Happy (almost) fall, Lil’ Luna friends! It’s Samantha from Five Heart Home, and I’m happy to be back today with the perfect accompaniment to all of those cool weather comfort foods. How does a big wedge of Bacon Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread sound?
As the temperature (finally, blessedly) drops, I don’t think there’s anything better than cornbread to soak up soup, chew with stew, or crumble over chili. In fact, I keep a jumbo jar of Homemade Cornbread Mix in the pantry all fall and winter long so that I can effortlessly whip up a skillet of golden goodness at a moment’s notice.
But this cornbread? Well, oozing with melty cheese, studded with crispy bacon, and peppered with minced jalapeños, this version is so tasty that it doesn’t even require soup to justify it. Feel free to swap out the cheese if you like — Monterrey jack or even pepper jack would be yummy as well — but be sure not to skimp on the bacon. 😉 And as long as you remove the seeds and membranes from your jalapeños, they should lend flavor as opposed to heat, but you can always omit them if peppers aren’t your thing.
I hope you enjoy the turning of the seasons, whether your favorite fall highlight happens to be autumn leaves, football (me!me!me!), cozy scarves and boots, or warm and inviting comfort food. And I hope that this Bacon Cheddar Jalapeño Cornbread makes those comfort foods even better!
Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread Recipe
Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread - so delicious and so flavorful! It's perfect with soup or any celebration.
Ingredients
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup butter melted and cooled
- 1 cup buttermilk at room temperature
- 1 egg whisked
- 1 tbsp honey
- 5 slices bacon cooked and diced (1 tbsp bacon grease reserved)
- 4 oz sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 jalapeno seeds and membranes removed and minced (more or less to taste)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 400°F. Place a tablespoon of bacon grease (or butter) in the bottom of an 8-inch cast iron skillet* and place in the oven to melt.
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In a large bowl, whisk together cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the melted butter, buttermilk, egg, and honey. Mix in diced bacon, shredded cheddar, and minced jalapeño. Using a pot holder, remove hot skillet from the oven. Pour cornbread batter into center of skillet, allowing melted bacon grease to spread to the edges. Smooth the top and bake for 20 minutes, or until surface is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool skillet for 5 minutes before slicing and serving cornbread warm.
Recipe Notes
*Instead of a cast iron skillet, you may bake this cornbread in an 8-inch round pan or in 12 muffin cups. If doing so, generously grease the pan/muffin cups with butter or spray with nonstick cooking spray (in lieu of preheating in the oven with melted butter).
You may use regular all-purpose white flour in this recipe, or whole wheat pastry flour, or a combination of the two. I used half white flour and half whole wheat pastry flour for the cornbread in these photos.
If you don't have buttermilk on hand, make your own by putting a tablespoon of lemon juice or white vinegar into the bottom of a glass measuring cup. Fill the cup to the 1-cup line with milk, stir, and allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes, after which the milk will have thickened and curdled like buttermilk.
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I may be slightly obsessed with Cornbread so this recipe looks AMAZING!!
It will be the perfect addition to all the soup we’ll be making soon. 😉
Thanks, Samantha!
For more great recipes from her be sure to check out Five Heart Home.
Speaking of soups, I think this Cornbread would go great with these…
Crock Pot Green Chile Enchilada Soup
For all side dish recipes go HERE.
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ENJOY!
Yum – thank you. Love the cornbread.
Thanks, Liz!! Have a great day, my friend!! XO
I love the cornbread recipe. Thank you.
This may be my new favorite cornbread recipe!