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Buttery soft, sweet cornbread is one of the easiest gluten free recipes for beginners. It's perfect if you need a quick side dish to round out dinner, and it's a great option if you're having gluten free guests over for dinner. If you aren't used to making gluten free food, this recipe is the perfect one to start with!
Cornbread goes so well with soup and chili in the cold months. But it also pairs beautifully with spicy barbecue and cold salads in the summer months. It's a good old fashioned, all American favorite that everyone can sink their teeth into - whether they are gluten free or not!
What Makes this Cornbread the Best
- It is so moist! More like cake than the usual crumbly cornbread.
- It's so quick to throw together! You can make this from start to finish, including the resting time, in less than an hour.
- You can make this ahead, freeze it, and have something gluten free ready when you need it.
Keep scrolling for the recipe! ⤵️
What's in this Recipe
- cornmeal
- baking powder, baking soda, salt
- sugar
- Greek yogurt - use plain Greek yogurt. Either fat free or full fat yogurt is fine
- sour cream - this is where I add in some fat, which is necessary for this recipe to turn out well. If you ARE using full fat Greek yogurt, you could eliminate the sour cream and replace it with more yogurt. I always have nonfat Greek yogurt and sour cream on hand for other recipes, so that is what works best for me when I make cornbread.
- buttermilk (or milk) - if you don't have buttermilk on hand, you can replace it with regular milk. I use buttermilk in this recipe because it has so much more protein than milk does. Why does protein matter? Scroll down to the FAQ section to find out!
- gluten free flour blend - I use my own recipe for gluten free All-in-One flour blend, which you can get here. But there are some store bought flours blends that I also like for cornbread. Keep scrolling to see some of the ones I recommend.
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How to Make Gluten Free Cornbread
Step 1. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl, and stir with a whisk.
Step 2. Blend the liquid ingredients in a mixer.
Step 3. Add dry to wet, mix for 2 minutes, cover and let rest.
Step 4. Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a square pan.
Step 5. Spread bater in the pan, spreading to fill out corners evenly.
Step 6. Bake for 25 minutes, and let cool before cutting.
New to Gluten Free Flour?
There are different kinds of gluten free flour blends, and not all of them will work in this recipe.
The kind you need for my cornbread recipe is an all-in-one type, that contains xanthan gum (and may or may not contain baking powder).
I make my own version which you can learn how to make in my free PDF, Gluten Free Baking for Beginners ⤵ And I'll drop some links below to other flour blends that work well in this cornbread recipe.
For more gluten free baking tips, be sure to read "Best Beginner's Tips for Successful Gluten Free Baking"
Gluten Free Flour Blends I Like
1 to 1 Baking Flour (Bob's Red Mill)
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Buy Now → Since gluten is a form of protein, when we have to bake without it we need to make up for that with other protein containing ingredients and dairy products are a good way to add protein to gluten free recipes. They also add sweetness and help the baked goods brown more easily, which can be a problem with gluten free baked goods.
Also, gluten free flours don't absorb oil easily so I have replaced the oil that is typically found in cornbread recipes with even more dairy products. This makes the cornbread turn out so springy and moist, since the flours have fully absorbed the dairy.
For this recipe, you need to use a flour blend that contains xanthan gum. You can make your own, as I have already explained earlier. You can also buy some flour blends that are excellent in this recipe. King Arthur's Measure for Measure flour, Bob's Red Mill 1 to 1 baking flour, Namaste foods Perfect flour blend, and Great Value All Purpose gluten free flour are some of the types that can work in this recipe.
It's possible that you didn't let it cool enough before cutting into it. Gluten free baked goods need a little time to cool down, solidify, and set.
The gluten free flours in the batter may not have had a chance to get fully hydrated, which also causes baked goods to crumble. Mixing your batter for a longer time and letting the batter rest before baking are the two best ways to hydrate the flours.
Gluten Free Cornbread
Buttery soft, sweet cornbread is one of the easiest gluten free recipes for beginners. Make this to show your gluten free family and guests some love!
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 9 servings 1x
- Category: side dish
- Method: bake
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup Kristie's All in One Flour Blend (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup buttermilk
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt, nonfat or full fat
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine cornmeal, flour blend, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir to blend.
- Add egg, buttermilk, sour cream, and yogurt.
- Mix on medium speed for about 2 minutes until very well blended. The extra mixing time really helps hydrate the flours and gives a light a fluffy texture.
- Let the batter rest for about 30 minutes to allow the flours to fully absorb the liquids.
- Grease a 8 x 8 inch or 9 x 9 inch square pan.
- Scrape batter into the prepared pan, and smooth it into the corners.
- Bake for 25 minutes, or until tops spring back when touched, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Notes
You can make your own flour blend, mine can be found here.
There are some store bought flour blends that work in this cornbread recipe, I'll link them below.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ⅛ recipe
- Calories: 205
- Sugar: 9.7 g
- Sodium: 427.8 mg
- Fat: 4.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 35.6 g
- Fiber: 1.7 g
- Protein: 5.9 g
- Cholesterol: 31.7 mg
More Gluten Free Baked Goodies
Comfort Food + Cornbread = YUM
