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This Spoon Bread recipe makes the best Southern-inspired comfort food! A custardy cornmeal base is blended with sour cream for a touch of richness, and you’ll tuck in creamed corn for a little crunch. Great for holiday meals!
Moist and fluffy spoon bread is pure comfort food! It’s packed with juicy creamed corn and sour cream for richness. Spoon bread, sometimes called corn casserole or corn pudding, is a soft, custardy twist on traditional cornbread that’s so tender, you’ll want to scoop it up with a spoon! Even better, it comes together quickly, making it a wonderful weeknight option, although it’s just as welcome on the holiday table.
Why We Love This Spoon Bread Recipe
- Easy ingredients: If you have cornmeal, you’re all set to make this recipe! Additional simple pantry ingredients like flour and canned cream corn, plus a few fridge staples, will help you make this dish fast.
- So cozy: This rich and creamy souffle-like bread is reminiscent of cornbread but it’s less structured.
- Wonderful texture: Spoon bread bakes up luxuriously smooth and makes a tasty side for sturdier main dishes like roasts or BBQ beef and meats.
What Is Spoon Bread?
Spoon bread is a Southern dish made with cornmeal. It’s similar to cornbread, but a lot more custardy, and is served scooped out with a spoon rather than in slices. It’s traditionally made without sugar, although I add a hint of powdered sugar to my recipe for a little sweetness. This bread recipe works perfectly as a side dish and is especially nice on the holiday table. I love to top a serving of spoon bread with honey to add a touch of extra sweetness, but you can go the savory route and add a dollop of sour cream.
Recipe Ingredients
Here’s a look at what you’ll need to make this spoon bread recipe. Please refer to the recipe card at the end of this post for detailed amounts and instructions.
- All-Purpose Flour – You’ll need 1/2 cup of flour to combine with the cornmeal.
- Yellow Cornmeal – Use finely ground cornmeal for the best texture.
- Powdered Sugar – You can omit the sugar if you like a less sweet spoon bread.
- Salt – I use Kosher salt in this recipe.
- Boiling Water – The boiling water helps hydrate the batter and makes it come together.
- Milk – Use whole milk for richness.
- Sour Cream – You can use whole-fat or low-fat sour cream.
- Butter – I prefer to use unsalted butter. If you use salted butter, reduce the amount of added salt so it’s not too salty.
- Canned Creamed Corn – Or use a can of corn.
- Baking Powder – Helps to achieve a light texture.
- Eggs – Use large eggs.
- Toppings – Sour cream and honey.
How To Make Spoon Bread
Here’s how I make this comforting bread recipe. Whether you’re a seasoned baker or new to the kitchen, these instructions will lead you to a delicious and warm dish.
- Prep: Preheat your oven to 400°F and grease a casserole dish.
- Make dry mix: Whisk together the all-purpose flour, cornmeal, powdered sugar, and salt. Add the boiling water.
- Add milk: Whisk in the milk until smooth.
- Add sour cream: Stir in the sour cream and melted butter.
- Mix in corn: Stir in the creamed corn and baking powder.
- Add eggs: Crack the eggs directly into the batter and whisk until smooth.
- Bake: Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until set.
- Cool and serve: Remove the spoon bread from the oven, cool a little, then serve topped with sour cream and honey.
Recipe Tips For Success
- Whisk well. Thoroughly mix the batter before you pour it into the baking pan. This will ensure there are no clumps of cornmeal or flour, which will affect the overall consistency of the spoon bread. You want it to be smooth.
- Sugar. Traditional recipes for spoon bread don’t call for any sugar, so you can easily leave out the powdered sugar if you wish. On the other hand, if you want to turn this spoon bread into more of a dessert, you can add more sugar! Or, try honey instead of powdered sugar for a touch of natural sweetness.
- Toss in some bacon. Add cooked, crumbled bacon to the batter for a salty hint of heartiness.
- Use fresh or frozen corn. Instead of the canned creamed corn, try adding 8 ounces of fresh or frozen corn to the batter.
Serving Suggestions
You can easily find many sweet or savory ways to serve spoon bread! It’s perfect with a whole roast turkey or roast turkey with stuffing. Make whole roast chicken and add a pan of warm spoon bread as a creamy side! For a crunch, serve it with vegetable sides like roasted carrots, roasted sweet potatoes, and roasted sugar snap peas.
This spoon bread recipe could work as a rustic dessert! Add extra sugar to the batter and serve warm portions topped with a dollop of whipped cream and berries.
How to Store & Reheat Leftovers
- Fridge – Place the cooled, leftover spoon bread in an airtight container and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- To Reheat – You can reheat it in the oven: place it in an oven-safe baking dish, cover it with foil to prevent it from drying out, and heat it at 350°F until heated through. Or, place a portion of spoon bread in a microwave-safe bowl and heat it in 30-second increments until hot.
More Easy Side Dish Recipes
- Corn Souffle
- Gnocchi Alla Romana
- Butter Swim Biscuits
- Parmesan Crusted Potatoes
- Garlic Butter Parmesan Rice
Spoon Bread
Ingredients
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup yellow cornmeal
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1½ cups boiling water
- 1½ cups whole milk
- ½ cup sour cream
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, melted, plus more melted butter for greasing the baking dish
- 8.5 ounces can of creamed corn
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3 large eggs
- sour cream, for topping
- honey, for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F. Grease a 10-inch oval baking casserole dish with a tablespoon of melted butter. Set aside.
- Combine the all-purpose flour, yellow cornmeal, powdered sugar, and Kosher salt in a large mixing bowl.
- Pour the boiling water over the dry ingredients and stir until well combined. Allow it to cool slightly for one minute.
- Gradually add the whole milk to the mixture, whisking thoroughly to eliminate any lumps. Ensure a smooth consistency.
- Stir in the sour cream and melted butter until fully blended.
- Add the creamed corn and baking powder, mixing thoroughly to incorporate all the ingredients evenly.
- Crack all three large eggs directly into the batter. Gently whisk the eggs into the mixture until a cohesive and smooth consistency is achieved. Pour the batter into the baking dish, smoothing the top with a spatula for even baking.
- Place the dish in the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the bread is set and golden brown on top.
- Once baked, remove the Spoon Bread from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before serving.
- Serve it warm, topped with a dollop of sour cream and a drizzle of honey.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This is AH-mazing! I’d never even heard of spoon bread until I found this recipe. It sounded great, so I made it last night. It’s gone already!
It’s wonderful to hear you had such a fantastic experience with spoon bread! Thank YOU! 🙂
Love this spoon bread! It’s so creamy and flavorful! Definitely making this again soon!
I’m thrilled to hear you loved the spoon bread and found it creamy and flavorful! It’s great that you’re planning to make it again. Thank YOU! 🙂
It was so good! Can’t wait to make this again!
Thank YOU! I am very glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Oh man this stuff is dangerous. I can’t stop eating it haha!
It sounds like you’ve found something incredibly tasty! Thank YOU! 🙂
I made Spoon Bread for the first time using your recipe, and I was amazed at how delicious and comforting it was!
I’m delighted to hear that your first attempt at making Spoon Bread was a success and that you found it delicious and comforting! It’s always rewarding to try a new recipe and have it turn out wonderfully. Thank YOU! 🙂
This was amazing! We loved every bite.
Thank you so much! I am very glad to hear you and your family enjoyed it! 🙂