This decadent Vegan Chipotle & Adobo Masa Harina Cornbread is a little spicy & sweet with cake-like & crumbly textures. This recipe has High-Altitude & Sea-Level instructions.
Cornmeal was out of stock at my local grocery store, so I decided to experiment with making cornbread with Masa Harina. The result was fantastic and the addition of chipotle & adobo created a nice lingering heat-spice that plays well with the sweetness of this cornbread!
As a shortcut I like to use my small food processor to mince things, like chipotle & adobo for this recipe.
How is Masa Harina different from cornmeal?
Masa Harina is a type of cornmeal or cornflour. Masa Harina has been soaked in lime water before drying, giving it a distinct sour flavor. Also, Masa Harina is more finely ground than cornmeal. More on that here.
High-Altitude or Sea-Level
I live in Denver, which is a mile high so I go with high-altitude, which is the elevation for which the recipe is written. To make this at sea-level, omit the teaspoon of water, bake at 400 degrees F and decrease the bake time to approximately 25 minutes, checking on them at 20 minutes and baking until they are light golden brown.
Gluten-free or not Gluten-free
If you need this to be gluten-free, just sub out your favorite gluten-free flour blend. Otherwise, AP or bread flour is recommended if you don’t need this to be gluten-free.
Muffin Tin or Baking Pan?
This recipe makes 9 muffins or can be made in an 8″ x 8″ baking pan or a 9″ round cake pan. The choice is yours, all are delicious.
Corn Kernels or No Corn Kernels
I really like the fresh texture that adding some corn kernels brings to this cornbread. If you don’t have corn around or this doesn’t appeal to you –leave it out. Either way, it’ll be fantastic.
Baking Tip
You can turn the broiler on if you want for a more golden brown top to your cornbread or cornbread muffins. Be sure to watch carefully to avoid burning the cornbread or cornbread muffins.
Remove from the baking vessel or serve from pan
Twist the muffins with your fingers to loosen and lift them out of the muffin pan. If you used parchment paper, just pull up on the paper and set the cornbread onto a cutting board or a plate. For removal from a greased baking pan, run a butter knife around the edge of the pan to loosen, then slice and serve. To remove the entire cornbread from the pan, run a butter knife around the edge and place a plate on top and quickly invert. It will be upside down so flip onto another serving platter to get it right-side-up.
Let’s Make High-Altitude Vegan Chipotle & Adobo Masa Harina Cornbread
Preheat oven to 375° F and grease an 8″ x 8″ square baking dish or 9 of the 12 muffin tin cups with Earth Balance or Vegan Butter. For oil-free cornbread, place a sheet of parchment paper in an 8″ x 8″ baking dish or fill 9 muffin cups with liners. You can also use 9″ round cake pan.
In a cup or bowl combine plant-milk and apple cider vinegar and set aside.
Measure flour, Masa Harina, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl.
Whip the aquafaba until creamy, then add sugar gradually while continuing to whip. When you pull up the beaters, two peaks should form. If you can’t get the peaks, it will still be fine if you’ve got white, creamy meringue-looking stuff.
Stir applesauce into the plant-milk and vinegar mixture. If high-altitude, mix in the teaspoon of water. Then stir this mixture into the dry mixture.
Using a spatula, transfer the whipped aquafaba and sugar into the large mixing bowl with everything else (including chipotle & adobo) and stir together or lightly go at it with the mixer until well combined and consistent. Please do not over mix.
Fold in frozen or drained canned corn if using. If desired you can save some kernels (~1/4 cup) to sprinkle on the top.
Bake
Pour the batter into the baking dish or pan or scoop into muffin cups. The muffin cups will be full. I use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to fill the muffin cups and then I top them off with the remaining batter. If using muffin liners, you may want to make ten smaller muffins so that you don’t have to overfill them. If you set some corn kernels aside, place them on top of the poured batter. Bake for around 30 minutes or until golden brown.
Place on a wire rack to cool. If you made muffins they only need to cool for about 10 minutes. If you made cornbread, let cool about 20 minutes. Remove or serve from pan. See Notes below for removal options.
Serve or store covered at room temperature for 2-3 days, or in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Freeze up to 1 month.
High-Altitude Vegan Chipotle & Adobo Masa Harina Cornbread
Equipment
- Muffin tin, 8" x 8" square pan, cast iron skillet or 9" round cake pan
- Mixer or hand mixer
- Large and small mixing bowls
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup chickpea brine aka aquafaba, whipped until fluffy and peaks form
- 1/4 cup sugar or substitute sweetener or your choice.
- 3/4 cup unsweetened plant-milk I've used oat and almond, unsweetened and unflavored plant-milks for this recipe.
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 cup AP flour or AP gluten-free flour
- 1 cup Masa Harina
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp water omit if sea-level, see notes below for sea-level instructions.
- 2 – 3 peppers from a can of chipotle & adobo and some spoonfuls of the sauce; mince or process in a small food processor
- 3/4 cup frozen or drained canned corn optional/recommended
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F and grease an 8" x 8" square baking dish or 9 of the 12 muffin tin cups with Earth Balance or Vegan Butter. For oil-free cornbread, place a sheet of parchment paper in an 8" x 8" baking dish or fill 9 muffin cups with liners. You can also use 9" round cake pan.
- In a cup or bowl combine plant-milk and apple cider vinegar and set aside.
- Measure flour, Masa Harina, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl.
- Whip the aquafaba until creamy, then add sugar gradually while continuing to whip. When you pull up the beaters, two peaks should form. If you can't get the peaks, it will still be fine if you've got white, creamy meringue-looking stuff.
- Stir applesauce into the plant-milk and vinegar mixture. If high-altitude, mix in the teaspoon of water. Then stir this mixture into the dry mixture.
- Using a spatula, transfer the whipped aquafaba and sugar into the large mixing bowl with everything else (including chipotle & adobo) and stir together or lightly go at it with the mixer until well combined and consistent. Please do not over mix. Fold in frozen or drained canned corn if using. If desired you can save some kernels (~1/4 cup) to sprinkle on the top.
- Pour the batter into the baking dish or pan or scoop into muffin cups. The muffin cups will be full. I use a 1/3 cup measuring cup to fill the muffin cups and then I top them off with the remaining batter. If using muffin liners, you may want to make ten smaller muffins so that you don't have to overfill them. If you set some corn kernels aside, place them on top of the poured batter. Bake for around 30 minutes or until golden brown.
- Place on a wire rack to cool. If you made muffins they only need to cool for about 10 minutes. If you made cornbread, let cool about 20 minutes. Remove or serve from pan. See Notes below for removal options.
Notes
High-Altitude or Sea-Level?
I live in Denver, which is a mile high so I go with high-altitude, which is the elevation for which the recipe is written. To make this at sea-level, omit the teaspoon of water, bake at 400 degrees F and decrease the bake time to approximately 25 minutes, checking on them at 20 minutes and baking until they are light golden brownGluten-free or not Gluten-free
If you need this to be gluten-free, just sub out your favorite gluten-free flour blend. Otherwise, AP or bread flour is recommended if you don’t need this to be gluten-free.Muffin Tin or Baking Pan?
This recipe makes 9 muffins or can be made in an 8″ x 8″ baking pan or a 9″ round cake pan. The choice is yours, all are delicious.Oil-Free or Low-Oil?
This decision about oil refers to how you prepare the baking vessel. If you want this to be completely no-oil, line your baking pan with parchment paper or if you are making muffins use 9 muffin cup liners in your muffin tin. If you are okay with a small amount of oil, then use a little Earth Balance or your favorite vegan butter to grease the pan or 9 of the muffin cups in your muffin tin if you are making muffins..Corn Kernels or No Corn Kernels
I really like the fresh texture that adding some corn kernels brings to this cornbread. If you don’t have corn around or this doesn’t appeal to you –leave it out. Either way, it’ll be fantastic.Baking Tip
You can turn the broiler on if you want for a more golden brown top to your cornbread or cornbread muffins. Be sure to watch carefully to avoid burning the cornbread or cornbread muffins.Remove from the baking vessel or serve from pan
Twist the muffins with your fingers to loosen and lift them out of the muffin pan. If you used parchment paper, just pull up on the paper and set the cornbread onto a cutting board or a plate. For removal from a greased baking pan, run a butter knife around the edge of the pan to loosen, then slice and serve. To remove the entire cornbread from the pan, run a butter knife around the edge and place a plate on top and quickly invert. It will be upside down so flip onto another serving platter to get it right-side-up. www.planttestkitchen.comNutrition
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Did You Make High-Altitude Vegan Chipotle & Adobo Masa Harina Cornbread?
How did it go? Are you High-Altitude or Sea-Level? Tell me all about it in the comments section below! If this recipe went well for you, pretty please leave a 5-star rating on the recipe card to help others find it.
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