I figured out how to make sugar-free cornbread vegan!

I have been missing cornbread that has no sweetness, except for the natural sweetness of cornmeal but the one time I tried it years ago, I think I used flax egg. It tasted weird and didn’t stay together. I have found vegan cornbread recipes but they all have sugar and generally A LOT of sugar. I like crusty savory cornbread, not the soft sugary kind. I think the no sugar kind is more popular in Appalachia than some other places but don’t quote me on it. Generally, I think the sugar is needed in vegan cornbread because it keeps it together in the absence of eggs. Now a friend of mine doesn’t even like yellow cornmeal but prefers white cornmeal but the color doesn’t bother me at all.

So how did I make 100% sugar-free cornbread? Here’s my recipe:

3/4 cup cornmeal

1/4 cup AP flour (this is necessary I think. The gluten I think helps. Some purists only do cornmeal but to veganize this, I think flour helps!)

1.5 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/8 tsp baking soda

3/4 cup vegan buttermilk (I did soymilk with lactic acid. You can use vinegar or lemon juice too in a plant milk. I think soy is preferable because I think the protein content aids in keeping stuff together but I don’t know for sure.)

2 Tbs. oil (and maybe a scosh more)

1.5 tsp. Bob’s Red Mill egg replacer + 1 tbs. water (if you can get this, please use this. I can’t vouch for anything else.)

I just whisked together the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Then I added the rest of the ingredients and stirred until just mixed. Then another trick is I used a muffin tin and made thinner muffins. I made 9 muffins. I baked at 400F for 15 minutes. They didn’t crumble and were thin enough you can just butter the tops and not have to fool with cutting them in half.

Now it’s not as crusty as one cooked in cast iron but I stuck with muffins because I was worried about it crumbling but feel free to try it in a pan. Even if it’s crumbly, it’ll taste good.