Gluten-Free Cornbread
Categories: All, Breads, Muffins
Tags: , Allergy Friendly, Corn Bread, Cornbread, Dairy Free, Desserts, Thanksgiving, Vegan
After years of publishing cornbread recipes, sampling cornbread at gluten-free shows and teaching how to make cornbread at my cooking classes, I’m convinced that people are passionate about their particular cornbread “styles.”
In my house, we grew up with sugar in our cornbread – making it in to a deliciously light and fluffy corn cake that has become one of the most beloved recipes I take to friends’ houses for meals. Many others swear that the sugar ruins the cornbread, and instead leave it plain and unadulterated, or add savory elements to the bread to complement many soups and stews.
In this recipe, I tried to take the best of both styles of cornbread. The result is a savory, light and fluffy corn cake with a kick that enhances wonderful foods like stews and chili!
I used chipotle peppers that I picked up in the Latin food section of my local grocery store (be sure to buy one without wheat as a thickener), canned in a wonderful smoky adobo sauce. If you prefer to use a different kind of chile or pepper, give it a whirl! Chances are, if you like the taste of those peppers before you put them in the cornbread, you’ll love the cornbread too! Feel free to ignore my mix-ins like peppers and corn kernels – this won’t upset the finished product, it will only change the taste and texture.
And if you want something even easier (the hardest part about making gluten-free cornbread is finding certified gluten-free corn meal and corn flour or other gluten-free flours) – just use my Jules Gluten Free™ CornBread Mix: dump in a bowl and stir the wet ingredients in with a fork and voilá! No fuss, and delicious, certified gluten-free cornbread can be yours! Mmmmm … I can smell it already! 
Cornbread
- 3 Tbs. butter or non-dairy alternative (e.g. Earth Balance® Buttery Sticks)
- 1 cup sour cream (dairy or soy – Tofutti Better Than Sour Cream® or Vegan Gourmet®) OR plain yogurt, dairy or non-dairy (So Delicious® Coconut Yogurt)
- 3/4 cup milk (dairy or non-dairy alternative – Earth Balance® Soy Milk or So Delicious® Coconut Beverage)
- 1 large egg (or egg replacer equivalent like Ener-G® or flax seed meal + water)
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal, gluten-free (Arrowhead Mills GF Organic Yellow Corn Meal®)
- 1 cup Jules Gluten FreeTM All Purpose Flour
- 1 Tbs. gluten-free baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2-4 Tbs. granulated cane sugar
- 3-4 chipotle peppers, chopped – optional (Goya® or La Costeña®)
- 1/4 – 1/2 cup corn kernels - optional
Preheat oven to 400 F. Place the 3 Tbs. butter in a heavy 10-inch skillet or 9-inch square baking pan; place in the oven to melt and warm the skillet.
Whisk together the sour cream, milk and egg. In a separate bowl, combine the cornmeal, Jules Gluten FreeTM All Purpose Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. 
Stir the wet mixture into the dry ingredients. Fold in the chopped peppers and corn kernels, if using. Spread in the hot greased skillet or baking pan.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until set and crispy brown around the edges. Cool in the pan on a cooling rack; cut into squares or wedges, depending on the shape of your pan.
You can also bake these as corn muffins – fill 12 oiled muffin tins and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
Serves 8.
For this and 149 other awesome gluten-free and allergy-friendly recipes, grab my newest book, Free for All Cooking!
45 Comments
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21. Jan, 2011
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Jules Dowler Shepard, Custom Choice Cereal. Custom Choice Cereal said: RT @JulesGlutenFree: New #glutenfree cornbread recipe posted just in time for wintry weekend soups & chili! http://bit.ly/efTmcp #gluten … [...]
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17. May, 2011
[...] paired this yummy meal with my super yummy cornbread, but it would also be a great low-carb meal on its [...]
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Brittany said: on January 21, 2011
Heck, yeah! I love cornbread, and I’m making the vegan version of this! Chiptole peppers ought to really spice it up a bit! Thanks!
Laura said: on February 2, 2011
Hi Jules – can you use this recipe and make muffins instead? Thanks!
Jules said: on February 2, 2011
Absolutely! Here are the directions for muffins instead: oil muffin tins and bake 20 minutes for regular corn muffins, or 12-15 minutes for mini-muffins.
Jaime Swick said: on February 7, 2011
Hi Jules, I am making this bread for the first time and wondered if I could substitute some of your flour for flaxseed meal for extra fiber? Thanks!
Jules said: on February 8, 2011
Yes, my general rule is that you can take out up to 25% of my flour in most any bread (quick or yeast) and sub with flaxseed meal or buckwheat flour (two flours with great nutritional benefits, but little taste or texture to affect the recipe) without having to worry about adding xanthan gum to hold it together. Golden flaxseed from FlaxUSA is a great option too, as it blends in with most recipes and the added nutrition isn’t obvious to those who think they won’t like it! Have fun experimenting!
Venecia said: on August 11, 2011
Thanks for this recipe Jules, I am just getting in to gluten free as my husband has started to feel unwell and we are trying to eliminate gluten as he eats it by the truck load.He is a big guy so needs lots of filing things. This cornbread looks delicious so I am going to give it a try and will let you know how he likes it.
Jules said: on August 11, 2011
Venecia, you’ll both love this recipe! It’s so quick and easy, and goes with every kind of meal deliciously!!! Your hubbie will thank you!
Laura Taylor said: on September 15, 2011
I love cornbread. I’ve tried twice in my sister’s and my friend’s weddings. I am curious how to make this, thankfully I saw this post.
Jules said: on September 16, 2011
Laura – you’ll love it! This recipe is one of my all-time favorites and I’ve never heard a complaint from the happy mouths at dinners I’ve brought it to!
Sharon said: on October 3, 2011
oh yum! I love cornbread but really haven’t come across a recipe that I’ve liked or that doesn’t contain regular four. I like mine kind of ‘cake-y’ so this sounds perfect. Thanks Jules!
Caitlin said: on October 17, 2011
I have tried God knows how many kinds of cornbread, and I must admit, I am an adict. Love Love Love it, although not as much of a fan of it without sugar or any other kind of ingredient that gives it some flavor. I have never had it with chipotle peppers in it though. I will have to try this recipe out and hope that it turns out as yummy looking as yours. Thanks for the post!
Jules said: on October 18, 2011
Caitlin, if you truly love cornbread and you love to add some sugar to your cornbread … you’ll truly love this recipe! Enjoy!
Petra said: on November 21, 2011
I’m 15 and recently found out I’m Gluten intolerant. I was disappointed to find out that cornmeal has gluten in it, but I’m so happy to find this recipe of yours! I’m going to make it this Thursday and I’m sure we’ll love it.
Jules said: on November 21, 2011
Petra – so glad you’re excited about getting busy in the kitchen! Cornmeal does not naturally have gluten in it, but if it’s made in a facility that doesn’t properly contain contamination, it is often contaminated with gluten. That’s why I recommend only brands that are certified gluten-free, or that have adequate cross-contamination prevention protocols in place. I know you’ll love the recipe, as will your family. It’s always a crowd-pleaser!
Dean Kirkland said: on December 11, 2011
Yum! What a great post Jules. It brought back a lot of great memories from when I was a line chef. Everybody made the cornbread course and kind of lumpy. I would always make it dense, but also fine textured and fluffy. Man that was tasty stuff. Thanks for the memories!
Jules said: on December 12, 2011
Sure thing, Dean! Happy to bring back tasty memories!
Jamie said: on December 31, 2011
I am having a really tough time making this cornbread or any other gluten free, dairy-free, and egg free version. I was really hoping this one would work. The only thing I did different was use coconut yogurt instead of sour cream, which is one option that your book lists. I used your flour. I did use the ener g egg replacer. My corn bread tastes ok, its just doughy and moist inside and really dense. I let it cook longer, but it never got better. Can over mixing it cause this problem? Any other suggestions?
Jules said: on December 31, 2011
Jamie – that is definitely not the right result! This is a great moist and light cornbread, so the problem here must be the Ener-g. I’m not wild about that egg replacer in breads. I have made this before using the flaxseed meal and water egg replacer instead, and it works nicely. Why don’t you try that? The coconut yogurt wouldn’t be the problem – that’s actually really yummy in this recipe!
Mariah said: on January 23, 2012
I made this tonight. I substituted bacon grease for the oil because I love southern style cornbread. It was amazing! My husband and all three daughters thought it was the best GF cornbread I’ve ever made. Thank you!
Mariah said: on January 23, 2012
Sorry I mean I substituted the bacon grease for the butter
Jules said: on January 24, 2012
Mariah, your family has good taste!
Cheri said: on January 24, 2012
This is the best GF cornbread ever. Now, I would love a biscuit recipe.
Jules said: on January 24, 2012
Oh I have a great biscuit recipe!!! It’s in my book, Free for All Cooking!
heidi said: on February 3, 2012
can agave nectar be substituted for the sugar?
Jules said: on February 3, 2012
Heidi – you don’t even have to have sweetener in cornbread, I just like it that way! You could use agave instead, but reduce the liquids in the recipe by the same amount. The bread will be slightly less fluffy, as well, but it’ll be yummy nonetheless!
Linda said: on February 5, 2012
I’m with Jamie. I’ve tried Jules other cornbread recipe a couple times, & when I found this one today I just KNEW it would work…but it was not done in the middle either, goey/rubbery & toothpick would not come out clean, even after leaving in longer. (I have Celiac, but as far as I know I can still have dairy so I used sour cream, milk, & butter). I don’t know what else to do. I DID use 9×9 pan this time, as I thought my 8″ round was the problem on the other recipe. I can’t blame my husband for not wanting GF when I’m having such a tough time making it edible. What am I doing wrong? I LOVE cornbread & need to figure out the problem. (same result with the beer bread!) I’m in Iowa, so high altitude isn’t it. Any ideas?
Jules said: on February 6, 2012
Linda – did you use Ener-G egg replacer like Jamie did? That is the only thing I could think would cause a problem. I’ve never heard of the recipe not cooking in the middle – it’s usually a no-fail. If you are having trouble getting this or any other recipe to fully cook in the middle, you could either cover the bread with foil and keep cooking it, or make corn-muffins. That’s the absolute easiest way to get yummy cornbread without having cooking issues. You can also email us at Support@JulesGlutenFree.com and we’ll walk through the recipe and steps with you to see if there is anything you might be overlooking. I want you to have awesome cornbread again – you deserve it! This is a super delicious recipe, so let’s walk through it together and see if we can figure out where you might have done wrong.
Jane said: on February 16, 2012
This looks like a great recipe, can’t wait to try it. Like Oats that need to be certified gluten-free, is it the same for corn meal?
Jules said: on February 17, 2012
Great question, Jane! With any flour or grain, it’s best to find certified gluten-free, as there is such a possibility for cross-contamination in milling and processing. Short of that, choose products where the company identifies the product as gluten-free, and contact the company directly for the real story on just how gluten-free the product really is!
Jane said: on February 16, 2012
Also – as I live in Canada and you are not yet able to ship your flour here, do you suggest any flour substitutions that I can use to create the same wonderful products?
Jules said: on February 17, 2012
Jane, the next best thing to buying my pre-packaged flour is to make your own. I give several ingredient options in my recipe in Free for All Cooking – hopefully you can find those ingredients (certified GF!) near you and make your own!
T Shumway said: on February 18, 2012
I halved this recipe, as I am the only one eating it and I still managed to make 12 small muffins. I was surprised at how thick the batter was; thick like mashed potatoes. I was making non-GF cornbread at the same time and it was like cake batter. I am really not partial to cornbread and find most of it to be uneatable, these I am happy to say were good. I am going to chalk this up as my first good experience with baking GF. Now to try some of Jules’ other recipes…
Jules said: on February 20, 2012
That’s great, Tiffany! So glad you liked it!!! Have fun experimenting with other recipes now!
Roselyn said: on June 7, 2012
I haven’t tried this yet, but I am not a big fan of sugar in cornbread, as I am a ‘southern cook’. I much prefer onion salt or onion powder. And, less flour, more corn meal. I’ll let you know how it turns out!!!
Jules said: on June 7, 2012
Roselyn, the beauty of this recipe is that you can totally leave out the sugar or add more – it won’t effect the consistency of the bread. Sounds yummy with the onion, too!
“Sabra” Jane Hammond said: on October 9, 2012
I was out of sour cream, so I use buttermilk for all of the dairy liquids (total 1.75 cups). I was worried that the acid:leavening ratio might be off, but my muffins came out perfectly! Light and fluffy, with just the right amount of chewiness! Better than almost any I’ve had out before gluten-free, let alone GF recipes. BTW: I was raised a Yankee, so 3 Tbs of sugar was perfect for me. Thanks, Jules.
Jules said: on October 18, 2012
That’s great to hear, Sabra! My mom always uses more sugar than that, but I figured 3 Tbs. was a happy medium! Also glad to hear that the buttermilk worked great for you! Thanks for letting me know! Happy baking!
Miss T said: on December 12, 2012
Awesome recipe! It’s amazing what simple changes in your diet can do you for your mind, body and soul. I will come back for more !
Thanks
Sylvia said: on January 4, 2013
Egg yolks make my daughter sick (as well as gluten and dairy). Every baked good I’ve tried to make without egg turn out like the poster’s above: rubbery on the outside and gooey in the middle. I’ve tried enerG, applesauce, just egg whites, and other substitutes. This happens with boxed brownie mixes to homemade biscuits and cornbread using Jules. It is a frustrating journey of learning but I will persevere.
Jules said: on January 4, 2013
Sylvia, cornbread should be easy. I make it often with flaxseed + water instead of egg, but if your daughter can eat egg whites, just double those. My recipe and mix only call for one egg, anyway, so it’s a quick fix. You might also want to check out my book, Free for All Cooking – it’s made for folks who can’t do gluten AND can’t do eggs, soy, dairy, nuts — other ingredients as well. The whole first part of the book teaches you how to rework recipes to suit your dietary needs, and the rest of the book has 150 recipes that will work for your daughter.
Sylvia said: on January 4, 2013
Thanks so much for your reply. I just purchased the book and I can’t wait to try all the delicious looking recipes in there. I also appreciate all the valuable information such as how to replace sweetened condensed milk. Thank you!!
Deb said: on January 5, 2013
I made the gluten free cornbread without the sugar or peppers for cornbread dressing at Thanksgiving. It made the dressing a little “gooey”, so at Christmas, I made the cornbread without the sugar and peppers, reduced Jules flour mix by 1/4 cup and replaced that with cornmeal. BINGO! I didn’t even make any “regular” (gluten containing) dressing at Christmas and everybody thought it was delicious.
I love everything Jules!
Jules said: on January 6, 2013
That’s fantastic, Deb! What a victory – I just love when the non-gluten-free guests eat the same meal and love it. It’s the way it oughta be all the time! Thanks for sharing your substitutions!!!