Do you know what my latest passion is? It’s this air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon! Cornbread is already delicious and let’s face it, everyone loves bacon! So how could this air fryer cornbread recipe with honey buttercream frosting be anything less than incredible! This sweet cornbread with icing is always a tasty addition to the menu.
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This moist corn cake offers something for everyone. You get both sweet and salty flavours, the soft fluffiness of moist corn cake with the tantalizing crunch of crispy bacon. Is your mouth watering yet?
Air Fryer Cornbread Cake with Candied Bacon Ingredients
There are three components to this air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon and made with cornmeal. You will need yellow cornmeal to make this sweet cornbread with icing. Flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, eggs, buttermilk, and butter combine for the cornbread. And then you also have honey and maple extract in there for sweetness.
For the candied bacon you will need brown and white sugar. And then for the honey buttercream frosting, grab some butter, powdered sugar, sour cream, salt and honey.
How to Make this Cornbread Dessert
Candied bacon is simple to make and it’s so good with this moist corn cake made with cornmeal. Dip bacon slices in sugar then cook them in your air fryer. If you add some water to the air fryer the bacon will crisp up instead of just smoking in there.
The next step in this air fryer cornbread recipe is to prepare the moist corn cake. Whisk the flour with the cornmeal, sugar, baking powder and soda, and salt. Mix the eggs with the butter, honey, maple extract, and buttermilk in another bowl. Then simply combine the two.
Transfer the prepared batter into a cake pan and cook for about 40 minutes. You can start making the honey buttercream frosting while the cake made with cornmeal bakes.
Whip the ingredients for the honey buttercream frosting, adding in the icing sugar little by little. Once you have folded in the bacon, you can cover your sweet cornbread with icing. Finally, add some crumbled candied bacon as a garnish and drizzle over a little honey.
This air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon isn’t hard to make at all but it offers so much amazing flavour in every mouthful. It’s a perfectly delicious cornbread dessert which is so easy to prepare. You simply have to whisk the ingredients together to make it and then make the honey buttercream frosting and spread it over the moist corn cake.
Corn is a naturally sweet ingredient which is tasty in both savoury and sweet recipes. I love this air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon because it offers both salty and sweet.
How to Make This a Savoury Side Dish
Prefer a savoury recipe to a sweet one? You can make this air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon as a side dish too. Swap the maple and sugar from the batter and instead add chopped jalapenos, garlic and onion. Also, forget the icing. You can still make candied bacon but why not add some cayenne pepper as well as the sugar, for a special kick. Such a recipe would be great with homemade chilli or another kind of meat stew.
You know, this air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon is one of the best cornbread dessert options made with cornmeal that I’ve made. So whether you’re looking for a sweet cornbread with icing to indulge your sweet tooth or an extra special air fryer cornbread recipe, this air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon is perfect. Try it for breakfast, brunch, dessert, or as a snack.
History of Cornbread
Cornbread has been around for hundreds of years and it’s believed that corn first originated in Mexico’s Tehuacan valley 7000 years ago. It was roasted then ground into a meal and shaped into cakes which were then added to stews, it’s believed. Corn all that time ago didn’t look like modern corn today. Instead it resembled wild grass with a few seeds on the stalk.
The best seeds were planted for the following year’s harvest which is how the corn cross-pollinated and became what we know and love today.
The Colonial diet held corn in high regard as a staple. It was mixed with eggs, yeast and molasses to make a cake of sorts. The Iroquois pounded corn into flour then added water and maybe nuts and/or berries. This dough was cooked in boiling water to make little corn dumplings.
If you like this sweet cornbread with icing, you might also like Air Fryer Bacon Loaded Cornbread Pudding, Easy Candy Apples or Chocolate Chip Buttercream Jam Sandwich Cookies.
Air Fryer Cornbread Cake with Candied Bacon and Honey Buttercream Recipe
Air fryer Cornbread Cake with Candied Bacon and Honey Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients
Cornbread Cake
- 1 Cup all purpose flour
- 1 1/4 Cup cornmeal yellow
- 2 Teaspoon baking soda
- 2 Teaspoon baking powder
- 1 Teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 Cup buttermilk
- 1/4 Cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 Teaspoon maple extract
- 1/4 Cup honey raw
Candied Bacon
- 6 Slices bacon thick cut
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 Cup granulated sugar
Honey Buttercream Frosting
- 1/4 Cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 Cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 Cup honey
- 1 Tablespoon sour cream
- 1/2 Teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 375 degrees F for 5 minutes.
- Prepare candied bacon. Combine brown sugar and sugar in a small bowl, then pour onto a plate. Dip both sides of the bacon into the sugar mixture. To prevent the bacon from smoking in the air fryer, add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water into the tray under the basket. Arrange bacon in the air fryer basket and cook for 6 minutes. No need to flip. Crumble the bacon and set aside ¼ cup for the frosting.
- Prepare cornbread cake. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk well to thoroughly combine. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, buttermilk, melted butter, maple extract and honey. Make a small divot in the center of the dry ingredients, then pour in the egg mixture. Use a dough whisk or wooden spoon to lightly mix, then add the candied bacon. Mix well until smooth
- Pour cornbread batter into an 8” round cake pan. Cover with foil to prevent burning. Cook for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean
- Prepare honey buttercream frosting. Use a stand mixer or hand mixer for this step to properly whip the buttercream. Add the butter and salt to a mixing bowl and beat until fluffy, (about 2 minutes). Slowly start to incorporate the powdered sugar a little bit at a time, (about 2 minutes) Once fully incorporated, add the honey and sour cream. Set the mixer to medium/high speed and mix for 1 more minute. Fold in the candied bacon.
- Remove cornbread cake from the pan and frost. Garnish with candied bacon and drizzle with honey.
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
Fast forward a few years, and you have wonderful recipes like air fryer cornbread cake with candied bacon. This sweet cornbread with icing is a far cry from what corn cakes used to be hundreds or even thousands of years ago. It’s always worth adding the best air fryer cornbread recipe to your culinary repertoire. Once you taste this, you’ll know the recipe is a real keeper! This fall recipe makes a great cornbread dessert or side dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
If you are looking for other air fryer recipes, you might like these Air Fryer Sweet Potato Casserole Stacks.
Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti of xoxoBella is a storyteller, food lover, dog mom and adventure seeker living on the Pacific coast. She shares her passion for recipes, dogs, sustainability, adventures, travel and philanthropy, in hopes of encouraging followers to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places and stand for a cause. Bella lives with Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac Disease.
Bella Bucchiotti is a freelance food, travel, and lifestyle writer for MSN and the Associated Press Wire.
YUM! never had it with icing and bacon
I can’t believe you made this in your air fryer! I can’t wait to try it.
Oh yum, I’ve never tried a cornbread cake before. I am intrigued. I bet I’ll love it!
Hard to go wrong when candied bacon is on top! Yum!
Oh yum! Honey buttercream. I’m drooling I love finding recipes, slavishly desserts that can be made in the air fryer.
I love that you air fried the cornbread, such a great idea!
The combo of sweet and salty is heavenly
This is so good and the honey buttercream is just a dream. Soooo dang good on the cornbread!
The icing and bacon sets this cornbread cake apart from the rest. This recipe is the bomb!