This sweet and moist Cinnamon Roll Cake with cream cheese frosting has all of the warm, ooey gooey, cinnamon taste you love from a cinnamon roll, without any of the fuss!
If you love the flavors of a Perfect Cinnamon Roll be sure to try my Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls or Cinnamon Applesauce Bread.
If you’re looking for a delicious sweet breakfast idea or a yummy dessert, this easy cake recipe fits the bill. It’s a fun addition to holiday brunch, special occasions or parties, and is always a crowd favorite.
How to make Cinnamon Roll Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8×8” 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 for 32-37 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Drizzle cream cheese frosting over warm cake.
Storing and Freezing Instructions:
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.
To freeze the cake, allow to cool, cover with a lid or a double layer of aluminum foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then rewarm in the oven, or rewarm individual slices in the microwave.
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Recipe
Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or cake 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
For the Cinnamon Swirl:
- 1/2 cup butter , softened
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 Tablespoons butter , softened
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 1-2 Tablespoons milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- 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 30-37 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 and snip a hole out of one of the corners to pipe the frosting on.
- This cake is best served warm from the oven, the same day it's made.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
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I originally shared this recipe October 2017. Updated August 2020.
HAVE YOU TRIED THIS RECIPE?!
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience.
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I made this by the recipe the first time and really liked it. The next time I made it, I tried it with Bread Flour. To me, the bread flour made it taste more like cinnamon rolls. Very addicting!
I have baked many different cakes in my life but this one definitely made it to my top 3. My husband kept asking me for a cake that isn’t too sweet and came across this recipe. After reading all the reviews and seeing some complain about dryness. I made the following changes. I added 2/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup sour cream and 2 eggs. I mixed all the wet ingredients first then added my dry ingredients. The cake batter came out perfect, not too thick and not too runny. With the cinnamon mix you have to make sure the butter is soft and not fully melted which makes it easy to swirl in the cake. I baked it in the oven for 30 minutes. When making the frosting it’s best to use the same bowl as the cinnamon mix as it will take the flavour to a different level. Also if you don’t like your icing too sweet add 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon sour cream. The consistency will be a little runny but the flavour is something else. I served my husband one slice without icing and one with icing. He loved the one plain one the most while I enjoyed the icing one more. If you are looking to have this cake for couple days, it’s best to store it without the icing then warm it for 15-20 seconds then add your icing. Hope this helps
Yes, i reccomend this recipe.
Of course i usually modify things.
I used a quarter cup sour cream to the remaing amount half cup of milk.
I did the same by adding a dollop of sour cream to the cinnamon mixture.
It lightened everything up.
And i didn’t have any cream cheese so again i used sour cream with the powder sugar.
Thank you for the recipe.
Great recipe!! Definitely satisfies that cinnamon roll craving, and whips up quickly! I made the recipe as written twice in the last two weeks, and it came out perfect both times. I made the cream cheese frosting in the cinnamon sugar bowl like othered suggested, and WOW!! Definitely added another layer of flavor!
Okay. This is the best thing ever. Moist. Delicious. Pockets of cinnamon sugar are amazing. Icing=bomb.
This is honestly the best ever ! Not dried out at all !!
Can this cake be rewarmed in a low temp oven?
This cake is best fresh from the oven the day it’s made but you can warm it up slowly in the oven!
Such an easy recipe for getting that cinnamon roll craving satisfied!! I love eating cinn rolls but they’re such a time filler to make- this was an excellent alternative. It’s definitely not dry! Will make again for sure!
Just made it. Kiddos love it. Was to tired to make cinnamon rolls. Quick and easy.
Nice recipe – had to add additional milk as the batter was quite thick. Also cut the sugar in the cake portion in half. Was super yummy warm with vanilla ice cream, will make again 🙂
Thanks, looking fwd to your yummy looking recipes!
Made this but it was so dry! I did not overbake. Any suggestions?
I made this cake & it was so dry. I did not over bake it. Is there anything I can do to make it more moist?
This is absolutely delish! Just like cinnamon rolls but better! Thank you!
If I wanted to make this in a 13×9… how long should it bake please? Looks soooo good!
Thanks so much!
Does anyone know if you can prepare this the night before and bake it the next morning with adjustments made to the cooking time?
I’ve made this several times at this point. Since it only calls for 4 oz of cream cheese I make 2 batches and stick one in the freezer for a later date!
This is PHENOMENAL. made and served the same morning and it is NOT dry at all. Delicious, moist and love the cream cheese frosting
I have not baked it yet but I’m excited to give it a try! One question is if I want to make it larger is doubling the recipe and going for a bigger size pan the best way to go?
This recipe slaps ong
Side note: don’t put the eggs in hot butter
I’m just curious, where exactly does she say to put eggs into hot butter??
This recipe is perfect as written. I didn’t make any modifications and it came out moist and delicious! I used all organic ingredients: whole milk, egg, and real butter, so maybe that’s why? My “dude” who loves cinnamon rolls, loved this cake!! Thank you!!
I tried this today and mine came out very moist and delicious. I did bake this is a foil pan and for 42 minutes.
It seemed too heavy, dense. Didn’t like it.
Very delicious cake, came out very moist
Very dry was disappointed
Super tasty! I added some left over chopped nuts and it added a nice crunch.
Hi there. Thank you for the delicious recipe!
Is there any way I can make this cake more moist? Perhaps substitute sour cream for milk? Would that work?
Thank you.
You could definitely experiment 🙂
Instead of making the cake from scratch, do you think a boxed cake would work?
I haven’t tried it but I can’t see why not :). I’d follow the cooking direction on your box mix.
The best!!!
I’m opting for a whipped cream on top instead of cream cheese for a lighter frosting!
The initial cake batter looked great, was the right consistency. I was a little worried with the amount of butter going in to the cinnamon swirl and I was right to be concerned. Once baked the cake was a buttery mess. When I check the doneness butter poured out the hole the toothpick left. I knew it was too good to be true.
I also had a hard time with this. The cake was extremely thick and the cinnamon swirl was very runny. Perhaps I should have reversed the butter amounts. I ended up just mixing the cinnamon swirl through all the batter.
Could i substitute a cake mix for the cake portion?
Sure! Although you’ll need a bigger pan, and then you may want to double the cinnamon swirl and frosting.
I made this cinnamon roll cake for the first time in 2018, for Christmas brunch with my family. It was a huge hit, even with my grown son, who doesn’t really like cake. Everyone agrees it tastes like Cinnabon cinnamon rolls. Needless to say, it’s now on the request list for almost every special occasion.
I usually double the recipe, & use a 9×13 baking dish. To save time, I also use canned cream cheese frosting. Thanks so much for this delicious recipe!
The cinnamon topping seemed to have exploded and spilled out from my pan while baking. any idea why this happened?should i add lesser cinnamon topping then?
Made it this morning, it came out great my family loves it. I also doubled the ingredients and it was fully cooked it 37 minutes. Bonus it made our apartment smell so good!
Turned out great! Fast and easy dessert on a cold snowy night.
Just made this and it turned out delicious. I incorporated a 1/2 cup chopped walnuts to the cinnamon swirl mixture for added flavor and texture. Will definitely make this again!
I would suggest adding raisins to the cinnamon swirl as it is what I am used to with a cinnamon bun. I made this gluten free by using Bob Mills 1 to 1 gluten free flour mix. Also agreed with others that the cinnamon swirl was very thick.
Note: Baked for 40 minutes until internal temperature was at 200 degrees fahrenheit. Recipe otherwise very good.
I had so much trouble with this cake. The batter was way too thick, but I only had skim milk at home – I don’t know for sure because a liquid is a liquid. The cinnamon swirl was beyond thick – it did not swirl through the cake. I didn’t go as far as the icing and we just ate the cake as is because I didn’t want to invest anymore money into the cake. Could you tell me how to get the batter and cinnamon swirl into a thinner consistency. I’m great at making icing. I didn’t have any ideas how to thin both out and help would be greatly appreciated.
I made this exactly as the recipe said to and my batter was SO thick!! I had to add more butter vanilla and milk
So good and so easy to make! My whole family raved about how delicious it was and I agree! It was gone within days.
Would this work in a round 9″ pan?
Yes, that’s fine!
Seems like a great recipe! Would there a be a huge difference using cake flour instead of all purpose flour?
Not huge–cake flour should work fine.
This 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.
Yummy
I 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.
I 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.
Made 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!!!
??
I’m really happy to hear it made the cut! Thanks for sharing Traci!
Made this cake recently and it was so good! It really tasted like a cinnamon roll, plus the frosting was so delicious! It was super easy to make and one of the fastest cakes I’ve made!
Can 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.
Hi 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!
How should I put pecans in this cake?
Thank you
Chop them small and add 1/2-1 cup to the cake batter before pouring it into the pan.
Can this be doubled and made into a layer cake? Or will the batter be too heavy?
I’ve never tried that, but I think another commenter did with success.
Can I bake this in an 8 inch round?
Yes, 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.
Hi Lauren,
I wanted to let you know that for a vegan cinnamon roll cake. You can use to replace a egg: 1/2 mashed banana or 1/4 c yogurt, or 1/3c applesauce.
For the cinnamon roll cake I used yogurt and it turned out awesome!
Thanks for all of your wonderful recipes.
This is crazy good. Quick and delicious! Tastes amazing! I made the frosting in the same bowl as the brown sugar / butter / cinnamon bowl and so I transferred a bit of that flavor 😉
I’m so glad you liked the recipe! Thanks for commenting!
This is so good!!!! I’ve made it twice, now. I’m gonna make this for Christmas morning. I added pecans and they taste like the Cinnamon and Sugar pecans you get at the fair. It is absolutely delicious!!!
Thanks Marcy! I love the idea of doing this for Christmas morning! So much easier than cinnamon rolls 🙂
This cake is the bomb! It tastes just like a cinnamon roll and is so easy to make. So delicious and tender! I will
definitely make this again. Love the way the frosting looks in the video. I need to practice on that. One tip is
to use a regular ziploc bag for the frosting. Not the bag with the zipper or it will ooze out from the corner. Thanks
so much for this recipe!
I’ve made this cake twice now since the family loved it and requested another one. It is now a favorite!
I’m thrilled your family loves it! Thanks Dawn 🙂
Can I double this and use a 9×13 pan
Absolutely, that would work great!
Delicious! Surprised my hubby with this for dessert tonight. He loves cinnamon rolls & this cake was exactly that. It was very easy & I already had everything on hand. I baked it for 35 min & it was perfect. I have a feeling I won’t be making canned cinnamon rolls for breakfast anymore.
I’m so happy you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for coming back to comment <3
Was thinking of using this for a three tiered wedding cake. The groom loves cinnamon rolls. My big question is about freezing the layers. I normally freeze wedding cake layers so that I can assemble the cake on the day before (or day of) the wedding. I just made a sample to see how it holds up.
Any advice about freezing it?
Hi Kathy,
What a fun idea! I haven’t tried freezing this recipe, but this cake does dry out a little quicker than regular cake. You could try letting it cool completely, freezing it immediately after and then frosting it the day of the wedding. I hope it works out for you!
Just did a trial layer, threw in freezer, but also refrigerated a part of it already iced. Did that on Monday, and pulled out today for tasting–it was great! Very moist. I double wrapped it with saran wrap. It’s a go at this point. Will take the other piece that was frozen (no frosting) and let you know how it did, but I am pretty happy!
Fantastic!! Hope everyone loves it–I’d love to see a photo!
Does the cake need to be stored in refrigerator?
Hi Denise,
It depends a bit how warm you keep your house and how long you leave it out. I would recommend storing it in the fridge, because of the cream cheese frosting 🙂
I made this last night. So easy. My husband loved it. It is very delicious
OMIGOSH! Where has this been all my baking life??!! The bread is soft, moist & has the perfect density (not too heavy, not too airy), the cinnamon is the perfect amount of cinnamonyness (is that a word??) & the cream cheese frosting (while not absolutely necessary) is DIVINE! A perfect combination of sweet & smooth. I cut the powdered sugar in 1/2 & added in 2ish tbsp Fage 0% yogurt to the frosting & it was amazing! I am definitely saving this one for my own recipe book to make again in the future. My husband was impressed. Seal of approval! Thanks for sharing some sweetness!
Thanks so much Amanda! Love your adaptions, and your comment made me smile. So happy it got the seal of approval!
Hi Amber! Did you still use cream cheese in your frosting or omit it and only use the yogurt instead?? Love your idea! I must try that! ; )
In a hurry can I use a boxed cake mix in a 9×13 double the cinn. Mixture
Hi Martha, I’m sure that would work fine–the cake will just be the flavor and texture of whatever cake mix you buy, with a cinnamon swirl in it, and not really a “cinnamon roll” type cake.
I used boxed and it worked great! less liquid than box asked for, but for a cake in a hurry it worked and saved me time too! Everyone loved it!
Have you tried to make these as cupcakes?
I haven’t but I’m sure they would work great!
what size pan should i use.
Hi Deborah. I use an 8×8 inch baking dish. You could double the recipe and make it in a 9×13 if you wanted to.
Made this for our church coffee hour it was a big hit going to make it again tomorrow. Make with coconut or almond flour if so what would the measurements be?no
for our church is coffee our it was a big hit going to make it again tomorrow.
Could this be baked in a springform pan?
I don’t see why not! 🙂 Enjoy.
Hi,
Wanted to know if the “cinnamon roll cake” can be frozen .
I’ve never tried freezing this so I can’t say for sure! I bet it would work–let me know if you try it 🙂
Yes! This cake can be frozen. I allow the cake to cool completely before slicing into individual servings, though the whole cake can be frozen as 1 piece. To freeze, just wrap very well in plastic wrap such as Seran brand. Any brand works just fine. The cake or cake pieces will keep for up to 2 months without tasting freezer burnt. To de-thaw, place in fridge for 1-2 days, unwrapped but covered to keep moist or on the counter for a few hours. The cake is made with dairy products so it’s important to keep that in mind when de-thawing on the counter. Just don’t leave it out all night long.
Step 5 says to drizzle frosting and then step 6 are the cream cheese frosting directions. Is there another frosting in addition to the cream cheese?
No
they all look really good!!!1