Kefir Fermented Honey Thyme Sourdough Cornbread

This kefir fermented honey thyme sourdough cornbread is more nutritious than your typical cornbread, easy on digestion and naturally sweetened! 

Using milk kefir to ferment the batter adds extra yumminess to the bread, without the maintenance of the sourdough starter. The tanginess of the kefir resembles the flavour of lemon, which pairs really well with honey and thyme to make this cornbread extra special.

Milk Kefir As Starter

Do you make new year goals? I do. I try to keep them small and achievable. This year, I want to give it a try at making traditional sourdough bread. It’s a goal of mine, because I have been intimidated by the maintenance of the sourdough starter, considering I already have my kombucha, milk kefir, water kefir, fermented vegetables and kids to take care of.

To avoid maintaining a sourdough starter, I have been taking shortcuts to sour my breads with kefir and all sorts of other live culture liquids. Note that I used my home-made organic whole milk kefir to ferment this sourdough cornbread. I have not tested with any store-bought kefir, so I don’t know if store-bought will work the same. If you tried, let me know in the comment below.

Now, you will probably ask, “doesn’t home-made kefir require meaintanance?” Yes, but nobody makes milk kefir at home solely to use as a sourdough starter. It’s no extra work, and the older batches of kefir that started going yeasty are great to be used up as an extra potent souring agent in baking.

Sourdough Cornbread Is Healthy

I love eating cornbreads, but I could hardly find any being sold in grocery stores, let alone fermented ones. I had to make my own, then this kefir fermented sourdough cornbread was born. The fact that the batter was fermented with whole milk kefir, added the extra layer of tanginess and complexity. My kids kept asking to bring them to school in their lunch boxes.

Now let’s look at the positives of a fermented sourdough cornbread, or any sourdough breads. The grains are fermented to negate the effects of phytates, making the bread more digestible and nutritious. Even many gluten-intolerant people reported that they can eat fermented sourdough bread containing wheat, as a result of the gluten being pre-digested during fermentation. I don’t have gluten sensitivity, so I can’t tell the difference of eating fermented vs. non-fermented wheat products. If you have tested out for yourself, I would love to hear your experience.

Steps For Making The Batter

The following images illustrate the steps to make the the sourdough cornbread batter. 

1. Melt the butter, take care to make sure it’s not hot, then combine with eggs, honey, and milk kefir.
2. Mix all wet ingredients in a bowl.
3. Combine cornmeal, flour, salt and thyme. 
4. Mix all dry ingredients.
5. Gently fold in the wet ingredients, until evenly combined. Do not over mix.

Is it Safe to Use Raw Eggs?

Some people may be concerned about using raw eggs in the batter, because the batter is left out in room temperature to ferment for 12 hours. Personally, I am comfortable with eggs in this recipe, because the acidity and probiotics in the milk kefir should keep salmonella in check and the batter safe. However, I want to bring up this topic. When it comes to health and safety, please use your own discretion. 

Fermentation Tips

• Older kefir too yeasty to drink are great to use as starter in baking. Older kefir are usually stronger and faster at fermenting the batter as well.
• Leave the batter covered in room temperature to ferment for 12 hours, or overnight. I would make the batter before going to bed, and bake it the next day. 
• After the batter is fermented, you will see small air hoes in the batter, and the batter is light and fluffy. Very gently transfer the batter into a loaf pan. Do not stir the batter to make it sink back down. 

Related: More Milk Kefir Recipes You Will Love

• Superfoods Kefir Maca Smoothie
• Mango Kefir Ice Cream w/o Ice Cream Maker {Video}
• Raspberry Kefir Cream Cheese Spread
• Kefir Cheese Smoked Salmon Wrap (Probiotic Sushi + Brain Food)
• 3 Ingredient Strawberry Kefir Popsicles (GAPS, Gluten-Free)
• Overnight Banana Spelt Pancakes: Fermented for Better Nutrition and Digestion
• Probiotic Kefir Tzatziki Dip

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Kefir Fermented Honey Thyme Sourdough Cornbread

This kefir fermented honey thyme sourdough cornbread is more nutritious than your typical cornbread and easy on digestion!

5 from 10 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Ferment Time: 12 hours hours

Total Time: 13 hours hours

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 501kcal

Author: Yang

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup grass-fed unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cup organic whole milk kefir (See recipe notes #1)
• 2 large organic eggs
• 1/4 cup raw honey
• 1 1/4 cup fine ground cornmeal
• 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt or Himalayan salt
• 3 tbsp dried thyme

Instructions

• Melt the butter, take care to make sure it's not hot, then combine with eggs, honey, and milk kefir. Mix all wet ingredients in a bowl.
• Combine cornmeal, flour, salt and thyme. Mix all dry ingredients, then gently fold in the wet ingredients, until evenly combined. Do not over mix.
• Leave the batter covered in room temperature to ferment for 12 hours, or overnight. 
• Very gently transfer the batter into a 9"x5" regular size loaf pan (I use a silicone loaf pan). You should see air holes in the batter and the batter is light and fluffy. Do not stir the batter to make it sink back down. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 400ºF for 40 minutes or until the inside is no longer wet. 

Notes

1. I used home-made kefir from real kefir grains. Older kefir too yeasty to drink are great to use as starter in baking. Older kefir are usually stronger and faster at fermenting the batter as well.
2. This kefir fermented sourdough cornbread tastes best when it's hot out of the oven.

Nutrition

Calories: 501kcal

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