Is it Possible to Make Cornbread Without Sugar? (The Best 9 Substitutes)

Cornbread is one of the most adaptable baked products available, being chewy, fluffy, and rich.

Most cornbread recipes call for sugar. But what if you forget to go to the grocery store? Don’t worry just yet! You can cook cornbread without sugar using a replacement and it will still taste excellent!

Today, we’re presenting a list of the 9 greatest sugar substitutes and how to include them into your cornbread recipe.

Why Put Sugar in Cornbread?

Sugar is used in the majority of cornbread recipes. The obvious explanation is to sweeten the cornmeal, but why is it necessary?

A sweet taste balances off the cornmeal’s maize flavor, the richness of the butter, and the bread flavor of the flour.

9 Best Substitutes for Sugar in Cornbread

Here are the best 9 sugar substitutes you may use to make cornbread without sugar:

1 – Honey

Many baking aficionados instinctively think of honey when seeking for a sugar alternative, and we couldn’t agree more!

Honey is an all-natural sugar substitute. It tastes great and has no effect on the overall texture or flavor of baked foods, including cornbread.

Honey not only has the same sweetness as sugar, but it is also a healthier alternative in many respects.

Honey has less glucose and fructose than sugar and is high in nutrients such as amino acids, antioxidants, enzymes, vitamins, and minerals.

Although one tablespoon of honey has more calories than one tablespoon of sugar (64 calories versus 49 calories), honey is much simpler to digest than sugar due to bee enzymes. This implies that calories from honey will be burned considerably quicker than calories from sugar.

However, when substituting honey for sugar, bear the following considerations in mind:

• Because no two people’s tastes are the same, the first couple of batches of cornbread should be experimental as you figure out what ratio of honey to sugar works best for you.

Some individuals like half a cup of honey for every cup of sugar, while others prefer a full cup or three-quarters of a cup.

• Honey is a liquid, despite its viscosity. This implies you’ll need to reduce the amount of other liquids in your recipe by two to three teaspoons to maintain the ratio of dry to wet components.
• while using honey instead of sugar, anticipate more moisture in the cornbread texture and faster browning while baking.

2 – Maple Syrup

Except for a warmer, richer taste, maple syrup is almost identical to honey.

Its conversion ratio is also personal taste, and if you use maple syrup instead of sugar, you will need to lower the liquid quantity of the batter.

3 – Applesauce

Applesauce is a condensed, mashed form of apples. It may be left as is with its natural sweetness or sweetened with sugar or honey.

In both circumstances, applesauce may assist you in making sugar-free cornbread. It can even improve the nutritional value of cornbread.

Applesauce may not only replace sugar in cornbread batter, but it can also replace eggs!

Because apples contain pectin, applesauce may act as a binder, holding batter components together. Because of the liquid content in the puree, it may also serve as a source of moisture.

This means you can kill two birds with one stone if you have applesauce on hand and are missing both sugar and eggs from your cornbread recipe.

4 – Agave Nectar

Agave nectar or agave syrup is becoming increasingly popular as a sugar replacement among bakers searching for healthier alternatives.

Because agave has less glucose than white sugar, it will not boost your blood sugar levels as much. It also contains higher fructose, which may be hazardous if consumed in excess.

Replace one cup of white sugar with two-thirds of a cup of agave nectar or syrup while cooking cornbread.

Agave nectar, like honey, is a liquid. This implies reducing the liquid volume of your recipe by three to four tablespoons.

5 – Cane Sugar

Cane sugar and normal white sugar have many similarities, but they also have significant differences.

Cane sugar is just raw sugar. It is sugar that has not been as thoroughly processed as white sugar, therefore it retains the majority of its vitamins.

While white sugar may be obtained from either sugarcane or sugar beets, cane sugar can only be obtained from sugar cane. Cane sugar looks granulated like white sugar, but it isn’t as fine.

Furthermore, unlike normal sugar, cane sugar has a more golden tint and is not pure white.

However, when it comes to sweetness and baking, cane sugar performs the same as white sugar. As a result, the conversion ratio in your cornbread recipe is one-to-one.

6 – Fruit Purees

Other fruits, in addition to apples, may be used to substitute sugar in your cornbread recipe.

Fruit purees, like applesauce, may be used in place of sugar. They may be left alone with their natural sweetness or sweetened with sugar.

Fruit purees are very high in nutrients, and their natural sugar content is easy to digest. As a result, fruit concentrates may drastically lower the overall number of calories in your cornbread while also making it more healthier.

Because applesauce is created by squeezing peeled and cored apples, applying the same technique to other fruits will provide you with a plethora of possibilities to explore!

Although fruit purees may change the taste of the cornbread, you may find that you like the additional flavors and include them into regular recipes.

Here are a few of the finest fruits to use in puree form as a sugar alternative in cornbread recipes:

• Pumpkin puree may be made at home or purchased canned from your local grocery. In any case, it’s a terrific sugar alternative in cornbread that’s not just sweet but also wet for an additional chewy texture.
• Banana puree, which is high in potassium and fiber, is one of the simplest sugar substitutes for cornbread. It’s sweet, delicious, and moist, making it great for baking.
• Pears: Pears, which are quite similar to apples, produce a puree that is very similar to applesauce. It may be used as a sugar alternative, giving your cornbread a taste boost.
• Pineapples: With a high moisture content and a lot of sweetness, pineapple puree may accomplish everything sugar does in cornbread while adding a new taste.
• Raspberries: Raspberries, when mashed and pureed, make an excellent sugar alternative in cornbread. Obviously, this will affect the color of the bread, but it’s a fun change!
• Apricots: With a sweet and tart flavor, apricot puree adds a tanginess to cornbread that may alter the way you eat it forever.

Of course, you may use as many different fruit purees as you like. You name it: peaches, prunes, or figs!

7 – Molasses

If you have molasses in your cupboard and are out of sugar, you may substitute one and one-third cup of molasses for each cup of white sugar called for in your cornbread recipe.

However, you should anticipate molasses to change the taste of your cornbread. In order to avoid the batter from becoming sloppy, minimize the liquid content.

8 – Coconut Palm Sugar

Many people believe that coconut palm sugar is derived from coconuts, however it is really derived from the sap of coconut palm trees.

It is all-natural and has a lower glycemic index than white sugar, making it a better alternative for adding sweetness to cornbread.

Coconut palm sugar has almost the same impact as white sugar. This is why the conversion ratio in your cornbread recipe is one-to-one.

9 – Mashed Sweet Potatoes

Last but not least, mashed sweet potatoes may be used to create sugar-free cornbread.

We are all aware of the health benefits of mashed and pureed vegetables. However, when vegetable puree is used to substitute sugar in cornbread, it must have a particular amount of sweetness that most vegetables lack.

Enter sweet potatoes.

They are not only healthy, but they also have a sweet flavor. This enables you to add sweet potatoes to cornbread while maintaining the desired level of sweetness.

Heres what you need to do:

• Grab a couple of sweet potatoes.
• Bake them until soft.
• Peel them off, then mash the flesh until it resembles a puree.
• Mix part of the puree into the cornbread mixture (to taste) and bake as usual.

Because of their starch content, mashed sweet potatoes may function as a thickening factor in addition to substituting sugar in cornbread. As a result, they may produce a denser type of cornbread.

You may correct this by adding additional milk to your cornbread mix.

Consider seasoning the sweet potato puree with nutmeg or cinnamon before putting it in the cornbread for an added boost of flavor.

Final Thoughts

If you’re searching for a sugar-free cornbread recipe, we’ve done the research and testing for you.

To save you time and effort, we’ve compiled a list of the eight greatest sugar substitutes for cornbread.