This Cast Iron Skillet Buttermilk Cornbread is a delicious and great recipe to satisfy your sweet tooth. I’m sure you'll be making it constantly because it’s filled with a buttery vanilla flavor and has a fluffy texture all thanks to the buttermilk! Pair this with my Cheesy Black Bean Chili and it's a match made in heaven!
Also, if you love this recipe, you have to try out this Brown Butter Bacon and Jalapeno Cornbread and these Corn Muffins with Cinnamon Maple Butter too!
DELICIOUS CORNBREAD RECIPE IN A CAST IRON PAN
Who doesn't love cornbread that's fluffy, full of butter, and has a slight vanilla flavor that they can feast on whenever they like? Furthermore, are you tired of making homemade cornbread and it tends to be dry and just doesn't taste quite like how you thought it would pan out? Well, I made this cast iron skillet with buttermilk cornbread. I was on a quest to make a cornbread recipe that's moist, easy, and tastes as good as it looks.
There are no fancy ingredients in this cast iron skillet buttermilk cornbread! No special or long-winded instructions. Just everyday pantry items to make up this one. Oh, not to mention - the simplicity and effortless way of making this will have you cooking this up a couple of times a week!
The special ingredient
So, when I was developing this Cast Iron Skillet Buttermilk Cornbread recipe, I wanted it to be something that tasted like home. To me, that means sweet but not too sweet. Soft and tender but will not fall apart in your hands.
I also wanted it to taste buttery, because who doesn't love butter? I love that the melted butter gives it that signature cornbread taste that has a slight hint of vanilla, but again - not too much!
So, this was my baseline. However, I had to put my own spin on it.
What ingredient did I use for this that makes it "POP"? Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix! It sounds crazy a little bit right?
Well, let me tell you, it gives this cornbread that lovely slightly vanilla flavor and slightly sweet flavor that I was looking for.
The pudding mix adds a beautiful texture to this cornbread, keeping it moist (sorry I know folks hate this word) and adding that fluffiness that we all love! I can’t get enough of it once I tasted it and I know you will too.
how do you make cornbread from scratch?
If you're a visual person, check out the video below! In the meantime, this cast iron skillet buttermilk cornbread recipe is another mix of wet ingredients in one bowl and dry ingredients in another bowl and then combining the two. It's super straightforward (another thing that I love about this recipe) and you don’t have to preheat the oven!
A general view of the ingredients you’re going to be mixing in a bowl to whisk is buttermilk, ¼ cup sour cream, all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cup of melted butter, vegetable oil, brown sugar, cornmeal flour, baking soda, and sugar (full ingredients below!)
Make sure to pour the batter properly into your cast iron skillet baking pan to avoid any mess, and allow the cornbread to cool at room temperature before you dive in.
It's also essential to ensure that the batter is smooth and all of the ingredients are incorporated properly. By doing so, we make sure that the baked good doesn't have clumps of flour or salt.
Let's be clear, there's nothing worse than taking a bite of something all you taste is salt or a huge clump of flour. We want to avoid that by all means.
how do you make cornbread less crumbly?
There are multiple ways of preventing crumbly cornbread.
- Use enough flour. If you don't have enough flour to bind the cornbread together, it'll likely fall apart while it’s still in the baking dish.
- Use an adequate amount of eggs. Eggs act as the glue in baked goods. In addition to flour, eggs help bind the bread making it so that the bread is stable and doesn't fall apart.
- Be sure not to add too much butter or liquids containing high-fat content. When you add too much butter or oil, this makes the cornbread greasy and fall apart very quickly. It also makes it quite dense.
You don't have to worry about any of this happening in this cornbread recipe being too crumbly, I've got you covered!
can I make buttermilk from scratch?
Yes! To make buttermilk from scratch, simply add one tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar to one cup of milk and let it sit for 10-15 minutes.
I used whole milk for this recipe but if you are dairy-free, you can use soy milk in its place. Oddly enough, buttermilk contains no butter. For some reason when I found this out, I was mind blown.
how do you keep cornbread from sticking to cast iron?
The best way to prevent anything from sticking to cast iron is to coat it in a neutral oil like vegetable oil or canola oil.
This cast-iron skillet cornbread recipe asks for vegetable oil to coat the cast iron skillet before adding the batter and it works like a charm!
What do you eat with cast iron skillet buttermilk cornbread?
You can enjoy this cornbread by itself or you can serve it as a side for dinner! It pairs exceptionally well with chili, roasted chicken, and just about any soul food!
This cornbread makes for a delicious stuffing too and tastes good with cheddar cheese as well. So, short answer - you can enjoy this cornbread with anything 🙂
more recipes you'll love!
- Coconut Cornbread with Sweet Lime Butter
- Browned Butter Bacon and Jalapeno Cornbread
- Corn Muffins with Cinnamon Maple Butter
- Cheesy Corn Chowder with Bacon
- Sweet Corn Fritters with Tomato Jam
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Let's stay connected on social media and continue to cook together! Also, if you decide to make this recipe, please leave a star rating on the recipe card and leave a comment below! I hope that you love this recipe as much as we do!
Cast Iron Skillet Buttermilk Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 cup Buttermilk
- ¼ cup Sour Cream
- ¾ cup Unsalted Butter, melted (about 1 ½ sticks)
- 2 tbsps Vegetable Oil
- ¼ cup Brown Sugar
- ¼ cup Sugar
- 1 pack Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 2 eggs
- 1 ¼ cup All-Purpose Flour
- 1 cup Cornmeal
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- ½ tsp Baking Soda
- ½ tsp Salt
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, buttermilk, sour cream, melted butter, vegetable oil, brown sugar, and sugar. Whisk together until ingredients are combined. Add instant vanilla pudding mix and vanilla extract and continue to whisk together. Add one egg at a time and continue whisking.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix together. Add to wet ingredients.
- Spray a cast iron skillet or 9 inch round baking pan with oil. Add batter and bake 35-40 minutes, until a tooth pick comes out clean.
- Allow cornbread to cool for 5-10 minutes.
This cornbread skillet tasted amazing! It was moist, filled with flavor and had the perfect flavor. I plan to make some on Mother's day too. Thanks for sharing this one!
Perfect excuse to pull out my cast iron skillet. I never would have believed the instant pudding tip had I not made it myself. This was a hit with the whole family!
I've never really found a cornbread recipe I love until now. I was really skeptical about the vanilla pudding mix but it's pretty much magic. I think this is the only recipe I'll use from now on!
I loved the texture of my corn bread, the crumb was super moist and round too. I will be making this time and time again. Thank you for sharing!
I made this cornbread as a dessert base for Strawberry Shortcake. My whole family approved!
Wow! I would have never thought to put instant pudding in my cornbread but I am happy I found your recipe and tried it! The flavor is amazing --I love the butteriness of the cornbread and the subtle hint of vanilla. I will definitely be making this again!
My cornbread turned out so fluffy, buttery, moist and delicious! I can't thank you enough!
I would have never thought to add instant pudding mix to my cornbread. You're onto something Britney! This was absolutely delicious!
This skillet cornbread was so buttery, moist and delicious, I now have another reason to use my cast iron!
You've done it again! I thoroughly enjoyed this, as it was moist, had great texture, and taste divine! This cornbread is amazing.