick, juicy slices first, as well as the condiments, before turning their attention to the platters of sides.
Even with everyone sneaking into the fridge for a few extra nibbles in between meals throughout the next few days, licking the sweet honey evidence from their fingers to avoid getting caught, we still end up with leftovers. However, Mom always plans ahead and buys a special artisan package of dried beans from the store when she picks up the ham.
When everyone proclaims they’re done, she adds the rest of the ham to a big pot, along with the contents of the package and an ample amount of water, to make ham bone and bean soup. While it simmers, it fills the house with the coziest savory smell, causing everyone to ask, “Is it done yet?”
Occasionally, Mom whips up a batch of cornbread while the soup cooks. She usually follows the directions from one of our old well-worn cookbooks or on the back of the box of cornmeal, both of which depend on large amounts of oil and sugar for their moist texture. It’s a good thing we usually finish off the pan before New Year’s Eve… We need come up with resolutions to burn off all those calories!
With the holidays quickly approaching (how is it that Thanksgiving is right around the corner already??) and chilly fall weather fully upon us, I suggested that we make this Ultimate Healthy Cornbread instead this year. After their first bites, both of my parents’ eyes lit up, just like five-year-old children’s on Christmas morning, and they immediately agreed… While reaching for a second slice, with the crumbs of the first still lingering on their lips!
They quickly deemed it the best cornbread they’d ever had—and I definitely agree!
For the base of this healthy cornbread, you’ll use a combination of cornmeal and white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of soft white wheat, which has a lighter taste and texture very similar to that of all-purpose flour. This gives your cornbread the perfect tender texture, while still letting the comforting corn flavor shine!
Whereas the recipes my mom typically turned to all used oil, I actually prefer butter in this recipe! It gives the cornbread an extra cozy-comfort-food richness, especially when paired with vanilla extract. I know it sounds crazy… Vanilla extract? In cornbread?? Trust me—you do not want to skip it! Vanilla actually enhances butter’s flavor, so it makes this recipe taste just as indulgent as traditional ones!
However, unlike traditional recipes with around ½ cup of oil, you’ll only use 1 tablespoon of butter. (Or coconut oil… It also works, but it doesn’t have the same rich flavor!) Instead, the rest of this cornbread’s tender texture comes from Greek yogurt! It’s my favorite ingredient in healthier baking for a reason… It adds the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your cornbread a protein boost, too!
Finally, you’ll mix in just a hint of honey for sweetness. Because my family often eats their cornbread warm with a drizzle of honey (and a small pat of butter that melts into all of the crooks and crannies), we prefer our cornbread on the not-so-sweet side. You could easily substitute a little extra honey for some of the milk if you prefer!
And there you have it! The best healthy cornbread—perfect for serving with soups, chilis, game day spreads… Or any time you’re just craving comfort food—but not the guilt! ?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! ?) I’d love to see your cornbread!
| The Ultimate Healthy Cornbread | | Print |
- 1 ¼ cups (150g) finely ground cornmeal (measured like this)
- ½ cup (60g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free flour (measured like this)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp (14g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp (30mL) honey
- ¼ cup (60mL) nonfat milk
- Preheat the oven to 350°F, and coat an 8”-square pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg, and vanilla. Stir in the Greek yogurt, mixing until no large lumps remain. Stir in the honey. Alternate between adding the cornmeal mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the cornmeal mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the cornmeal mixture in 3 equal parts.)
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake at 350°F for 18-20 minutes or until the edges begin to turn golden and the center feels firm to the touch. Cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving. (For the best texture, let it cool completely to room temperature.)
Whole wheat pastry flour, regular whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
It’s very important to measure both the cornmeal and flour correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. (I always use this kitchen scale because it makes sure my baking recipes turn out with the perfect taste and texture every time. It’s only $20!) Too much of either will dry out your cornbread, instead of the moist and tender texture it should have.
I know vanilla sounds like a strange ingredient for cornbread, but trust me! Vanilla enhances butter’s flavor, so it makes this cornbread taste just as indulgent as traditional recipes. (I highly recommend using butter instead of coconut oil, for that reason!)
Pure maple syrup or agave may be substituted for the honey. We prefer our cornbread on the not-so-sweet side since we usually serve it with a drizzle of honey (and a small pat of melted butter, if you’re feeling indulgent!). If you like sweeter cornbread, substitute additional honey, pure maple syrup, or agave in place of an equal amount of the milk.
Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, low sugar}
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
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♥ Mini Cornbread & Black Bean Bites
♥ Quick Turkey Chili
♥ Spicy Black Bean Soup
♥ Roasted Bell Pepper Bread
♥ Rosemary & Garlic Bread
♥ Baked Spicy Cinnamon Sweet Potato Fries
I made this tonight to go with Jambalaya. I’ve been lightening up my meals and was hoping I wouldn’t have to skip the cornbread. This fit perfectly into my plan! Everyone loved it! The vanilla was an interesting addition, I liked it. So did everyone else. I will admit I like the creamed corn sweetcake version of cornbread, but those days are past for me and I am enjoying less heavy food. So that’s saying a lot. It was perfect as it was firm enough to sop the juice in my Jambalaya. I’ll post to Instagram!
Oh! I used whole wheat pastry flour and nonfat evaporated milk.
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed this cornbread Kris! That means the world to me — thank you for taking the time to share that with me! 🙂 I always love hearing what recipe modifications work, so I appreciate you sharing those tweaks too!
Wow, this recipe is so delicious I made it twice this week (guilt free!) to eat with turkey chili. I didn’t read closely and added everything in together at the same time. It still came out great! Thanks Amy — on my way to look at more of your recipes…
Also, I added the batter to muffin tins since I didn’t have the right pan and it worked well.
I’m so glad you’re enjoying this cornbread recipe Carly! That’s the best kind of compliment if you’ve already baked it twice this week — thank you for sharing that with me!! 🙂 I’m so excited to hear what recipe you decide to try next!
Can I use plain ordinary yogurt instead of greek yogurt?
Yes, that’s fine! I can’t wait to hear what you think of this cornbread Hannah! 🙂
I made this cornbread recipe into muffins and I think it tasted great. It made 9 muffins total. The only thing I would change would be to make it a little sweeter with more honey. The muffins were pretty neutral tasting- not slightly salty, and not sweet so I guess it’s a good base cornbread so that you could add it to chili or eat it with honey and butter. I tried eating it both ways and it was good. The flavor from the chili makes me not notice wanting the cornbread to be sweeter. And then when i ate the cornbread with honey it was super tasty too. Personally The next time I make this I will just add a little more honey so that if I wanted to I could eat it plain. I was very happy to have a healthier corn bread recipe and I would definitely make this recipe again. Thank you for sharing the recipe 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed this cornbread Kelly! It means a lot to me that you’d want to make it again. Thanks so much for sharing that with me! 🙂 I’ve actually included a note at the bottom of the Notes section (located directly underneath the Instructions) about how to add more honey to make the cornbread sweeter. I hope that helps the next time you decide to make a batch!
Hi Amy,
Thank you so much for making that note about the honey at the bottom. I was just going to squeeze in some extra honey by just guestimating how much it needed so your tip definitely helps a lot. I’m already craving more cornbread as I type this 🙂
-Kelly
It’s my pleasure Kelly! I’m always happy to help! 🙂 Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions — and I can’t wait to hear how your next round of cornbread turns out!
I made this tonight and it was so delicious! Usually I use a recipe on the cornmeal container, but this was much better. It was so moist with just the right amount of sweetness for me, and I loved the vanilla flavor. Our two year old liked it too. I will definitely be making this again soon.
Hello,
Can I use Almond Flour instead of White/whole wheat Flour?
Best,
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe Leena! I typically don’t recommend substituting almond flour because it makes the cornbread denser. Gluten is the protein allows the cornbread to rise properly and hold its shape after baking, and since almond flour doesn’t have that, it can often make the cornbread denser or collapse a bit as a result. But as long as you don’t mind that texture difference, then the flavor will remain the same! 🙂 I’d love to hear what you think if you try this cornbread!
Amy;
Hi,I finally found your cornmeal recipe and I am going to make it at home when I go buy five ingredients to make it.I am hoping to make the cormeal squares before my mom,my three cousins and my niece and nephew drive to brooks alberta canada to go to our family reunion on august 1st to the 5th,we are leaving our apartment at the end of this month to be there on august 1st.Hopefully I can make a double batch of the cornmeal squares before july 31st so that we can bring the squares with us to share with 8 of us in our van on our way to brooks alberta,if not I will make the squares or the large muffins after we get back home.I will let you know what we all think of the cornmeal squares or muffins when we get back from our trip.
Kim
I’m so honored that you’d want to make my cornbread recipe to share with your family at your family reunion! That means the world to me that you’d want to make it for such a special occasion. You just made my entire day, Kim! 🙂 I’m so excited to hear what you think of this cornbread, and I hope you have a lovely time at your family reunion!!