Sweet Potato Cornbread

Take your cornbread to the next level! This sweet potato cornbread is reminiscent of sweet potato pie with its mashed sweet potatoes, brown sugar, and a hint of cinnamon.

Moist and easy to make, but the final touch to take you over the top is a pat of butter and a drizzle of honey on a steaming hot slice of cornbread!

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Easy to Make - with just a little prep and the easy instructions, this cornbread isn't just for the holidays (but it does make the holiday meal extra special!).

Moist - thanks to the mashed sweet potatoes and some oil, you don't have to worry about dry cornbread; this one is perfectly moist.

No Jiffy - nothing against the boxed cornbread, but I encourage you to try cornmeal mix, then add your own simple ingredients for sweetness and flavor.

While we're on the subject of cornbread, check out my savory and cheesy Cast Iron Jalapeno Cornbread (Mexican Cornbread)!

Ingredients Needed

Mashed sweet potato - one large sweet potato should be enough to make 1 cup of mashed sweet potatoes. If you see a scale in the produce section of the grocery store, a 14-ounce sweet potato is plenty.

Self rising cornmeal mix - if you can find yellow cornmeal mix that's great, but white will work. Around here, the yellow always seems to be out of stock the closer the holidays are approaching. The mix is great because it already has the baking powder, salt, and flour perfectly mixed in.

Brown sugar - pick the light brown sugar because of its mild yet rich sweetness. When measuring brown sugar, pack it down in the measuring cup with the back of a spoon.

Cinnamon - gives the cornbread a warm flavor and pairs well with the brown sugar and honey.

Honey - while there is no honey in the cornbread, a drizzle of honey on top of a hot slice of sweet potato cornbread is a must try! More of a treat I would say.

Butter - while the cornbread gets its moist texture from the oil in the batter, placing a pat of butter on top of your serving of cornbread and letting it melt into the cornbread is simply magical lol!

Vanilla bean paste - ever since some sweet friends gifted me a jar of Mexican Vanilla Bean Paste, I've been hooked! It gives this recipe a richer vanilla flavor. I recommend it but if you already have vanilla extract, go ahead and use what you have.

Dairy - large eggs and whole milk are highly recommended. You could use buttermilk if you happen to have it already.

How to Make It

(1) Place the oil in a small (No. 5) 8-½ inch cast iron skillet. Put it in the oven and set the temperature to 450F. Place the mashed sweet potato, cornmeal mix, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla bean paste, milk, and eggs in a bowl and mix well.

(2) When the oven has pre-heated, remove the hot skillet from the oven and carefully pour the hot oil into the batter. Carefully blend the oil into the batter then add the batter back to the skillet.

(3) Return the skillet to the oven and bake for about 20 minutes. The cornbread should be set and not jiggly in the center. It will continue to cook a bit more while it cools off.

(4) Serve hot, individual cornbread slices topped with a pat of butter and a generous drizzle of honey on top! Mercy me, lol.

What to Serve with Cornbread

This cornbread is a great side dish for many entrees or in addition with other side dishes:

Ground Beef Vegetable Soup

Baked Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs

Roasted Parmesan Potatoes

Brussels Sprouts with Bacon

Recipe Tips

Try not to overmix the cornbread batter. Use a whisk and mix just until blended.

Check on the cornbread after 15 minutes of baking just to make sure it's not getting too browned. Overbaking it can make it dry.

Instead of a cast iron skillet, you can use a 9-inch by 9-inch square pan. No need to preheat the pan with the oil as with the skillet. Just add the cold oil to the batter with the other ingredients.