This keto cornbread has all the texture and flavor of the real deal! Bake it in a skillet for a crusty exterior and a soft, tender inside, or turn it into low carb muffins.
I’ve been low carb for so long that I genuinely do not crave bread anymore. But sometimes a piping hot slice of keto cornbread with butter melting on top is pure bliss. Pair it with a bowl of keto chili and you’re in comfort food heaven.
So if you love cornbread but want a healthier, low carb option, this is the recipe for you. Let’s get baking!
What readers are saying…
“I made this “cornbread” tonight and was pleasantly surprised. I’m a southern girl and love cornbread. I have tried other keto cornbread recipes with little success so I really wasn’t expecting to be as satisfied as I was!” — Elizabeth
Why you will love this bread
I have any number of bread recipes that I love, like keto focaccia and coconut flour bread. But this keto cornbread recipe is a family favorite. It goes so well with keto soups and chili.
I started making this one years ago when I was testing out coconut flour recipes. I made some vanilla cupcakes and the flavor reminded me very much of cornbread. Even my kids thought so. So I started playing around with it until I had both the taste and texture just right.
It has no grains and no sugar, nothing to set off the cravings, inflammation, or glucose response that real cornbread might induce. And yet it really satisfies the palate (and the tummy!) in a similar way. And with only 2.6g net carbs per serving.
Did I mention you can turn it into easy-to-grab cornbread muffins? And it makes fabulous keto stuffing too!
Ingredients you need
- Butter: Good cornbread deserves butter and plenty of it! I use salted in this recipe.
- Keto flours: I use a mix of coconut and almond flour, because it helps emulate the texture of real cornbread. While you can use all of one or the other, I really recommend following my recipe as written.
- Sweetener: Many people are surprised to see sweetener in cornbread. Let me point out that this is because real cornmeal has a sweet-ish flavor, even without anything added to it. If you don’t want to use it, feel free to skip.
- Xanthan gum: This helps hold the bread together a little better after baking. If you prefer, you can skip it. Just let the bread cool completely before slicing!
- Eggs: If you know anything about baking with coconut flour, you know you need all of these eggs!
- Flavoring: You do NOT need corn flavoring to make this taste like cornbread, in my opinion. But a lot of readers do love that addition.
- Add ins: This is where you can have a little fun, adding things like crumbled sausage or bacon, chopped jalapeño, or even cheddar cheese.
- Baking staples: Baking powder, salt.
How to make Keto Cornbread
- Butter the skillet: Add 1 tablespoon butter to a 10-inch ovenproof skillet and place it in the oven while it preheats.
- Combine the dry ingredients: IWhisk together the coconut flour, almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt.
- Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the eggs, butter, and cornbread flavoring (if using). Stir in the water.
- Stir in add-ins: Stir in the bacon and jalapeno or any other add-ins, if using.
- Bake: Spread the batter in the pan and bake until edges are golden brown and center is just firm to the touch.
To make cornbread muffins
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Line a standard muffin tin with 12 parchment or silicone liners (no need to grease them, but don’t use paper liners).
- Prepare the batter as directed and divide between the muffins cups.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown and just firm to the touch.
Expert Tips
You don’t have to use a cast iron skillet, but it creates a lovely brown crust. Any ovenproof skillet will do or cake pan will do. You can even use a pie plate, but if it’s glass or ceramic, the bread will take longer to bake.
How much water you need to add depends largely on your coconut flour. They can differ in absorbency so just add a bit of water at a time until it’s a thick but spreadable batter.
Remember to use an oven mitt when you remove your hot pan from the oven. Trust me, you do not want to forget this! Nothing ruins a day faster than a third degree burn on your hand.
Make sure you don’t over-bake the bread or it will become dry. Every oven is different and you need to check on it often. Once the edges are golden and the top is just firm to the touch, remove it right away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Cornmeal is quite high in carbs and should be avoided on low carb and keto diets. But you can simulate the texture and flavor with a combination of coconut and almond flour. That may seem hard to believe but it works!
These keto cornbread recipe has 5.7g of carbs and 3.1g of fiber. That means it has 2.6g net carbs per slice.
Store the leftover bread in a covered container on the counter for up to 4 days, or in the fridge for up to a week. You can also freeze the bread for several months.
Keto Cornbread
Ingredients
- 9 tbsp (127.82 g) butter, divided
- 3/4 cup (90 g) coconut flour
- 1/2 cup (56 g) almond flour
- 1/4 cup (45.5 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum, (optional, but helps hold it together a bit more)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 6 large eggs, room temperature
- 1/4 tsp cornbread flavoring, (can sub vanilla, use 1/2 tsp)
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup (59.15 ml) water
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled, optional
- 2 medium diced jalapeños, optional, (leave in the seeds if you want more heat).
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF, and add 1 tbsp butter to a 10-inch ovenproof skillet. Place the pan in the oven as it preheats. Melt the remaining butter in the microwave or in a pan on the stove and let cool to lukewarm.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, almond flour, sweetener, baking powder, xanthan gum, and salt. Stir in the eggs, butter, and cornbread flavoring. Stir in 1/4 cup of the water. If the batter is still overly thick, stir in more water, a tablespoon at a time.
- Stir in the bacon and jalapeno, if using.
- Remove the hot skillet from an oven (don't forget to wear an oven mitt!) and brush the melted butter around the skillet.
- Spread the batter in prepared skillet and bake 20 to 25 minutes, until edges are golden brown and center is just firm to the touch. Remove and let cool before slicing.
Video
Notes
Cornbread muffins:
-
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Line a standard muffin tin with 12 parchment or silicone liners (no need to grease them, but don’t use paper liners).
- Prepare the batter as directed and divide between the muffins cups.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown and just firm to the touch.
Storage Information:
Store the leftover bread in a covered container on the counter for up to 4 days, or in the fridge for up to a week. You can also freeze the bread for several months.Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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I made the skillet cornbread found in your Everyday Ketogenic Kitchen. I was very good. Everyone liked it! I made a half recipe since I didn’t have a cup of coconut flour. I will make it again!
I have been following All day long for several years, and have never made this, for 2 reasons. The flavoring is sightly pricey, even though I buy all other ingredients 🤷♀️ and the other reason is, I just didn’t think it’d be a good substitute.
I now have to admit, all be it gladly, This is the Best Corn bread ever! Holy cow, it’s light, fluffy, absolutely delicious!
I ate 2 of them with chili. I know I over did it, but my gosh I can’t say enough about this recipe!
BTW, I used the vanilla extract
Thanks!
I have been following All day long for several years, and have never made this, for 2 reasons. The flavoring is sightly pricey, even though I buy all other ingredients 🤷♀️ and the other reason is, I just didn’t think it’d be a good substitute.
I now have to admit, all be it gladly, This is the Best Corn bread ever! Holy cow, it’s light, fluffy, absolutely delicious!
I ate 2 of them with chili. I know I over did it, but my gosh I can’t say enough about this recipe!
Wow, this is amazing!! I have been wanting to make this for a while but keep forgetting the cornbread flavoring. I was really in the mood for chili & cornbread, so I decided to make it using vanilla extract. Didn’t feel like going to the store so made due with omitting the bacon and using 1 small 4oz can of diced green chilis instead of fresh diced jalapenos. I had a little block of colby jack cheese (like 2.5oz) left from a previous recipe, so i shredded it and added to the batter. I used Lakanto classic sugar (mokfruit/erythritol blend). Perfection. The taste and texture is sooo much better than that blue box we grew up on!!
Thank you for giving the measurements. I will try it with this variation!
Excellent with black eyed peas and greens. Changes I made:
Used lard when preheating the 8×8 pan. Butter burned.
Added 1/4 cup egg white powder.
No xanthan gum, bacon, or jalapeno.
1/2tsp sweet corn flavor.
I mixed the dry ingredients in a baggy and took all the ingredients camping. I baked it in an 8×8 pan in the oven compartment of our wood burning campstove. It came out great except for a few burn spots here and there LOL that had nothing to do with the recipe and everything to do with the camp oven. It tasted a little eggy but soft and fluffy, buttery and a little sweet. I would definitely make this again at home or at camp! Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Carolyn, I know I ask this on a lot of your recipes but if you don’t mention it in the recipe wrote up, I don’t know if it will work or not. Is it okay to use butter flavored coconut oil here in place of butter? Of course I know it’s okay to do whatever but I want to know if you think it will change the outcome in a negative way. I can have butter and ghee but my husband has to be dairy free and he loves cornbread. Thank you!
I have been low carb for many years but, being a southern gal, I’ve never lost the love for cornbread! I’ve been aware of this recipe for a few years now since I’m a Carolyn fan. I make it often enough to keep it frozen in single serving pieces, ready for some chili or some beans! Perfect weather for it now y’all!! You owe it to yourself to try it, you’ll be so happy you did!
Thanks so much!
In my household sweet cornbread is sacrilegious! Can I leave out the sweetener without adversely affecting the final product?
I love all your recipes and own a cookbook or two of yours also Carolyn. I just made pecan pie bars. They are amazing! Thank you for all you do for the low carb community.
Yes, you can leave it out. But FYI… corn itself has a sweet flavor and this is to mimic that, not to make it overly sweet.
do you have ha ve a good recipe
for chicken and dressing? with
thanksgiving coming up soon. I
would like to make and freeze some ahead of time.
thanks for your wonderful
recipes.
I don’t but I will consider it. thanks!
Made this cornbread tonight and used the corn flavoring. So good! The texture is better than other keto cornbreads I have made. Again, Carolyn, this is a repeat winner!!!
So far it’s the best Keto bread I’ve tried! The corn flavoring really added to it.
Carolyn this cornbread recipe is very good! I think the corn extract really takes it over the top!
Carolyn, can you please please please add a cook mode button? I love all of your recipes, but this would make it so much more pleasant to cook them! Please consider. I know it can’t be that hard. I got Karly‘s low-carb life to do it. I do think you are the queen of low-carb baking and I would love to see this enhancement on your website! Thank you so so much for all the wonderful recipes!
Just added it! Sorry, it just took me some research on my recipe plug-in to figure out how to add it.
Carolyn, we love this bread. It also works well as a sweet bread if you add a little extra sweetener and vanilla, and of course, omit the savory Add-ins.
NOTE: Could you please add a cook button to your recipes? It would make it so much easier. I love all your recipes, but that would help immensely thank you Carolyn.
Made this twice and love it. Did not add bacon and jalapeños, just made it plain and it was good. First time used vanilla and it was good, tasted a bit of coconut, which was not offensive but not quite the flavor I was going for. Second time I got some corn flavoring and it is even better. I love it.