The Best Vegan Buttermilk Gluten-Free Cornbread Recipe

Just the best vegan buttermilk gluten-free cornbread recipe out here, perfect for teatime or serving with Vegan Chili. Super easy to make, one bowl and one baking pan. It's moist and has just the right balance of sweetness and savory notes.

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We have found that this vegan gluten-free cornbread recipe can be stretched to the sweeter side, simply adding some extra sugar, and to the savory side, just adding some extra salt, without risking the texture or rising of the dough.

Every time we have our Vegan chili, we either pair it with some avocado and a bowl of brown rice or with this delicious gluten-free dairy-free cornbread.

Also, we use this recipe as the base to make our cornbread stuffing for Thanksgiving.

Of course, pairing chili with cornbread is an all-time winning combination, so we go for this gluten-free cornbread when we don't mind waiting 25 minutes.

Jump to:

• 🤔 Why you will love it
• 🧾 Gluten-Free Cornbread Ingredients
• 🍽️ Equipment
• 🔪 Instructions
• 🥢 How to serve
• 📖 Variations and Substitutions
• 🥡 Storage and reheating instructions
• 💡 Top Tip for Cornbread Perfection
• ❓ FAQ
• 📚 More Comfort food recipes
• 🎥 Video
• 📋 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews and Comments

🤔 Why you will love it

1. Gluten-free. Eating for people with celiac disease is safe, or simply avoiding gluten.
2. Dairy-free. Lactose intolerant or vegan, you have come to the right place.
3. Egg-free. Egg allergies or vegan? We have you covered!
4. Adjustable and easily scalable. It's easily adjustable to the sweet or savory side. This vegan cornbread is a little sweet but not overly so. It's not a savory Cornbread, though. I have turned it into savory cornbread, just playing with the sugar/salt ratios with excellent results.
5. Moisture. It's very moist, with the perfect puffy cornbread texture, without too much "grit" in it.
6. Easily made buttermilk. It's made with 2-ingredient vegan buttermilk in 5 minutes while you measure your dry ingredients.
7. Hassle-free. You just need one bowl and a baking pan, making it super simple: dump, mix and bake! Perfect every time.
8. Oil-free option. Easily make an oil-free version, replacing vegan butter with apple sauce.
9. No waiting. You can eat it straight out of the oven without waiting or setting a time.
10. Last but not least... it always comes out perfectly! The only way to mess it up is to burn it. Just set your oven to 25 minutes, and you are guaranteed to get it right 100% of the time.

Serve this Dairy-free Cornbread with this Vegan Chili, a dollop of fresh Guacamole, or fresh avocado dice for the ultimate treat!

This recipe is also one of our favorite fall season recipes, as it brings many flavors related to Thanksgiving and cozy gatherings.

🧾 Gluten-Free Cornbread Ingredients

This easy vegan cornbread recipe calls for just a handful of staple ingredients.

• Gluten-free flour: Adds structure to the cornbread while keeping it gluten-free. If you're not gluten-sensitive, all-purpose flour works too! See how to make your own homemade gluten-free flour mix.
• Yellow cornmeal: the vegan cornmeal is the star of the show, it gives the cornbread its signature texture and flavor.
• Baking soda: Acts as a leavening agent, working with the acid in the recipe to create a fluffy texture.
• Baking powder: Another leavening buddy, it ensures your cornbread rises to the occasion.
• Vegan butter, margarine, or neutral oil: Adds moisture and richness. Your choice here can subtly change the flavor profile.
• Coconut sugar or organic cane sugar: Sweetens the deal without the guilt. Both options are vegan-friendly.
• Salt: A pinch enhances all the other flavors, making them pop.

For the Vegan Buttermilk

• Unsweetened and unflavored plant milk: Almond, soy, or oat milk—pick your plant! This serves as the base for your vegan buttermilk.
• Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar: Adds the tangy kick, turning plant milk into a buttermilk dupe.
• Each ingredient plays its part in making this cornbread a vegan, gluten-free masterpiece. Ready to get cooking? 🌽👩‍🍳

See quantities and complete instructions in the recipe card.

🍽️ Equipment

Large Mixing Bowl: The bigger, the better! You'll need ample space to mix all your dry and wet ingredients without making a mess. It's the starting point of your cornbread journey.

Spatula: This is your mixing MVP. A spatula ensures that you can scrape every last bit of your cornbread mixture into the baking dish, leaving no goodness behind.

Baking Dish: The stage where the magic happens. A good-quality baking dish ensures even cooking and easy release, making your cornbread the star it deserves to be.

🔪 Instructions

Preheat oven. Set it to 400 ºF (200 ºC) and melt the vegan butter in a small sauce on low heat.

Make the buttermilk

Mix the dairy-free milk and lemon juice and reserve for 5-10 minutes until it curdles.

If you are unsure about how even the temperature in your oven is, I suggest two tips.

1. Place an oven-resistant container with one cup of water at the bottom of the oven. The steam generated will ensure your gluten-free baked goods cook evenly.
2. Use your oven's fan mode if available.

Tip: Another great option to bake your delicious cornbread and reduce the baking time is using a muffin pan instead of a baking sheet.

You can also use an 8" round pan like the one below.

🥢 How to serve

• Pair it with Vegan Chili: A slice of this cornbread is the perfect sidekick to a hearty bowl of vegan chili. The subtle sweetness of the cornbread balances the spiciness of the chili, making each bite a flavor explosion.
• Dunk in Vegan Soup: Whether it's a creamy vegan tomato soup or a chunky vegetable stew, this cornbread serves as a delightful, gluten-free spoon. It soaks up the flavors while adding its own corny goodness.
• Top it with Vegan Breakfast Goodies: Hear me out—slice the cornbread horizontally and use it as a pizza base. Slather some vegan cream cheese, sprinkle vegan sausage crumbles, and finish with a drizzle of maple syrup. Pop it in the oven for a few minutes, and voila, you've got a cornbread breakfast pizza!

This delicious Gluten-Free Vegan Cornbread pairs very well with hearty dishes such as this Vegan Chili or these Creamy Red Lentils.

Dice some avocado on top, or add a spoon of freshly made Mexican Guacamole.

This recipe is also the base for making Cornbread dressing or stuffing.

We also love having it for breakfast, during the weekend, with freshly made coffee or Vegan Golden Milk.

Other delicious add-ons we love to add on top are vegan cheese, brown rice syrup, agave syrup, maple syrup, and vegan butter.

Other popular and simpler options to serve this homemade cornbread recipe include thawed frozen corn, canned corn kernels, and baked beans.

Last but not least, of course, Cornbread is a staple on our Thanksgiving table, especially paired with our favorite Spiced Cranberry Sauce, Applesauce, Sweet potato apple crunch, and the never-ever missing pumpkin pie.

📖 Variations and Substitutions

You have several options to keep this vegan cornbread recipe gluten-free.

The Gluten-Free flour we are using is a mixture of garbanzo bean, sorghum, fava bean flour, potato starch, and tapioca flour. It works perfectly for making this GF cornbread and all gluten-free recipes.

Alternative gluten-free flour options - You could also use oat flour, almond flour, and chickpea flour to make this easy cornbread recipe.

We used gluten-free flour since we wanted to make a gluten-free, vegan cornbread, but if you don't mind the gluten in your flour, you can use either all-purpose flour or bread flour (strong, high gluten content).

Cornmeal

If you don't like any grittiness in your cornbread, make sure to use fine cornmeal instead of medium-grind cornmeal. We use Bob's Mill medium-grind cornmeal.

Vegan butter

Any vegan butter or margarine will work. We have also used canola, grapeseed, and avocado oil (all neutral oils) in the same proportions. It will work.

Olive oil is also a good option. We like olive oil in all its forms but keep in mind that it will add its distinctive flavor.

Some people even use coconut oil, but I don't recommend it because I can certainly taste the coconut in the cornbread, and that was not the flavor I was looking for, as we were aiming to get the flavor as close as possible to the traditional cornbread, which of course uses wheat flour, non-vegan butter, and regular buttermilk.

If you choose to use oil instead of a good quality vegan butter, such as Earth Balance, you will miss some buttery flavors, which are barely noticeable.

If you are vegetarian and don't mind using regular butter, go ahead. The same applies to milk.

Oil-free

You can make a vegan cornbread with applesauce instead of using any kind of oil if you prefer to prepare a healthier version.

Sweetness

If you like your cornbread sweeter, use an extra ¼ cup of coconut sugar or organic cane sugar. We do this when we plan to have cornbread for breakfast with our coffee or tea time.

You can also simply add a little bit of maple syrup on top before serving.

You could use other types of sugar, but we wanted to keep this gluten-free cornbread and refined sugar-free.

Southern style: this is a Northern-style cornbread. To give our cornbread recipe a true Southern twist, double the sugar for a sweeter, richer flavor profile. This Southern-style version will have a delightfully moist and tender crumb with an enhanced sweetness that pairs beautifully with savory dishes like spicy chili or smoked meats. The increased sugar creates a lovely golden crust, adding a touch of indulgence to this classic comfort food.

Savory

If you prefer your gluten-free cornbread to be savory, add ½ teaspoon of salt and use ⅓ cup of sugar. This is the recipe I use when aiming to remove most of the sweet notes but keep the cornbread essence.

Baking powder

If where you live, you can't find baking powder (yes, it happens! Here in Italy, baking powder is not used, but you can easily make your own in seconds!).

To make this DIY baking powder, simply mix

• 2 parts of baking soda
• 2 parts of cream of tartar
• 1 part of cornstarch (also known as Maizena).

This homemade baking powder can be kept in a closed Tupperware and use in the future. It keeps well in the fridge.

Make sure you use fresh baking soda and not the one that has been sitting in your fridge for months!

Buttermilk

If you don't mind the buttermilk, which I strongly recommend, use the same amount of dairy-free milk, skip the lemon (or vinegar), and add ¼ teaspoon of baking powder. It is excellent for vegan pancakes, vegan banana bread, banana muffins, or cornbread.

🥡 Storage and reheating instructions

You can store this easy vegan cornbread covered at room temperature for 2 to 3 days.

In the Fridge

Wrap & Store: Keep any leftover cornbread wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtight container. It'll stay fresh in the fridge for up to a week.
Reheat: To bring it back to life, pop it in a preheated 350°F oven for about 10 minutes or give it a quick zap in the microwave for 20-30 seconds.

Freezing and Reheating

You can also freeze this egg-free cornbread for up to 3 months.

Freeze: Cut the cornbread into individual slices and wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped slices in a zip-top bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
Reheat: No need to thaw! Preheat your oven to 350°F and bake the frozen slices for about 15-20 minutes, or until warmed through.

Meal Prep Option

Batch & Freeze: Make a double or triple batch of this cornbread and follow the freezing instructions. You'll have a quick and delicious side ready to go for future meals. Just reheat as needed and enjoy!

💡 Top Tip for Cornbread Perfection

Preheat Your Baking Dish

Why it works: Preheating your baking dish before pouring in the batter ensures that the bottom of your cornbread gets a delicious, crispy crust. It also helps the cornbread to rise evenly, giving you that perfect, fluffy texture every single time.

So, before you even mix your ingredients, place your baking dish in the oven as it preheats. Once it's hot, carefully remove it, grease it up, and then pour in your batter. Trust us, this simple step is a game-changer!

Ready to bake like a pro? 🌟👩‍🍳

❓ FAQ

📚 More Comfort food recipes

⭐ If you try this Gluten-Free Cornbread Recipe, let us know! 💬 Leave a comment, rate it, and don't forget to tag us @ourplantbasedworld on Instagram. Cheers!

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