Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread with Scallion Butter

This Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread recipe is giving maximum, flavor-filled deliciousness that you will love! Sharp cheddar goodness, a bit of heat that’s perfectly balanced with sweet/salty notes, buttery, and wildly good. It’s incredibly moist and flavorful with homemade scallion butter for extra pizzazz. So easy to whip up and you can enjoy this cornbread alongside your favorite main dishes!

Hi friends! Today’s offering is meant for all of you cornbread lovers. Whenever I think of cornbread, my mind instantly goes to chili, soup, stews, gravy-laden dishes, and more. It’s one of my favorite breads out of all the breads. I’ve developed a few different variations over the years and am excited to share this one with ya. You’ll wanna make this jalapeño cheddar cornbread 24/7!

Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread 🤩

I don’t know if it’s just a Southern thing or what, but pass the cornbread my way, all day, every day. This cornbread is cheesy and subtly spicy with a buttery, moist bite. There’s sweet + salty notes to undercut the heat of jalapeños, no worries! It can be enjoyed on its own or paired alongside a cozy main entree.

But wait, there’s more! I’ve paired this jalapeño cheddar cornbread with quick, homemade scallion butter. That creamy, green onion-loaded salted butter slathered onto the warm cornbread, YUM. Big, bold flavors all over!

⇢ More recipes: broccoli cheddar soup, louisiana red beans and rice, real deal southern green beans, my favorite creamy black-eyed peas, cozy beef chili, reader-fave creamy lemon herb butter ravioli, and my collard greens– whew.

DISCLOSURE: This post is sponsored by Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs who I’m always so excited to partner with; all thoughts expressed here are my own. I’ve been a brand ambassador with them for some time now and love using their high-quality USDA Certified Organic eggs from free-range hens.

Their eggs come from small family farms where the hens are free to roam about in the sunshine. I like that their gold standard eggs are USDA Certified Organic, Certified Humane, and contain no antibiotics/hormones/pesticides. The best quality eggs you will find! ♡

Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread Ingredients

(Note: the full ingredients list, including measurements, is provided in the recipe card directly below.)

• Cornmeal & All-purpose flour: The use of both produces a perfectly balanced cornbread. Each play against the other to provide the signature cornmeal taste, and the flour for structure and cake-like texture.
• Baking powder: Gives the cornbread a nice lift as a leavening agent.
• Salt: Balances out the other flavors for contrast.
• Eggs: All about giving structure to baked goods…and you can surely lean on my friends Pete and Gerry’s Organic Eggs for high-quality!
• Brown sugar: I love the touch of molasses it adds and ensures moistness.
• Honey: The other sweet in this recipe, pure honey is so delicious.
• Buttermilk: I find it disrespectful for a cornbread recipe to not have buttermilk in the ingredient’s lineup, ha! Real talk, whole buttermilk adds a distinct tang and flavor that is crucial while also yielding a moist crumb.
• Cheddar cheese: I’m using sharp cheddar cheese here because I think the sharpness shines through beautifully. However, you can use mild cheddar and even others like Colby, Gouda, Monterey Jack, and Gruyère.
• Jalapeños: We can’t make jalapeño cheddar cornbread without jalapeños!
• Corn: Lovely bites of corn kernels in cornbread, swoon…but optional.
• Butter: For richness, butter makes all things better ya know 🧈

How To Make Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread

(Note: please see the recipe card directly below for the complete written instructions.)

1. Preheat & Prep. Preheat the oven to 400°F and line a 9×9-inch baking dish with parchment paper or coat with spray, set aside. 
2. Combine the dry ingredients. Combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients well to fully combine and set aside.
3. Combine the wet ingredients. In another large bowl, combine the eggs, brown sugar, honey, and buttermilk. Whisk the wet ingredients very well to thoroughly combine. Add the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula to fold together until just combined. 
4. Toss in bits & fold in butter. Then add in the shredded cheese, jalapeños, and corn kernels (if using). Fold in until just combined. Lastly, pour the melted butter in and fold once more just until well incorporated.
5. Bake. Empty the cornbread batter into the prepared baking dish. Bake the cornbread until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cornbread comes out clean, and the cornbread is golden brown and set.
6. To make the scallion butter: In a medium bowl, stir together the softened butter and scallions until well combined. Stir in flaky salt- to desired taste. Serve warm jalapeño cheddar cornbread with scallion butter. Enjoy!

Tips + Tricks & FAQs About This Recipe

You may have additional questions about this jalapeño cheddar cornbread recipe. Like other BBR recipes, I always advise sticking to the recipe as it is written in the recipe card directly below. However, here’s some extra info:

• Gluten-free cornbread? I recommend using any gluten-free all-purpose baking flour as a 1:1 ratio. And while cornmeal is considered gluten-free, it’s always best practice to double check for assurance!
• Buttermilk replacement. Plain kefir is a fermented milk beverage that is very similar to buttermilk. You can use it cup for cup as a flawless replacement. Otherwise, you can make buttermilk from scratch, too.
• Cast-iron skillet cornbread. Feel free to transfer the jalapeño cheddar cornbread batter into a buttered cast-iron skillet vessel. On top of that, I also recommend placing the skillet into the oven to preheat (while you prepare the batter) before emptying the batter into it. Hello extra crispy edges! 😏

Storing Leftover Cornbread

This cornbread stays moist and delicious for a few days if wrapped tightly in plastic wrap/foil and stored on the kitchen counter.

Alternatively, I recommend wrapping it super tight in plastic wrap and then foil to store in the freezer to keep for 2-3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat in the microwave or in the oven until warmed through.

Cornbread fan? Peep my Buttermilk Skillet Cornbread, this Sweet Potato Cornbread, and these Stewed Black-Eyed Peas with Cornbread Biscuits ♡

Can’t wait for y’all to give this Jalapeño Cheddar Cornbread a whirl. The flavors and textures just hit so good! Be sure to tag @butterbeready in your BBR recipe creations, I sure love to see it when you do. Until next time! 🤟🏾

Other yummy side dishes you might enjoy:

• Southern Candied Yams
• Creamy Stovetop Mac and Cheese
• Rosemary Sweet Potato Rolls
• Fried Sweet Plantains

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