Sweet cornbread and chili is the perfect cozy, comforting meal to feed a family. If you’re new to cooking and baking, these are fantastic, easy recipes! And they’re quick. Both come together in about an hour. If you have a larger family or want the meal to last longer, both recipes double easily! Plus, the chili freezes really well if you’d like to turn it into a freezer meal.
What if I don’t want to use muffin tins?
Totally ok! I typically will make this sweet cornbread recipe using a 9×13 pan or occasionally in my cast iron skillet. However, I liked the idea of single-serving cornbread so I tried them out in muffin tins and I love how it turned out! Basically you can’t go wrong. It’s the sweet cornbread recipe EVER in any form. Ok, almost any form. I wouldn’t use a pan smaller than 9×13. The bake time for a pan is between 26 – 32 minutes, depending on the pan you use. The cornbread is done when it has puffed up, has started to turn golden brown around the edges and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool for 5-10 minutes and serve with butter 🙂
Is the buttermilk a must?
YES. Don’t skimp on this part. If you don’t have buttermilk, add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice or white vinegar to 2 cups of milk. Stir and let it sit for 5-7 or so minutes until it starts to thicken. I promise, it’s worth the extra trip to the store or effort to make your DIY buttermilk. If you’re looking for more recipes that call for buttermilk, click here.
While the cornbread is baking …
Get started on the chili! Sweet cornbread and chili is the best combo.
Sweet Cornbread
Equipment
- 2 large bowls
- 1 large muffin tin or 2 standard size muffin tins
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 cups buttermilk
- ¼ vegetable oil
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups cornmeal
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350. Line 2 standard muffin tins (either large or standard) or grease muffin tin cups including the sides. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the eggs and sugar. Whisk to combine
- Stir in buttermilk and oil until well combined.
- In a separate large bowl, add flour and cornmeal. Use a fork to combine.
- Add baking soda and salt, stir to combine.
- Add liquid mixture to dry mixture, stir to combine. There will be a few lumps.
- Scoop into lined-muffin tins using a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop – 1 scoop for standard muffins and 2 scoops for large muffins.
- Bake for 22-26 minutes.
What goes well with sweet cornbread? CHILI! Pair with this delicious chili recipe:
Chili
Equipment
- Large dutch oven or stock pot
- Saute Pan (optional)
- Cutting board
- Knife
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- tbsp butter
- ½-1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 green pepper, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 15 oz cans tomato sauce
- 1 6 oz can tomato paste
- ½-1 cup ketchup
- 2 tbsp spicy brown mustard
- 1 can kidney beans rinsed
- 1-2 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp red chili flakes
- 1 tsp salt
- t tsp pepper
Instructions
- Prepare your veggies. Dice the onion and green pepper and mince the garlic.
- Heat a dutch oven or stock pan over medium high heat. Brown the ground beef.
- Add the butter, green pepper, onion and garlic to the ground beef. Cook until onions are translucent. You could also do this in a separate saute pan if desired. If cooking in a separate pan, add to the ground beef once onions are cooked.
- Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, ketchup, spicy brown mustard and beans (rinsed) to the ground beef mixture. Reduce heat to low and stir to combine.
- Season with chili powder, red chili flakes, salt and pepper, to taste. Be aware that the chili will get more spicy overnight 🙂 Let simmer over low heat for another 30 minutes. Serve with cornbread!
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