Ultimate Cornbread Casserole takes the classic side dish to the next level, made from scratch with the flavorful additions of bacon, cheddar, and jalapeño!
I have always made the same, delicious, decadent Creamy Cheesy Corn Casserole every Thanksgiving and Christmas and Easter and birthday and special occasion for years and years and years. Why mess with a good thing, right? But the truth is, this holiday season, I've got a hankering to change things up a bit! And after developing and testing today's recipe, I do believe I'm going to be serving this Ultimate Cornbread Casserole for Christmas dinner from here on out!
From-Scratch Cornbread Casserole
It seems that most folks have some type of corn dish on their table for big holidays. And while my other popular corn casserole gets its creaminess from cream cheese, this time I decided to take a stab at the traditional Jiffy cornbread mix-type corn casserole. Except I knew I didn't want to rely on a packaged cornbread mix with its not-so-natural ingredients.
Instead, I whisked together a few ingredients. This created my own simple homemade cornbread mix as the base for this Ultimate Cornbread Casserole.
Ingredients
This recipe starts out with the basics: cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt.
To the dry cornbread ingredients I added thawed frozen corn (I much prefer its flavor over canned), sour cream, and melted butter...hellooooo, holidays!
But then, I wanted to take this cornbread casserole from good to great. You know, make it ULTIMATE. So I decided to mix in one of my favorite combos of ingredients: salty bacon, zippy jalapeño, and glorious cheddar!
And the results were mahhh-velous. On the day I initially tested it, I served this recipe to my family as a side dish with dinner. And my eldest son-- who could happily eat nothing but stuffing on Thanksgiving...with a small side of creamy corn casserole for good measure -- declared Ultimate Cornbread Casserole THE BEST SIDE DISH OF ALL TIME. Because in his mind, it was basically like combining stuffing and corn casserole and howcanasidedishgetbetterthanthat?!?!
This recipe has the texture of moist, spoonable cornbread packed with plenty of sweet corn kernels. And then for a scrumptious flavor boost, there's that aforementioned crispy diced bacon, minced fresh jalapeño, and grated sharp cheddar throughout. I've been known to add those ingredients to regular cornbread to rave reviews, so I wasn't surprised that they worked swimmingly in this recipe as well.
So do you have your Christmas menu set yet? If you've got space on your table to try something new -- or perhaps just a new twist on a beloved classic that you already happen to serve -- I think this Ultimate Cornbread Casserole will be a big hit!
Everything's better with bacon...and this winner of a dish is no exception. 😉
Helpful Tips, Tricks, & Equipment
- If you have a tub of my Homemade Cornbread Mix in the pantry, that'll give you a head-start on this recipe (substitution instructions included in the recipe card directions).
- 1 tablespoon sugar will give a slightly sweet undertone to the cornbread in this recipe. 2 tablespoons will make the cornbread noticeably sweet. But you may leave out the sugar altogether if you prefer completely unsweetened cornbread.
- You can keep the jalapeño flavor in this dish very mild by removing all of the seeds and membranes from the peppers, which are where the heat is found. For a bit of heat, leave the seeds and membranes intact. And for extra heat, double up on the jalapeños!
- Speaking of which, feel free to add more bacon to this recipe if you so wish. And who wouldn't wish for more bacon?
- Don't forget to reserve some bacon, jalapeño, & cheese to sprinkle on top of the casserole before baking. Not only does this garnish add a little color, but it also lets everyone know what they can expect to find inside the casserole once they dig in.
- Be careful not to overbake so as not to end up with dry cornbread.
More Tasty Holiday Side Dishes
- Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pistachios & Cranberries
- Make-Ahead Garlic & Herb Mashed Potatoes
- Holiday Honeycrisp Salad
- Bacon Green Bean Casserole
- Broccoli Cheese Casserole
Ultimate Cornbread Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 cup cornmeal*
- 1 cup all-purpose flour*
- 1 tablespoon baking powder*
- ¾ teaspoon salt*
- 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 (16-ounce) bag frozen corn, thawed & drained
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup sour cream
- 6 tablespoons butter, melted
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 8 ounces bacon, cooked until crispy and diced
- 1 to 2 jalapeños, minced (see Tips & Tricks above for a note about controlling the heat level)
- 1 ½ cups grated cheddar cheese, DIVIDED
Instructions
- With oven rack in the center position, preheat oven to 350°F. Generously grease a 9- by 13-inch baking dish and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Add the corn, sour cream, and milk and stir to combine. Blend in the butter, black pepper, most of the bacon, most of the jalapeños, and 1 cup of the cheese until just combined.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Smooth the top and sprinkle with the remaining bacon, jalapeños, and ½ cup cheese. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until the center is set and the top is golden brown.
Notes
Post originally published on December 6, 2018.
Katrina
I was wondering I don't like sweet cornbread, will the Suger make it sweet tasting, if so can I leave it out?
Samantha Skaggs
This recipe isn't overly sweet, but you can definitely leave out the sugar if you prefer. 🙂 Happy Thanksgiving!
Debbie
why do some recipes call for cream cheese and this one for sour cream
Samantha Skaggs
Variations in ingredients between recipes will yield different results in the final dish, so I guess it's just a matter of personal preference. 🙂
Renee
Hi! Would this work using a box cornbread mix? Thank you!
Samantha Skaggs
Yes! As long as the cornbread mix yields an 8-inch round pan or 12 muffins, the ratio will be the same. Simply substitute your mix in place of the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt. 🙂
Mavis
Wonderful side dish for our Thanksgiving dinner! This is going to be a new family tradition. 💗
Donna Case
Question. Would it work to sub carbquik for the flour. Interested in cutting some carbs. Thank you, Donna
Samantha Skaggs
Hi Donna! I'm sorry that I don't have any experience using Carbquick, so I'm not sure if or how it would work in this recipe. But I can say that this recipe works using gluten-free flour, in case that's similar in any way...
Lorna
Hi, this looks great but is it true that there are no eggs in this? Or is there a typo?
Samantha Skaggs
No eggs! 🙂
Jenifer
Do you think gluten-free flour could be subbed for the regular flour?
Samantha Skaggs
I haven't tested it, but gluten-free flour should work fine in this recipe, Jenifer...with the understanding that GF flour often results in a slightly different rise/texture than all-purpose flour. 😉
Michelle
This looks awesome. I was thinking leftover casserole would be yummy with a fried egg on top for breakfast!
Jennifer
This was so good! We had it with our Christmas Eve brisket dinner.
Sophie Anderson
I love the sound of this casserole! It looks so delicous and perfect for winter. I simply cannot wait to try this recipe. Thanks!
Samantha at Five Heart Home
I hope you enjoy it, Sophie! 🙂
Ashley Provencal
Can you make this a day ahead of time and then bake Christmas Day?
Samantha Skaggs
Hi Ashley! I haven't tried it, but I would worry about the recipe possibly not rising correctly if you completely mix the batter (thereby activating the baking powder) too far ahead of time. That being said, I think you could definitely prep the components and do most of the work ahead of time -- cook/dice the bacon, mince the jalapeño, mix the dry ingredients in one bowl, mix the wet ingredients in another bowl (and refrigerate), and then combine right before baking. If I were to do that, I'd probably leave out the melted butter (it would solidify in the fridge) and the chopped bacon (it would get soggy) until just before baking...I'd stir those in at the same time I combined the dry and wet ingredients. Hoped this makes sense and hope it helps!
Beth
I’m a vegetarian and this sounds yummy, do I have to put bacon in it?
Samantha Skaggs
Hi Beth! You can definitely leave out the bacon. 🙂