A perfectly moist, slightly sweet, sourdough discard cornbread recipe with a secret ingredient that takes it over the top!
Cornbread can be a fickle thing to recreate. It’s either too dry and crumbly, or ridiculously sweet and cake-like. Some recipes call for actual corn and others don’t at all. So, where do you even start?
With a few tweaks to my blueberry cornmeal muffins (a tried and true favorite), I’ve created a unique, moist, slightly sweet sourdough cornbread recipe that’s light and fluffy and won’t crumble all over the place. To get started, you’ll need some leftover sourdough discard (bubbly active starter is fine too) and an 8×8-inch pan for thick-cut squares.
So, What’s The Secret Ingredient?
Glad you asked. There are two secret ingredients, actually:
- Pure Vanilla Extract. This adds depth of flavor and enhances the natural corn flavor without making it taste like birthday cake.
- Coconut oil (I get mine from Trader Joe’s). This also adds depth of flavor. The oil brings out a nutty flavor and no, the cornbread doesn’t taste like tanning lotion. This addition was inspired by a fantastic curried coconut corn soup that I make.
Why This Sourdough Cornbread Recipe Works
- A higher ratio of flour to cornmeal is used for best texture- this is key.
- Butter adds richness and flavor, while the oil keeps the cornbread moist.
- Baking powder is used to “lift” the cornbread and baking soda tames any dense cake-like qualities.
- You can easily make this 1 day in advance. The flavor and texture will only improve.
Ingredients You Will Need:
- Unsalted butter
- Coconut oil
- Eggs
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Sourdough discard
- All purpose flour
- Cornmeal
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Fine sea salt
- Half & half or buttermilk
What About The Cornmeal? What Type Is Best?
Medium-grind cornmeal (i.e. Bob’s Redmill brand) is what I used for this recipe. In my opinion, it adds more flavor and a heartier texture. Regular cornmeal (i.e. Quaker brand) will work too, but it’s finer in texture so the cornbread will be more smooth. Both will work.
A Few Tips…
- I’ve made this recipe many, many times and I can tell you an 8×8-inch square pan will create the best looking thick-cut squares. If using a 9×13-inch pan instead, the squares will be thinner and you’ll have to reduce the bake time.
- Also, pay attention to the batter when mixing. It should create “ribbons” when it drips off a spoon. If it seems too thick (due to the type of cornmeal used, the thickness of your sourdough starter, or from overpacking your measuring cups) it can easily be corrected with more liquid.
More Sourdough Discard Recipes
- Ultimate Sourdough Banana Bread
- Cinnamon Sugar Sourdough Waffles
- Same-Day Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bread
- Overnight Sourdough Apple Cake
- Homemade Sourdough Blueberry Muffins
- Moist, Fluffy Sourdough Gingerbread Cake
- Puffed Sourdough Crackers with Gruyere & Thyme
Additional Resources
- Sourdough Discard 101: Recipes & Faqs Answered
- Feeding Sourdough Starter: My Best Tips & Tricks
- Beginner Sourdough Starter Recipe
Secret Ingredient Sourdough Cornbread
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: One 8×8-inch cake
- Category: Sourdough Discard Recipes
- Method: Oven-Baked
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A perfectly moist, slightly sweet, fluffy sourdough cornbread recipe with a hint of vanilla and coconut oil for depth of flavor. Can be made 1 day in advance. Excellent for festive feasts, soups, stews and more! I love it with coffee :)
Notes
- For thick-cut squares, it’s best to use an 8×8-inch square pan.
- Half and Half is equal parts milk and light cream (here in the US it’s sold as “Half & Half in the stores). You can sub with whole milk, and blend of milk and cream, cream with a splash of water etc. Buttermilk will work too.
- To make this dairy free, use plant butter and reduce the salt to 1/4-1/2 tsp. Use an unsweetened plant milk of your choice.
- To make this gluten free, swap the flour for King Arthur Measure for Measure GF flour.
Ingredients
- 115 g (8 tbsp. or 1 stick) unsalted butter
- 30 ml (2 tbsp) coconut oil
- 2 large eggs
- 70 g (1/3 cup) granulated sugar (increase to 100 g or scant 1/2 cup if you like it sweeter)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 100 g (appx. 1/2 cup) sourdough discard
- 125 g (1 cup lightly spooned & leveled) all purpose flour
- 80 g (1/2 cup) medium grind cornmeal (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 120 ml (1/2 cup) half & half (*see notes above)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line an 8×8-inch pan with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter and coconut oil over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.
- Whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla together in a large mixing bowl. Pour in the melted butter mixture; whisk well. Add the sourdough starter and mix again.
- Add the flour and cornmeal to a separate bowl. Sift the baking powder, baking soda and salt directly over the top. Mix to combine.
- Working in batches, add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients using a wooden spoon to incorporate.
- Gradually pour in the half & half until the liquid is fully absorbed. Dip a spoon into the batter and let it pour down; if slow “ribbons’” form the texture is correct. If it seems too thick (this could be due to the texture of your sourdough starter or the addition of too much flour) add more liquid to thin it out.
- Bake on the center rack for 25-28 minutes; the top should be golden brown when ready.
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Remove the cornbread bread (still on the parchment paper) to finish cooling on a wire rack.
- Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Note: this cornbread can be made 1 day in advance. Once completely cool, cover in plastic wrap and keep at room temperature. Serve as is, or reheat wrapped in foil at 250 F until warm.
Comments
Kayla says
This cornbread recipe is now in my weekly rotation. It is unmatched! To me this has the perfect texture- right between crumbly and cakey. I have made this recipe with the full stick of butter, without any butter or oil (accidentally), and with half a stick of butter and 1 tbsp of coconut oil. Honestly, all of them are amazing, but I think half a stick butter/1 tbsp coconut oil is my personal favorite in terms of texture and flavor. I have also only ever made this with whole milk and 1/2 cup is definitely the perfect amount for each batch that I make.
Thank you so, so much for sharing this with the world. <3
Alaine says
Oh my! This sourdough corn bread is amazing! This is the first thing I’ve made with my starter! And it turned out great! Everyone loved it! And I used my homemade vanilla extract also. It’s a keeper recipe.
sherry says
The only change I made was swapping the coconut oil for avocado oil and needed to add more flour to get the texture shown in the picture. It still came out very tasty!
Brian M says
This was by far the best cornbread I’ve ever had!! I am new to sourdough and wanted to find an easy discard recipe. The steps were really easy to follow and the results were way better than expected!
Donna Mathwig says
Made this today – to go with chili for dinner. It was perfect – and better than my go-to recipe! Fluffy, hint sweet, with subtle but present sourdough notes. I used buttermilk. So very good!
Patty says
Very good recipe for cornbread and use of sourdough discard. Thank you for the tip to check the consistency and add additional liquid if necessary. Definitely will use this recipe again.
Justin says
Are you supposed to use refined or unrefined coconut oil? There is a big difference!
Lisa Strafford says
DELLICIOUS corn bread and easy, too!!! Thanks Carrot!
Lauren says
This is my absolute favorite cornbread recipe! I preheat a nonstick 8×8 pan then coat the pan in butter rather than use parchment and the edges get deliciously buttery crispy. To answer one of the questions commented, I have substituted 50 g of water and 50 g of flour for the discard and the recipe was still a success!
Lisa says
This is delicious! Taking it to a party tonight and ended up making a second batch and chili for home
tabitha Starke says
I made this wonderful recipe with 1 change. Since I didn’t have the half and half I used powdered milk with water. I like to keep this staple on hand versus regular dairy milk.
Still the recipe was delicious! You can taste the butter and the pan I used was a little bigger than the suggested pan. We took about 4 days to ” kill ” the rest of the pan with just a little dryness. I will definitely make again.
Teresa says
What if I wanted to use this recipe without sourdough discard? How different would it turn out?
Sarah Grotegut says
You would need to add an additional 50 grams of water plus 50 grams of flour to make up for the difference of not having 100 grams of discard. The overall texture might also be different as the gluten in the discard is broken down rendering a softer texture.
Carla says
This is a fabulous cornbread recipe. I just made it tonight. It’s so moist. Thank you for sharing!
lmarie says
Yummy! Great recipe. The only thing I modified was used 1/2 teaspoon of maple extract and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and i stead of half and half i used a combo of heavy cream and 2% milk. Turned out awesome! Coconut oil shines just enough to give it that perfect touch. This recipe will be my go to from now on. 😋
CJ Tinkle says
Your sourdough cook book is my bible and go to for all things sourdough!
I’d like to try this cornbread this week, so hoping you see my comment in time. Could I substitute honey for the sugar? I use honey in all of my bread vs sugar, but I tend to just dump. Would 70g work okay?
Meg says
I’m wondering if this recipe would work in a large muffin tin. Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions.
Maressa says
This is so so good!! I made it for a party at our house and it got such wonderful feedback! I did double the recipe and bake in a 9×13 as I had a ton of people coming over. I do have a question – would these be ok frozen and unfrozen? I had some leftover (as I made 4 pans 😜) and don’t want it to go to waste!!
amy t. says
this is the BEST cornbread!!! i made the recipe as is except i used buttermilk. i used the full 100g of sugar but will use less next time as i think the coconut oil (genius btw 🤯) adds a bit of nuanced sweetness! seriously soooo soooooo good!!! i will definitely have this on repeat throughout the fall 🤗😍
Hannah says
Gorgeous! The best cornbread recipe with incredible flavor and texture. Thank you!
Amanda says
I halved the recipe and subbed in olive oil and skim milk (because that’s all I had on hand); it still came out amazing! Thanks for all your hard work in recipe testing!
Charlie says
I served this last night at a small dinner party and it was a hit. I added small amounts of sharp cheddar cheese and chopped sweet onion. If I have guests who like hot food, I might add Anaheim or jalapeno peppers. I bake my cornbreads in a cast iron pan, pop them out and cool them on a rack, and then put them back in a cast iron pan for serving. A Dutch oven or cast iron pan makes for very attractive presentation. No leftovers and the guests raved about the sourdough cornbread! Great recipe!
Sonuahua compton says
I’m guessing the Vanilla is the secret ingred? because that was the onnly thing i wasn’t sure about… But I’m excited to try these :)
Christy says
Great to use sourdough discard! I accidently forgot the coconut oil, but this was delicious without it! I will definitely make this again and I’ll add it next time. Thanks for the great recipe!
Candice Whitlock says
Do I have to use coconut oil? And if not what can I replace it with
Ken says
Butter
Melody says
5 Star Recipe!
Used 3/4 cup discard as that’s what was left in jar.
Did not use coconut oil.
Little less half n half.
Poured batter directly into 9×9 pan, baked at 380 degrees (higher elevation 6000ft), 35 minutes till golden brown.
Absolutely delicious – thanks for posting this recipe 🎶
Brenda says
This is by far the very best cornbread I’ve ever made! There aren’t enough words to say how great it is! Please make it – don’t hesitate. It’s a great way to use up 100 g of sourdough discard.
Zoe says
The coconut oil was certainly discernible; not a good paring for something savory like chili. I wanted to like this so I could use sourdough discard, but it disappointed me.
Ken says
Refined coconut oil does not have flavor. Unrefined coconut oil does. Just fyi.
Tandy Jurgensen says
Can I ferment it in the fridge before baking?