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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Used homegrown jalapenos and tiny can of baby corn. Very easy and tasty.
Yum!
My husband Is sensitive to almonds. Can I sub more coconut flour or use pecan or hazelnut flour? I’m planning on using it as a base for stuffing. 2 of my kids can’t tolerate dairy, so I planned on subbing Myokos cashew based butter substitute.
where can I find /get cornbread flavoring? never heard of it.
I link to it in the recipe.
I love this recipe! Very yummy texture and taste! Moist and delicious! Easy to make! Try it, you will love it!
I made this tonight to go with some chili and loved it! I omitted the sausage and added a quarter cup of shredded cheddar instead, to make a cheddar jalapeño version. I did not get an overwhelming coconut flavor at all. In fact I think the coconut flour helps take away some of the graininess that can be found in some recipes that are made with just almond flour.
Since this has more coconut flour than almond flour and had good reviews, I had high hopes. Unfortunately, it was not for me. I did not like the grainy texture from the almond flour nor the strong artificial flavoring. I ate a piece but I won’t make it again.
Hi Caroline,
I notice you use coconut flour in a lot of recipes. I’ve tried some of them but I can always taste the coconut flavor – I hate coconut! ???? By chance, is there a substitute for coconut flour?
Oh, snoogers – I meant Carolyn! So sorry! ????
Thanks for all the good recipes!
I’m just cooking for myself so cut the recipe into 1/6 and baked it in a smaller cast iron casserole. I omitted the jalapeños & bacon so it was like my family’s. Cooked in 15 min. And was SO GOOD!! Next time I’ll go ahead and make the full recipe and individually wrap and freeze them! Thanks for a truly wonderful nostalgic cornbread that NOW I can eat!
This just came out of the oven…….wow is all I can say. It is delicious while hot (I just had a little taste, as I am letting it cool in my cast iron pan)! All I changed was the sweetener. I used granulated Monk Fruit, but next time I will only add half the amount. I am pairing it with taco stuffed zucchini boats with all the toppings for dinner tonight!
I served this to my non-keto family an
d they loved it. My kids said it was the best cornbread they’d ever had!
Wow that’s so great to hear!
While this was good we were disappointed as it tasted too much like coconut.
I will definitely be making this! Growing up in Florida one of my favorite meals was cornbread, black eyed peas, and collard greens. In our family it was never sweetened. My mom would say that’s not cornbread, it’s cake????
I agree but consider the fact that corn has natural sweetness to it whereas almonds don’t. A bit of sweetener actually makes it taste more like cornbread.
I made this cornbread (with jalapeno, of course) for a Texas Connection chili cook off, just so I’d have some cornbread to eat. Others tried it and all of a sudden, someone suggested we have an award for best cornbread as well as chili. First time it’s ever been suggested and I attribute this to your recipe! I didn’t make it in the skillet, instead I greased mini cupcake pans with sprayed coconut oil (I didn’t preheat the pans), baked them about 10 minutes and they were fantastic. Great for taking to a party.
We love this cornbread ! The texture is perfect and it’s just the right sweetness. Because there are only the two of us I make the full recipe and wrap the extra pieces individually in parchment squares before freezing them. They reheat from the frozen state perfectly with 1 minute in the microwave! Perfect accompaniment to you keto chili as well as keto cheeseburger soup ! ????????
This sound great. What size iron skillet should be used? Thank you
Just fixed it. 10-inch skillet.
Sweet cornbread is a Northern tradition. In the South, we like buttermilk cornbread. Have you tried any adaptations to make it more like Southern cornbread? I have seen some suggestions for vinegar, just not sure how much, etc. Would love to see what you could do with that!
I made it with buttermilk and it was wonderful.
How would I add buttermilk when there’s no other liquid to replace other than melted butter?