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 healthy cornbread!
The Ultimate Healthy Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups (150g) finely ground cornmeal (measured like this – and see Notes!)
- 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 (see Notes!)
- ½ cup (120g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 2 tbsp (30mL) honey (see Notes!)
- ¼ cup (60mL) nonfat milk
Instructions
- 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.)
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♥ Spinach & Goat Cheese Cornbread Muffins
♥ 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
Mine also came out without rising very much and a little gritty, I used pearl milling company cornmeal, and I did use your fork method but I also did tap down the measuring cup to level it out, so perhaps it got too dry? I’m going to try again weighted the ingredients, and the taste was still good, but also wondering if high altitude could be posing a problem? I’m at 7k ft.
It means a lot that you tried my recipe, Lisa! Yes, if you tapped the measuring cup to level it out while filling it with flour or cornmeal, that would contribute to the dryness and grittiness issues. When you tap the measuring cup, it compacts the flour or cornmeal that’s already inside the measuring cup, which then creates more space at the top… So you actually end up adding more than the recipe calls for into the measuring cup — and the batter as well! Too much flour and cornmeal will also prevent your cornbread from rising properly.
If you have a kitchen scale and are willing to weigh the ingredients with gram measurements, that should help with the texture and rise! I’ve found kitchen scales are often much more accurate than measuring cups for these ingredients given in grams. (But still use measuring cups for ingredients with mL measurements!)
I don’t have experience with the Pearl Milling Company’s cornmeal, so I’m not sure whether it’s finely or coarsely ground. If the latter, that could also contribute to the grittiness.
I have family that lives at high altitude, along with some other readers, and they’ve said my recipes work perfectly — no “high altitude” adjustments needed! For whatever reason, when they tried the typical high altitude adjustments, my recipes turned out worse. I think if you use a kitchen scale (or don’t tap the measuring cups!), your cornbread should rise and turn out with a better texture.
Does all of that make sense? I’m happy to answer any other questions — and I’m looking forward to hearing how your next batch of cornbread turns out too! 🙂
It says any milk can be used. Does that mean any dairy milk? Or can I use Almond milk.
We really appreciate your interest in this recipe! Any milk will work as a substitute, including almond milk! We’d love to hear what you think if you decide to try making this cornbread! 🙂
Made this using Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 GF flour and oat milk. Otherwise, followed the recipe as is. While the cornbread is still super moist on the second day, there’s definitely a funny taste to it. My son who adores cornbread will not finish his because of the taste. I can eat it with honey… but would prefer a recipe that can stand on its own. Will keep looking.
It means a lot that you tried our recipe, Kelley! That sounds disappointing and not like how this cornbread is supposed to turn out, so we’re happy to work with you to figure out what happened with yours.
Can you describe the funny taste a little more? It’ll be much easier to narrow down the culprit if we know what flavors you and her son are detecting! I noticed you mentioned that it had the funny taste on day two. Did your cornbread taste fine on the first day? How did you store it? Did you make any other modifications (including those in the Notes section!)?
We would love to help you pinpoint what could have happened so you can enjoy this cornbread!
TWO EGGS — This recipe was delicious and moist with an extra large egg. I also added both maple syrup and honey to balance sweetness, along with more milk when the batter looked too dry. I think coconut oil would alter the flavor – butter worked great.
We’re honored that you tried our cornbread recipe, Sara! The batter isn’t supposed to be dry, so we’re happy to help figure out why that might have happened, if you’d like! It sounds like you are already a great baker with your quick adjustments to make it work! I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed it and we really appreciate you taking the time to share! 🙂
What can I use instead of Greek yogurt, I am vegetarian and buy almond or coconut yogurt
We really appreciate your interest in this recipe, Ann! Non-dairy yogurt (ie soy- or almond-based) would be the best substitute for the Greek yogurt. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of this cornbread!
Our cornbread was raw in the middle. I made sure the ingredients were leveled. Why didn’t it work? I had to keep throwing it back into the oven.
We’re so honored that you decided to try our recipe, Brandi! This cornbread is certainly not supposed to turn out like that, and should not have left you putting it back into the oven so much to finish baking. I’m sure that was disappointing, especially if you were trying to time it with a meal (that always seems to be when something goes wrong with timing, doesn’t it?) 😉 I’m confident we can figure out what happened, but I have some questions for you to help with that! 🙂
Was it just the baking time that was off, or was the taste or texture also not as expected?
How many additional minutes did it take for your cornbread to fully bake all the way through?
Did you make any substitutions or modifications to the recipe, including those listed in the Notes section?
Did you use a kitchen scale or measuring cups/spoons for all of the ingredients — especially the cornmeal, flour, and honey? (It sounds like the latter, but we just wanted to double check!)
Which flour option did you use: white whole wheat flour or the homemade gluten-free blend provided in the Notes section?
What’s the exact cornmeal (brand + product name!) that you used?
Did the consistency of your batter match our batter in the video directly above the recipe? (You can see it at 2:49 and again at 3:17-3:24!)
Did you use a glass or metal pan?
When you measure the top edge of your square pan, how many inches is it? (Some people have accidentally used a pan that’s 9″ across the top edge but 8″ across the bottom, or tried baking it in a rectangular pan, so we like to double check this too!)
Did you happen to use a countertop-style oven, by any chance?
I know I just asked a LOT of questions, but we’ll have a much better idea of the culprit once we know the answers to all of them! 🙂
Making this now. The instructions do not mention the milk anywhere. Advise please?
I’m honored that you made my recipe, Amy! The instructions include where to add the milk towards the end of Step 2 (look for the sentence that begins with “Alternate between adding the cornmeal mixture and milk”). I know it can be really easy to miss that bit though! 😉 I hope you enjoyed this cornbread!