Sometimes cornbread needs a little sweetness, and this is the perfect Sweet Cornbread Muffin recipe. Enjoy this delicious, simple, from-scratch recipe!
I’m about to get folks riled up.
Like “we’re gonna revoke your Southern card” riled up.
Like no “true Southerner would do that” riled up.
Nevertheless here goes… Sometimes I like sugar in my cornbread. Cue the gasps. Clutch the pearls. It’s the truth. But hear me out… It depends on what’s on the menu.
If beans, greens, or other dishes that deserve sopping up with cornbread or being poured over cornbread are on the table – I want cornbread without the sugar. But sometimes, when I just have cornbread as a complement to the meal, I like it a little sweet – like Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix sweet.
I remember my mom always making Jiffy muffins when she made pork chops and yellow rice. It was like it was a required complement.
While I do love me some Jiffy, I don’t always remember to grab that little blue and white box at the grocery store. So, I make them from scratch with this copycat Jiffy recipe.
These jokers are pretty dang easy. And, they’re crazy delicious!
What is the difference between Southern cornbread and sweet cornbread?
Before I answer this question, let me put this little disclaimer out there… Southern cornbread comes in all different varieties. One such variety is a sweet version. Yes, Southern cornbread can be sweet. It really just depends on who’s cooking and what their preferences are.
Now, with that said… traditional Southern cornbread is most widely known for not being sweet. It typically has a more natural corn flavor and consists of simple ingredients, such as cornmeal, buttermilk or regular milk, eggs, and salt. This creates a crumbly, slightly coarse texture, perfect for soaking up the flavors of other dishes. Its golden-brown crust adds an enticing crunch, making it a beloved side dish across the South.
As for sweet cornbread, it includes all the basic ingredients of traditional Southern cornbread but stands out due to the sugar content. It’s most commonly sweetened with white granulated sugar or honey. The result is typically a moister and softer texture, quite different from the crumbly nature of Southern cornbread. While it still can be served as a side dish, some people even like to enjoy it as a dessert!
No matter your preferences, I think all cornbread varieties are absolutely delicious! Try a few different kinds, and you might just be surprised which you prefer!
Tips for Perfect Sweet Cornbread Muffins
- Use plain cornmeal, not cornmeal mix. Cornmeal mix and self-rising cornmeal already have the leavening and flour mixed in and since we add it in the recipe, it would be too much of each of those ingredients. I prefer yellow cornmeal for the color, but white cornmeal will work just as well. Again, just make sure it’s plain cornmeal.
- Don’t overmix the batter. You want to stir it just enough to get everything moistened and get the big lumps out. A few remaining lumps will be fine.
- Make it in the iron skillet! Don’t want muffins? Cool! Just mix the batter and pour it into an 8-inch cast iron skillet or 8-inch pan and bake for roughly the same amount of time.
Other Cornbread Recipes
Interested in taking a stab at a few other cornbread recipes? You have come to the right place! Here are a few of my favorite and most popular cornbread recipes! Give them a try and you’ll find that each one is delicious in its own special way.
Pimento Cheese Cornbread – Savor the true essence of Southern cookin’ with Pimento Cheese Cornbread, where classic, tender cornbread meets the gooey cheddar cheese and tangy zest of pimento peppers. This recipe results in a golden-brown, crispy crust for an irresistible twist on this Southern favorite.
Hot Water Cornbread – Hot Water Cornbread is a crunchy, Southern take on traditional cornbread. This simple recipe, requiring only 2 ingredients, features a pourable batter that’s fried to perfection making it the ideal side dish for a wide range of meals.
Elmer’s Cornbread – Elmer’s Cornbread is a cherished family recipe passed down through generation resulting in a delicious, moist, and slightly sweet cornbread that brings a taste of Mellow Valley, Alabama to your table.
Creamed Corn Cornbread – Enjoy a slice of this delicious Creamed Corn Cornbread, a moist and dense cornbread with a delightful twist of cream-style corn that enhances the corn flavor and adds a touch of sweetness.
Mom’s Mexican Cornbread – Mom’s Mexican Cornbread is a delicious and hearty dish that can be enjoyed as a side with soup or chili or as a satisfying meal on its own. You can adjust the jalapeños to your preferred level of spiciness.
Recipe Card
Sweet Cornbread Muffins
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup plain yellow cornmeal – not cornmeal mix (white will work, too)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1/2 cup milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F and grease a 6-well muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray.
- Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium size bowl. Add oil, egg, and milk. Stir just until lumps are gone.
- Pour evenly into the prepared pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
Nutrition
Please note:
If nutritional values are provided, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands used. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend grabbing your favorite brands and plugging those ingredients into an online nutritional calculator.
Delicious! Made them exactly as the recipe says. Eating them now along with homemade chili topped with cheddar cheese and sour cream. Hubby says they will go great with our homemade stew, too!
Yum! I’m tickled to hear they turned out great for you!
Updated review – this is still my go-to cornbread recipe but I’ve started adding a cup of blueberries to the batter when I want something a little different. Excellent recipe.
Such a great idea! I’m so glad you’ve gotten lots of use out of this recipe!
Love this recipe! Cooked in my cast iron muffin pan!
Love that pan! So glad you enjoyed these!
The best, I have tried so many recipes.
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed them!
Just made the best cornbread muffins ever. My husband loved them. No other recipes needed any more. With just the two of us just the right amount. Thank you.
Love hearing that! Thanks, Flora!
Stacy…you made my day! Love how easy this is. Not too sweet. I made 4 in the last few days. Thanks so much!!!
So glad to hear you enjoyed these!!
Best cornbread recipe I have tried yet! I did add a little bit more sugar than what the recipe calls for because I like my cornbread extra sweet, but this recipe is honestly perfect. Thank you!!
Thanks so much, Alicia! I’m so happy to hear you loved it!
Great recipe! I used a heaping 1/3 cup of sugar because I have an incurable sweet tooth and added a dollop of sour cream and butter instead of oil. It made 8 instead of 6 muffins. I love that it’s a smaller recipe. It’s a keeper!❤️
Thanks, Becky! Glad you enjoyed them!
Great recipe!. Quick and easy, just the right sweetness. I’ve been searching for the perfect cornbread, this is at the top of the list so far for muffins.👍.I made 10 muffins , took 20 mins exactly. Used paper cups. Second batch I’ve made, might have over mixed the first batch, these were awesome.
So glad to hear you enjoyed my version, Wes!
I have been looking for a great tasting out of the box corn muffin recipe. This is it. I did add alittle sour cream (2tbsp) yum such a wonderfull recipe. Thank you!
I’m so glad you enjoyed these, Jo!
Awesome recipe, thanks.
Happy to hear you enjoyed these!
Great best ever
Thanks, Sharon!
Excellent recipe for corn muffins. The added sugar was OK as the muffins weren’the least bit sweet. My critique is that the recipe needs a bit more salt. 1/4 teaspoon is too little. Also I have found that medium coarse cornmeal gives better results than the fine ground. Better texture than using the fine.
Thanks so much for the tips, Mark! Glad you enjoyed them!
Better than box cornbread. Nice balance of sweet and savory(although I love and grew up with both)
Thank you Senitra!
I was looking for a small quantity corn muffin to make for my elderly mother and found this. Glad I did. It made 18 delicious mini muffins. (I had to try one.) Hope most of the rest make it to mom’s. Will definitely make again.
Love this!
It’s my second time in as many weeks coming back to this recipe! My daughters all loved it and it’s just as easy as the boxed mixed I grew up with, and definitely tastier and more budget friendly!!
So glad they loved it!
Holy Moly! Awesome recipe. I just moved to the South GA and was having a hard time finding fresh bagels, muffins. Coming from a big city we have tons of bakery shops. I decided to google some recipes and came across yours. Thank you for sharing. I made these wonderful corn muffins this morning and they were delicious. I won’t be buying store muffins anymore !
Thank you so much for trying our recipes!
This recipe was so quick and easy. They came out perfect and were do delicious. The sugar was good and I added some kernel corn so I got 7 muffin. The extra was an immediate tester. Thank you for sharing.
I wish I could add a pic!
So glad you enjoyed them!
I made these today,they turned out perfectly,and was a good tasting recipe I’d make them again,but be more creative with herbs,..
Hello from Texas!! Was looking for a cornbread recipe on Pinterest and came across this one! It is delicious!! I’ve always used a cornbread mix. I won’t anymore though!! Super easy and tasty!!
Fantastic! I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Of the many cornbread recipes I’ve tried over the years, this may be the simplest – but is definitely the best! I’m done searching, this recipe is the keeper. (I guess those that mind a bit of sugar probably don’t want to hear about the cornbread recipe I once tried that started with a yellow cake mix…..tee-hee!) Thanks for another great recipe.
Thank you so much! So glad you liked it!
I used to buy a mix in a pouch (Betty Crocker? Unsure) that isn’t sold anymore… it was slightly sweet, and the others I’ve tried (even a scratch recipe) were all just bland or salty and we like a little sweetness to accompany hearty chili. Love these, I’ll be using this recipe from now on 😊 But, question: is it meant to be 6 LARGE muffins? I put my 12-muffin tin in the oven, then browsed comments and saw that recipe is for 6! Panicked thinking l I’d have 12 overbaked little discs! But they came out as 12 standard muffins, just fine. Could you add basic nutritional info tho, as we have a diabetic in family who needs to know carbs?
Hey Kristen! Yes, they are a little larger. I’ve not made them as 12, but I’m glad to hear that it worked out for you! When it comes to nutritional content, I don’t include that because many of the ingredients my recipes frequently call for can vary in nutrition based on the brand. I wouldn’t want to include the nutritional facts for one brand and folks use a different one and it have vastly different ingredients/nutritional content. With that being said, it’s super easy to pick your favorite brands and plug them into a nutritional calculator like the one on myfitnesspal.com to get accurate info. Hope that helps!
Outstanding! Light, fluffy moist and incredibly easy to make. Even with gluten free flour. I increased the sugar (we like them sweet). We’re not from the south). I also substituted buttermilk for milk and increased it a little. I doubled the recipe and made BIG muffins. For double the recipe recipe I used a cup of sugar and
1 1/4 cups buttermilk. (Use your own judgement.) I also used King Arthur gluten free measure for measure flour. You can easily make up dry ingredient mix and just add wet ingredients when you’re going to make them. You’ll never need a package mix ever again. I’m an experienced baker. This will be my go to recipe forever.
Janice, I’m so glad to hear you have enjoyed these so much! Thanks for sharing your tips. I am sure other readers will find them helpful.
My favorite cornbread recipe. I’ve made it often and will continue. Haven’t bought Jiffy since I first tried it. Thank you so much
Love hearing that!
I wanted corn muffins to go with my chili today so decided to try this recipe. So glad I did! They are delicious!! I didn’t have any baking powder so replaced the flour, baking powder and salt and used self-rising flour instead. This is a keeper!!! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
In Canada it’s very hard to find cornbread so it was nice to have a quick and easy recipe, thanks so much. I actually baked them in my Ninja as my oven is not currently working. It’s my son’s birthday and he loves him some cornbread with his ribs and homemade mac and cheese ❤️
So glad to hear it turned out great for you!
Excellent, made it according to recipe in a cast iron skillet… Moist, flavorful & not too sweet
Wonderful! So glad to hear it!
These are perfect. They taste good and they are visually appealing. The tops dome up high with beautiful cracks and the edges get crispy but not crunchy. I used half and half instead of milk because it’s all I had but they were still very good (a little extra fat never hurt anyone right?).
Thank you for this recipe.
You’re right! A little extra fat never hurt anyone! 🙂 Glad to hear you enjoyed these!
Used blue corn and added roasted pine nuts (2 tbsp per batch). Came out amazing! This is an excellent base cornbread recipe. Perfect amount of sugar!
Awesome! So glad to hear it turned out great for you!
These are incredible! Made these tonight to go with BBQ chicken & baked beans.. couldn’t find Jiffy at my store so I decided to make these and boy am I glad I did! So easy and so much better than Jiffy. I only had self-rising yellow cornmeal on hand so I omitted BP & salt but I wanted them sweet so added a bit more sugar to my doubled batch. Thank you Stacey, this is a keeper!!
Fantastic! So glad they turned out great for you!!
Thank you for this great recipe. My husband said they had the perfect amount of sweetness.
Wonderful! Glad y’all enjoyed them!
Tried this recipe tonight. Made a double batch to serve at friends ham & cabbage dinner. Everyone really enjoyed them. I think I would add a touch more sugar.
Thanks for sharing!
Glad to hear everyone enjoyed them! You could certainly add a little more sugar if you like.
I am partial to sweet cornbread ,unlike some in the area. Here it’s referred to as “Yankee Cornbread” ( and that’s not necessarily a compliment) . I like your recipes for their simple use of easily available ingredients. And great results
Thanks, John!
Hi I only find bob’s cornmeal meduim grind,, can this works also good and your recipe! My daughters love so much corn kernels can I also add , how much for this recipe .. Thank you looking forward
I can’t say for sure. I think a finely ground corn meal would be best.
Delicious! Thank you very much! My kids and husband love it! My father in law was a Southern boy, my kids definitely got some southern taste in them. They love the muffins.
Many blessings!
So glad to hear they turned out great for you!
My favorite “go to” corn bread recipe.
Thank you, Donna!
CUE the gasps. Not queue. You’re not lining them up.
As passionate as folks are about putting sugar in cornbread, there might actually be enough gasps to put them in line, but thanks for playing the role of grammar police today. 🙂
Pinto beans and cornbread has always been one of my very favorite meals!! And, I definitely like sugar in my cornbread. Thanks for the recipe …. you have so many good ones!!
Thanks, Deanna! Enjoy!
Yes!! We ONLY like sweet cornbread. Especially when we make our homemade chili. Great recipe. Thanks
Thanks, Vanessa!
I came across your recipe after trying one from a well known site, and they were awful. I read the ingredients and said, ” I’ll give it a try, and I’m glad I did. These turned out AMAZING I will not buy another box of Jiffy mix EVER
again. They weren’t to sweet nor did they come out heavy and hard. I book marked this recipe for EASY access. I will be checking out more of your recipes.
Thanks so much
Awesome! Thanks so much! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed my version!
I found this recipe a week ago and have made it twice already! I’ve made so many cornbread recipies but they often come out dry and crumble so easily that they aren’t enjoyable to eat. These are consistently moist and hold their shape. Yes there is sugar but they are not overly sweet and pleased the whole family including those from Texas to Tennessee.
Awesome! So glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know, Patty.
Use self rising corn meal don’t add salt baking powder turned out great
Glad you enjoyed it!
I want to know what kind of mufgin pan you got in the picture above?
It’s a Lodge Cast Iron muffin pan.
Such a quick, easy recipe. Made these exactly as instructed and they came out great. Perfect with a hot bowl of homemade chili. I will be making these again! Thanks, Stacey!
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed these, Debbie!
Just made these for my family, they were great! I used butter, because I was out of oil, and used a little less baking powder! Thanks for the recipe!
So glad they turned out great and y’all enjoyed them!
Is cornmeal and polenta the same, just found this recipe and would like to try it, I have polenta in my pantry.
I’m an Aussie so not sure about this.
This might help: https://www.thekitchn.com/whats-the-difference-between-cornmeal-and-polenta-word-of-mouth-211404
Just made these muffins and they are perfect
So glad they turned out great for you!
I’ve made this a few times, adjusting as I went. I doubled the recipe, but not the baking powder (used a little less than a TBSP). Added an extra tablespoon of sugar and a cap of vanilla extract. Turned out the best so far. Made mini muffins 400 degrees for 14 mins.
Sounds great! Thanks for sharing your tweaks!
I use self rising flour,,, I am from Tennessee NO sugar in cronbread
I get confused over whether to use plain cornmeal or self rising. I’m thinking I would use just regular cornmeal for this recipe? Yes, I should know this?.
Thanks!!
Yes, plain cornmeal or use self rising and omit the baking powder and salt.
I make these all the time and get rave reviews, I follow the recipe exactly with no issues. Making them tonight to go with chili, yum!!! Thanks for this recipe Stacey!
You are so welcome! Thanks, Kealey!
This is my go to cornbread muffin recipe now! Thank you! No longer do I buy Jiffy! I do add a little more milk than what your recipe calls for just because it seems a little dry to me…..I probably don’t need to but …. They have come out perfect each time and get gone quick!! Thanks again!
Fantastic! So glad you’ve enjoyed them!!
Hello. Found your post on Pinterest. As of tonight, I’ve made this two nights in a row with homemade chili and tonight, a soup (it’s in the 20’s to 30’s here). It is a fast recipe and tasted great. My young children loved it! I did adapt the recipe by replacing the oil with unsweetened applesauce as I do with most every recipe . I always add a tad of oil in the baking dish before adding the mixture to get crisp edges. Thank you for posting this.
Wonderful! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the recipe!!
I made these and they were so yummy!! I actually added frozen sweet corn Kernels (thawed first). After reading another’s post about the baking powder, I thought about it and it seemed a little much to me too. I’m not sure if the measurement was a mistake or not, but I used just a teaspoon and the muffins rose perfectlyand tasted great. So if anyone thinks a Tbsp is too much, then a tsp works fine. Thanks for the simple recipe!
So glad you enjoyed them!!
had a late-night craving & made these on a whim; followed the recipe exactly & baked with convection for 12 minutes to golden, just-sweet-enough perfection. craving satisfied! and leftovers will be great with homemade split pea soup for tomorrow’s lunch. thank you!
Awesome, Colleen! SO glad you enjoyed them! (I’m also a big fan of anyone who would get up and make homemade cornbread muffins for a late-night snack – just so you know!) 🙂
Good recipe! Really easy. I didn’t have vegetable oil, but I really wanted to try these. I only had coconut oil and butter, so I made 2 batches. One with coconut oil & one with butter. Both turned out tasty!
I WILL be making these again 🙂
That’s great to hear, Karina! So glad they turned out well for you!
Can we use buttermilk?
Sure!
I am sure the sweet cornbread muffins are great. How about real Southern cornbread muffins without the sugar.
Why don’t you just find a different recipe that doesn’t cal for sugar instead of finding one that does when you know you don’t like it and then complaining about it.
I AGREE WITH YOU, MARIE! Thanks for posting what goes through my mind when I see comments that criticize a recipe without even attempting to make it. I like that this recipe yields 6 instead of 12. Baked in a small Lodge cast iron pan produces a crispy crusted corn bread that went so well with homemade soup. We prefer a not-too-sweet corn bread, so this was just perfect. The sweetness can be reduced by adding 1/8 cup or 2 TBS. But it’s perfect as is.
Thank you, Iris!
Here’s a thought…just leave out the sugar. Pretty simple…