Easy Vegan Cornbread (with a Secret Ingredient!)

GFGluten Free

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Whether you have it with Chili or top it with Jam or Butter, this Gluten Free & Vegan Cornbread is a wonderful healthy treat.
Note: This recipe was originally published in 2017, but is now updated with better photos + a recipe update to make it even fluffier!

I love cornbread. If my Thanksgiving table was only filled with fluffy, yellow squares, I honestly would be perfectly content.

Heck, I’d be content with that any day of the year. Especially with this recipe, because it is so dang GOOD!

baked and sliced vegan cornbread in square baking tin on white cutting board

Not only is this cornbread delicious, but it’s actually good for you too. It’s made with 10 simple, plant-based ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry! It’s also free of refined sugars and oils…which is pretty rare in the realm of cornbread.

ingredients for vegan cornbread on white marble cutting board

Would you believe that White Beans are responsible for this pillowy, soft texture? Well, you better – after using beans in the dough for my Vegan Corn Empanadas, I knew I wanted to experiment with them further, and I’m so glad I did. They also add extra protein and fiber to this recipe, which is a win-win in my book!

3 pieces of fluffy vegan cornbread stacked on white marble cutting board

Whether you’re serving this Vegan Cornbread with a bowl of warm Chili, Stew, or smothering it in Jam or Vegan Butter, it’s sure to satisfy your cravings. When I first made this recipe, my family and I loved it so much that we ate it all and made another batch the very next day!

piece of vegan cornbread topped with butter on white marble cutting board

A Few Final Thoughts:

  • I like a little texture in my cornbread, so I used a Medium Grind Cornmeal for this recipe. You can also use Finely Ground if you prefer yours to be smoother. 
  • Along those lines, I’d like to note that classic Cornbread recipes can vary significantly, depending where you are from. This version is fluffy, soft, and only subtly sweet. If you’d like yours to be sweeter, please see the recipe notes!
  • This Cornbread can freeze well if you have leftovers…but I never do 😉

Finally, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram, don’t forget to tag me @FromMyBowl + #FromMyBowl! I love seeing your delicious recreations ????

slices of vegan cornbread on white marble cutting board

Print

Easy Vegan Cornbread

Whether you have it with Chili or top it with Jam or Butter, this Gluten Free & Vegan Cornbread is a wonderful healthy treat.

  • Author: Caitlin Shoemaker
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 9 pieces 1x
  • Category: Side
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 tbsp Ground Flax + 6 tbsp Water
  • 1 cup Unsweetened Soy Milk*
  • 1 cup White Beans + 2 tbsp Water
  • 2 tbsp Maple Syrup (see notes)
  • 1 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1 cup Cornmeal (Medium Grind or Fine)
  • 1 cup Gluten-Free Flour Blend
  • 1 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/4 tsp Turmeric (optional, for color)
  • 1 tsp Salt

Instructions

  1. First, preheat your oven to 375F. Mix 2 tbsp of Ground Flax with 6 tbsp of Water in a small bowl, then set aside to let thicken. Add the Apple Cider Vinegar to the Soy Milk in a separate bowl, then set aside to let “curdle.”
  2. Rinse and drain the canned White Beans, then add 1 cup of them to a blender with 2 tbsp of Water. Pour in the curdled Soy Milk, thickened Flax “egg”, and Maple Syrup. Blend for 30-60 seconds, until smooth.
  3. Add the Cornmeal, Flour Blend, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Salt, and Turmeric to the blender; process until smooth.
  4. Use a spatula to evenly spread the batter around a greased or lined 9×9″ baking pan, and place in the oven for 27 – 30 minutes. Let cool at least 10 minutes before slicing, and store any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days.

Notes

  • Ground Flax can be substituted with Ground Chia.
  • I suggest using Soy Milk for this recipe, as it’s higher protein content allows for the milk to curdle and form a “buttermilk.” You can substitute with another Non-Dairy milk of your choosing, but the final bread will not be as fluffy.
  • I used this Gluten Free Flour Blend for this recipe, and would only suggest the use of a GF blend. If you are not GF, you can substitute with All-Purpose Flour or Spelt Flour instead.
  • This Cornbread recipe is more savory than sweet; if you would like it to be sweeter, add an additional 2-4 tbsp of Maple Syrup to the wet ingredients.
  • You may use any soft, white bean for this recipe. You could also use Pinto Beans or Black Beans, but I would not advise this as the final color of the Cornbread will look strange.

Keywords: vegan cornbread, healthy cornbread, gluten free cornbread, oil free cornbread

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Whether you have it with Chili or top it with Jam or Butter, this Gluten Free & Vegan Cornbread is a wonderful healthy treat. #vegan #glutenfree #plantbased #cornbread #healthycornbread #thanksgiving #veganchili via frommybowl.com

Easy Vegan Cornbread Fluffy Gluten Free From My Bowl

About the Author

Hey there, I’m Caitlin! I make easy-to-follow, wholesome, and budget-friendly vegan recipes that are mostly gluten-free and refined sugar-free. I’m also an avid yogi, love the great outdoors, am chocolate-obsessed, and enjoy eating almond butter straight off of the spoon.

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Comments

  1. Amazing recipe! My family loved it, especially my sister is law who is on a gluten-free diet. Highly recommend.

  2. I’m unfortunately lactose AND gluten intolerant so finding delicious, moist baked goods that fit my needs is a challenge. This bread is so delicious that even my partner said it was the best cornbread ever!!! Never making chili without it again!

  3. I have tried all the plant-based oil-free cornbread recipes! They are usually too dense. Apple sauce gives too much apple-y flavor for me. Pumpkin or sweet potato or tofu don’t give any lift. The white beans are a great sub! This will be my go-to recipe for now! Thanks, Caitlin!

  4. Hi Caitlin, this recipe looks really easy and healthy. Thank you for posting this! I want to try making this using a mini muffin pan. What adjustments should I make to the oven temperature and the baking time? Thanks!

    1. Hi there, I haven’t tested this in a mini muffin pan, but I think it could work! I would keep the oven temp the same, but start checking for doneness about 1/2 way through the recommended baking time

    1. Hm, they may serve the same purpose in the long run, but they will definitely change the color of things, that’s for sure! If you give it a try just keep that in mind!

    1. Sure you could put them in muffin tins! That would help with not needing to cut them once you take them out. You may need to reduce the cook time just a bit. When in doubt, do the toothpick test!

  5. Can you double this recipe and put it in a 13 x 9 baking pan? Would you just double all the ingredients? When I make an 8 x8 or 9 x 9″ pan, I have to make it so often. I would like to make a bigger pan of it?
    Thank you!

    1. Hey! We haven’t tried it in a bigger pan; if you doubled it you may need to adjust cooking time/temp by cooking it longer at a slightly lower temp to compensate. Purely speculative, though! If you have two of the 8×8 or 9×9 pans that would probably work! If you try the larger pan let us know how it works out for you!

      1. For anyone curious I used an equal amount of almond flour substitute for the AP and these still turned out delicious!!!

  6. Wow! I made this twice in two days, I can’t believe how good it is and how simple and how healthy! For the first batch I used navy beans, and for the second batch I used pinto beans and added 1 tsp nutritional yeast and I liked it even more! Both times I used turmeric and a sprinkle of black pepper and baked it 10 extra minutes. So good, thank you!

  7. I experimented using chickpea flour instead as I didn’t have any other flour. It came quite good… would recommend.