Sweet potato cornbread is super moist and tender and flavored with brown sugar, warm spices, molasses, and a hint of vanilla. This is the perfect bread to serve with Thanksgiving dinner, although it tastes terrific year-round!
If you are a cornbread lover like I am, you will SWOON over this sweet potato cornbread! With roasted, mashed sweet potato baked right in, this cornbread is incredibly moist and the warm spices and molasses take it over the top.
For more tasty Thanksgiving recipes, check out our Southern Candied Yams and Southern Cornbread Dressing recipes next!
Table of Contents
- Ingredients You Need To Make This Recipe
- How To Make This Recipe
- Variations and Substitutions
- What Is The Best Pan To Cook Cornbread In?
- What is The Best Way To Cook Sweet Potatoes?
- More FAQs and Tips
- What To Serve With Sweet Potato Cornbread
- Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
- More Thanksgiving Recipes You Will Love!
- 📖 Recipe
Ingredients You Need To Make This Recipe
A complete ingredient list with measurements and detailed recipe instructions can be found in the recipe card located at the bottom of this post.
- Yellow cornmeal. To create the cornbread batter. Use good-quality stone ground cornmeal for the best flavor and texture.
- All-purpose flour. To create soft, fluffy cornbread. Use good quality flour.
- Baking powder. To help the cornbread rise.
- Light brown sugar. For subtle caramel-like sweetness. Dark brown sugar also works.
- Salt. To balance the flavors and enhance the other ingredients.
- Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. These warm spices add depth and complexity to the cornbread and complement the sweetness of the potatoes beautifully.
- Buttermilk. For subtle tanginess and a moist, tender texture.
- Mashed sweet potato. To make sweet potato cornbread! I recommend baking the potatoes for the best flavor.
- Molasses. For depth and additional caramel notes.
- Vanilla extract. For depth and flavor.
- Eggs. To bind the ingredient together.
How To Make This Recipe
- Preheat your oven to 400°F. Place a 10-inch cast-iron skillet in the oven to heat while you prepare the batter.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves until combined.
- Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in the microwave and set aside. Place the mashed sweet potato, buttermilk, molasses, vanilla, and eggs in a separate medium mixing bowl and beat with a whisk until combined.
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into the bowl with the cornmeal mixture and fold the batter together with the spatula until no more dry cornmeal is visible. Add the melted butter and mix it into the batter with a silicone spatula. The batter will be thick.
- Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and place one tablespoon of butter in it. Swirl the butter around in the skillet until melted. Spoon the batter into the hot skillet and smooth it out into an even layer.
- Bake the cornbread for 20-25 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cornbread to cool for about 10 minutes before slicing.
Variations and Substitutions
- Use granulated sugar stead of brown sugar for a lighter flavor.
- Substitute honey or maple syrup for the molasses if you do not like the flavor of this ingredient.
- Add more spices for even more flavor and earthiness. Try adding cardamom, allspice, or ginger.
- You can use whole milk instead of buttermilk if you prefer but I do recommend making this cornbread buttermilk if you can.
- Use canned sweet potato puree to save time or even substitute pumpkin puree!
What Is The Best Pan To Cook Cornbread In?
While cornbread can be made in just about any baking pan, I always recommend cooking cornbread in a cast iron skillet to get the most delicious crispy bottom and edges!
If you don't have a cast iron skillet, no worries! Cornbread can also be cooked in any of the following dishes:
- Square, round, or loaf cake pan
- Glass baking dish
- Oven-proof skillet
- Aluminum pan
What is The Best Way To Cook Sweet Potatoes?
There are three ways you could cook your sweet potatoes for this recipe:
- Bake them in the oven (my recommended method). This method develops the best flavor in the sweet potato. The sweet potatoes aren't watered down and the natural sugars from the sweet potato caramelize in the oven.
- To bake sweet potatoes in the oven, wash them well, prick them all over with a fork, and bake them on a foil-lined baking sheet for 50 minutes to one hour until very tender.
- Boil them on the stovetop. This method is quicker and is perfectly fine for this recipe. Boiling the sweet potatoes does add additional water to them which dilutes the flavor slightly.
- To boil sweet potatoes, peel them, cut them into large chunks, and place them in a pot. Cover the potatoes with water and boil them for 15-20 minutes until easily pierced with a fork.
- Cook them in the microwave. This is the quickest method and works great when you are in a pinch.
- Wash the potatoes, prick them all over with a fork, and wrap them in a moist paper towel. Microwave for 10-15 minutes, until very tender. Once the potatoes cool enough to handle, remove the skins.
More FAQs and Tips
Dense cornbread can be the result of not measuring your dry ingredients correctly or old leavening agents. Be sure to spoon and level your dry ingredients and do not use baking soda that is more than six months old.
Cornbread can be made with whole milk, low-fat milk, evaporated milk, half and half, or dairy-free milk. However, I always recommend using buttermilk to make cornbread for the best flavor and the most tender texture.
Make sure your cornbread turns out moist by properly measuring your dry ingredients, adding oil or melted butter to the batter, using buttermilk in the batter, and being careful not to overbake your cornbread.
What To Serve With Sweet Potato Cornbread
You will want to serve this cornbread with everything and lucky for you, it tastes incredible with a number of other dishes. Serve sweet potato cornbread with:
- Southern Baked Macaroni and Cheese
- Cajun Crawfish Etouffee
- Cajun Smothered Chicken
- Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
- Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese
- Smothered Turkey Wings
- Hot Honey Chicken Thighs
- Cajun Shrimp and Grits
Make-Ahead and Storing Instructions
Sweet potato cornbread tastes best fresh but can be made up to two days in advance and stored in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Reheat the cornbread covered in the oven so that it does not dry out.
Leftover sweet potato cornbread can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
More Thanksgiving Recipes You Will Love!
- Southern Collard Greens
- Southern Green Beans
- Creamy Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Brown Sugar Glazed Chicken
- Maple Glazed Salmon
- Easy Cajun Salmon
- Southern Pecan Pie
- Southern Sweet Potato Pie
- Sock It To Me Cake
- Pecan Pie Cheesecake Bars
- Apple Cider Donut Cake
- Southern Buttermilk Pie
📖 Recipe
Sweet Potato Cornbread
Ingredients
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal 155g
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (125g) weighed or spooned and leveled
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup mashed sweet potato
- ¾ cup whole buttermilk
- 1 tablespoon dark molasses such as Grandma's
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 7 tablespoons butter unsalted, divided
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F. Place a 10-inch cast-iron skillet in the oven to heat while you prepare the batter.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves until combined.
- Melt 6 tablespoons of butter in the microwave in a microwave-safe bowl and set aside. Add the mashed sweet potato, buttermilk, molasses, vanilla, and eggs to a separate medium mixing bowl whisk until combined.
- Pour the sweet potato mixture into the bowl with the cornmeal mixture and fold the batter together a silicone spatula until no more dry cornmeal is visible. Add the melted butter and mix it into the batter with the spatula. The batter will be thick.
- Carefully remove the skillet from the oven and place the remaining one tablespoon of butter in it. Swirl the butter around in the skillet until melted. Spoon the batter into the hot skillet and smooth it out into an even layer.
- Bake the cornbread for 20-25 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cornbread to cool for about 10 minutes before slicing.
Notes
- Do not overmix the batter, a few lumps remaining are totally fine. Overmixing activates the gluten in flour which can make your cornbread turn out chewy instead of tender.
- Be careful not to overbake your cornbread so that it doesn't dry out.
- Leftover cornbread can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.
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