Sweet Potato Cornbread
This Sweet Potato Cornbread is the perfect side dish to serve alongside soup, chili or to elevate a simple bowl of pinto beans.
Easy Sweet Potato Cornbread Recipe
Cornbread is a regular on our menu year-round. Depending on what I’m serving, it can go from being fully loaded or stuffed to being filled with peppers, shredded cheese or sausage. It goes so well with a variety of entrées and firmly holds its place as one of the beloved house bread of the South. This cast iron skillet cornbread has a tender crumb and the batter is slightly sweet in keeping with the star ingredient.
How to Make the Best Sweet Potato Cornbread Recipe
We often hear the terms “yams” and “sweet potatoes” used interchangeably, but they’re actually quite different. Yams are starchy and have a rough brown exterior while sweet potatoes skin is reddish brown with a creamier more colorful orange interior. This easy cornbread recipe uses sweet potatoes, not yams. You can read more about the difference between yams and sweet potatoes here on Food and Wine.
- What you’ll need to make homemade Sweet Potato Cornbread: Plain yellow cornmeal, all purpose flour, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice OR ground cinnamon, pureed sweet potatoes, milk, butter, sour cream, eggs, turbinado sugar or sugar in the raw for the top.
- I highly recommend making this sweet potato cornbread in a cast iron skillet for even baking. If you don’t have a cast iron skillet, you can bake this in any similar size oven safe skillet or baking dish.
- The sweet potato puree can be prepared in advance and chilled until you’re ready to make the cornbread. When doing so, bring it to room temperature before adding it to the remaining ingredients for the batter.
- You can use cinnamon in place of pumpkin pie spice, if desired.
- You can also adjust the amount of spice in the batter. Begin with 1/2 teaspoon, then taste it, adding more to suit your taste.
- Serve sweet potato cornbread fresh from the oven slathered with butter and a drizzle of honey or pure maple syrup.
- Store leftover sweet potato cornbread at room temperature or chilled for up to 3 days. Reheat gently in the microwave.
- You can wrap and freeze leftover cornbread for up to one month.
More Southern Style Sweet Potato Recipes to Make
Sweet potatoes are in season and harvested in September and October, but can add something special to the menu year-round. They reach their peak flavor after several weeks of curing which adds to their popularity for Thanksgiving. Why wait until then, there are so many tasty ways to make them! Other recipes you may enjoy:
- These perfectly easy homemade Sweet Potato Fries are roasted in the oven.
- The best ever recipe for Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Casserole will free up the oven during the busy holiday season.
- Buttery Sweet Potato Biscuits are perfection stuffed with holiday ham or turkey.
- Gooey Stuffed Sweet Potatoes are perfect for individual portions when you’re cooking for two.
- End your meal with a generous piece of Sweet Potato Pie topped with a crunchy streusel topping.
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Helpful Kitchen Items:
Sweet Potato Cornbread
Ingredients
- 2 cups plain yellow cornmeal
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2-1 tsp pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon
- 1 cup pureed sweet potato see Cook's note
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 4 large eggs
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted (plus additional to grease skillet)
- 1 Tbsp turbinado sugar optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 10 inch skillet or similar. Set aside.
- In a medium size mixing bowl, use a whisk to sift together cornmeal, flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together mashed sweet potato, milk, sour cream and eggs. Mix well, then whisk in melted butter. Once combined, add wet to dry ingredients, mixing until fully moistened.
- Pour evenly into skillet, Sprinkle top with turbinado sugar.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes just until a toothpick inserted into the center comes back clean.
- Serve with butter, drizzled with maple syrup or honey.
I don’t have a cast iron skillet can this be made in a large lasagna/baking baking pan?
A lasagna pan would be too large. You can bake this in any similar size (10 inch) oven safe skillet, pie pan or baking dish.
I used Greek yogurt instead of sour cream and I did not have whole milk so I used 2% mixed with half and half. I also cooked the sweet potato in microwave to make the sweet potato purée and used my immersion blender to mix the ingredients . Great recipe
cant eat eggs ca
n i use vegan egg replacement
I haven’t tested specifically a vegan product, but you could probably adapt this recipe using an egg replacement.
Looks like my sweet potato pie …. with added cornmeal. Will definately give it a GO! 😉
Have you tried making this with pumpkin puree?
I have tested it with pumpkin and it’s an even swap.
Can this be made into muffins instead of making this in a skillet?
Sure, no problem.
We just made the Sweet Potato Cornbread and we loved it and will be making it again soon.
Thanks so much!
Can canned sweet potatoes be used for this?
Yes, you can. Just pulse in your food processor to puree.