Peach Basil Upside-Down Cornbread
Peach and basil are the flavors of summer for me and they come together perfectly in this upside-down cornbread! Ths savory cornbread is enhanced by buttery caramelized peaches lined on the surface of the bread. Corn and basil are a natural match and when you add flecks of sliced basil to the cornbread batter it adds a wonderful freshness to the finished bread!
The inspiration for this recipe
I have been thinking of new ways to use up all the cornmeal in my place before I move and this Peach Basil Upside-Down Cornbread idea came to me in my sleep the other night. I wanted to make sure the cornbread wasn’t overly sweet, because I wanted this to be a side dish and not a dessert. It ended up coming out so good! This would be a perfect thing to bring to a back yard pot luck. I used recipes from Virginia Willis and Toni Tipton Martin as a reference point to start building the classic bread, then I added some honey and basil to give it the flavors I was looking for.
Prep the peaches and basil
Slicing the peaches super thin is key to this recipe because you want them to fan out on the bottom of the pan. This will create the beautiful layer of peaches on top of the Peach Basil Upside-Down Cornbread.
Make the cornbread batter
Pouring the wet ingredients into the dry.
Melt the butter in the skillet and then pour it into the batter.
Baking upside-down cornbread
Add all the peaches to the super hot skillet. That way when you flip this upside-down, the peach will be on top of the basil cornbread.
Then pour the batter on top.
After about 20 min it looks like this. Flip it out onto a serving platter.
Flip the peach basil upside-down cornbread
After it cools for a few minutes, flip it out from the pan and onto a serving platter.
Yum! The peach and basil added just enough of a twist to this classic cornbread.
I made this Peach Basil Upside-Down Cornbread on a Sunday afternoon and we had so much we ended up skipping dinner!
Twists on this recipe
Mint would be great in this Peach Basil Upside-Down Cornbread instead of basil. You could also skip the herbs if you wanted. You might expect this to be sweet but it isn’t very sweet at all. If you are looking for a sweeter version, you could definitely add sugar!
For more great peach recipes check out my peach sausage deep dish, peach and spam gimbap, or this upside down peach cake!
Peach Basil Upside-Down Cornbread
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups fine cornmeal
- 1.5 cups flour
- 1.5 tablespoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 eggs
- 1.5 cups buttermilk
- 1/4 cup honey
- 20 leaves basil chiffonade thin sliced
- 10 tablespoons butter
- 3 peaches sliced thin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425
- Mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Mix the eggs, buttermilk, and honey in another bowl and stir well until fully combined.
- Add the liquids to the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Add in the basil and stir well.
- Melt the butter in a 10 inch skillet over medium high heat. Spread the butter all around the pan and then pour it into the cornbread mixture. Stir to combine. Return skillet to low heat.
- Fan the peach slices out over the bottom of the skillet to cover it. Pour the cornbread mixture over the peaches. Put the pan into the oven.
- Bake for 22 minutes until cooked through.
- Remove from the oven. Run a knife along the edges to make sure it is not sticking. Flip out onto a serving platter. Top with more basil and serve.