Light and tender Cinnamon Roll Cake with cream cheese frosting. All of the flavors I love from a cinnamon roll, in a delicious, easy cake recipe.
This Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting is lick-your-plate, DELICIOUS. All of the warm, ooey gooey, cinnamon taste you love from a cinnamon roll, without any of the fuss. No rolling, rising, etc.
With just 15 minutes prep time, it’s SOO easy, and the end result is a delicious, moist, cinnamon roll cake that will make the people in your life very, very happy!
This simple cake starts with a basic cake batter recipe. Then you mix together brown sugar, cinnamon, flour and butter and place spoonfuls all over the top of the batter. This delicious layer will act as the cinnamon filling we love inside a cinnamon roll.
Use a butter knife to weave the cinnamon roll filling back and forth down the pan, incorporating it into the batter in fun swirls.
Bake the cake and top the warm cake with cream cheese frosting. HEAVEN.
To apply the cream cheese frosting:
Spoon the frosting into a ziplock bag. Cut a hole in one of the corners of the bag, and squeeze the frosting through it as your drizzle it onto the cake.
To store this cinnamon roll cake:
Just like fresh baked cinnamon rolls, I think this cake is best enjoyed the same day it’s baked. The soft texture will dry out the longer it sits.
Light and tender cinnamon roll cake with cream cheese frosting. layers of cinnamon swirled in a homemade cake with a simple cream cheese frosting.
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup butter , melted
- 1/2 cup butter , softened
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons butter , softened
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1-2 Tablespoons milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
-
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8'' baking dish.
-
In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, milk, egg and vanilla. Stir in melted butter. Pour mixture into prepared pan and smooth into an even layer.
-
Make the cinnamon swirl topping by combing all ingredients together until smooth.
-
Drop small spoonfuls of the mixture evenly over the top of the cake batter. Use a knife to swirl through the cake and disperse the mixture throughout the cake batter.
-
Bake 32-37 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Drizzle cream cheese frosting over warm cake. Serve warm.
-
For the Cream Cheese Frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese together. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to make a smooth, soft frosting. Drizzle frosting over the cake with a spoon (or use a ziplock bag like I did--just snip a hole out of one of the corners and add the frosting).
-
This cake is best served the same day.
Recipe Video
Adapted from here
Tips for applying the frosting and storing this cake are listed in the post above.
Maureen says
November 14, 2018 at 8:14 amCan I bake this in an 8 inch round?
Lauren Allen says
November 14, 2018 at 10:24 pmYes, but the volume of batter will probably be more than you need. Fill 8″ at least 3/4 full, maybe you could make a few cupcakes if you have extra batter.
Sherry says
November 25, 2018 at 9:00 amCan this be doubled and made into a layer cake? Or will the batter be too heavy?
Lauren Allen says
December 23, 2018 at 3:47 pmI’ve never tried that, but I think another commenter did with success.
Karen says
December 14, 2018 at 9:21 pmCan this cake batter be mixed up ahead of time? I’d like to serve this on Christmas morning gathering at my daughter’s house and won’t have a lot of time to prepare in the morning. Could it be mixed up the day before and baked in the morning.
Lauren Allen says
January 6, 2019 at 3:57 pmHi Karen,
I think your better option is to bake the cake, let it cool completely and store it in the fridge until the next morning. At that point you could warm it slightly if you would like!
Traci says
January 12, 2019 at 11:01 pmMade this today and my family really enjoyed it…I added it to my “keeper” recipes and nothing makes it there unless everyone loves it! Thanks for sharing it and btw, the steps were super easy to follow!!!
??
Lauren Allen says
January 13, 2019 at 10:39 amI’m really happy to hear it made the cut! Thanks for sharing Traci!
Maggee Mae says
March 16, 2019 at 9:31 amI made this yesterday. Had to use a pie plate to bake it in. We just moved and I do not have all my baking pans yet. No worries the pie plate worked fine. Followed recipe exactly. As I suspected it, it is sweet but then again its going to be. The family enjoyed and I will keep the recipe.
mary says
April 8, 2019 at 11:39 pmI doubled the recipe and baked it in a 9×13 pan. It turned out great. I did not double the frosting recipe and it eas plenty. I took it to celebrate our 54 wedding anniversary with friends.
Denise says
April 13, 2019 at 9:17 pmYummy
Jaia Sandhu says
April 28, 2019 at 12:52 pmThis cake was very tasty in my option. My other half thought it was a little on the dense side so if I made it again I would think of adding another egg to the batter. I like the cinnamon swirls and made my own butter and cream cheese frosting then dusted with cocoa powder. Thank you as I feel this cake is quite tasty and very easy to make. I made in a normal round spring from pan.