This Cinnabon Cake combines everything you love about a cinnamon roll and a coffee cake to create the ultimate breakfast treat. The sticky vanilla icing is the perfect finishing touch!
If you love cinnamon, be sure to try this snickerdoodle banana bread, which doubles as a breakfast and a dessert. You’ll also love these snickerdoodle cookies and my honey bun cake recipe!
Why You’ll Love This Cinnabon Cake
While I love to indulge by buying a Starbucks scone or a blueberry muffin from my favorite local bakeries now and then, I’m not the biggest fan of most treats from chain restaurants.
But I have one weakness when it comes to “fast food” baked goods: Cinnabon’s Cinnamon Rolls. Who can resist that alluring cinnamon aroma that stops you in your tracks when you’re hurrying through the airport or mall?
Every so often, I get one of those big sticky buns for myself and savor it slowly, every last sticky bite. Heaven. This Cinnabon Cake is a little bit like a giant cinnamon roll, but in the form of a sliceable coffee cake!
Here’s why you’ll love it:
- The recipe makes two cakes, so it’s perfect for holiday brunches and potlucks.
- It’s also freezer-friendly, so if you can’t finish both cakes right away, you can eat one now and freeze one for later.
- Although the flavor is cinnamon roll inspired, this is a cake, which means there’s no yeast and no wait time for the rolls to rise. Just mix together a batter, bake, drizzle with icing and eat! From start to finish, this cake took well under an hour to be ready to eat.
- The Cinnabon cake is topped with gooey vanilla icing, which takes it to the next level! (And unlike other cakes, you don’t even have to wait for it to cool before adding the icing.)
Important Ingredient Notes
- All-purpose flour – Be sure to measure the flour by lightly spooning it into the measuring cups, rather than scooping it. This ensures you don’t use more than you need.
- Milk – Whole milk is my favorite for baking because it helps create an extra-tender crumb, but any milk you have on hand will work.
- Eggs – Let these come to room temperature. They’ll mix more smoothly into the batter and hold more air when beaten, giving your cake a lighter texture.
- Unsalted butter – You’ll need some that is melted and some that is softened; the softened butter is used in the cinnamon swirl for the Cinnabon cake.
- Cinnamon – The star of the show! Although jarred spices don’t spoil, they do lose flavor over time, so make sure your cinnamon is fresh and aromatic when you open the jar.
How to Make Cinnabon Cake
Prepare: Preheat your oven to 350ºF and grease two 9-inch cake pans, then line the bottoms with parchment paper.
Make the Batter: Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat together 3 cups of flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, milk, eggs, vanilla and 1/4 cup of melted butter. Divide the batter between the cake pans.
Make the Cinnamon Filling: In another mixing bowl, beat 3/4 cup of butter with the brown sugar, remaining flour, and cinnamon until the mixture is fluffy.
Add the Swirl: Using two tablespoons, drop the butter mixture onto cake batter. Swirl it in with a butter knife.
Bake: Place the pans in the oven and bake the cakes for about 25-30 minutes.
Cool: Remove the pans from the oven and let the cakes cool for 10 minutes before turning them out onto serving plates.
Frost: Whisk the powdered sugar with the milk and vanilla extract. Drizzle the mixture over the Cinnabon cakes while they’re still warm.
Tips and Tricks
- It can be a pain to cut parchment paper to size for round pans, so I like to buy parchment rounds, which are the perfect size for the job.
- When you’re adding the cinnamon filling, don’t swirl too much. If you go overboard, you’ll end up mixing the cinnamon into the batter completely, which isn’t what we want! Go for elegant marbling here.
- If your powdered sugar is lumpy, sift it first to keep those lumps out of your icing. It’s easier to sift first then to mix the icing and try to break up the clumps of sugar afterwards!
- Once the cakes cool, store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Cinnabon cake tastes best when slightly warmed. If you have leftovers, just pop your slice of cake in the microwave for a few seconds to reheat.
More Delicious Breakfast Recipes
- Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake
- French Toast Casserole
- Zucchini Bread Recipe
- Chocolate Chip Cake
- Blueberry Buckle Recipe
- Amish Friendship Bread
- Pumpkin Streusel Donuts
- Sour Cream Coffee Cake
- Crumb Cake
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Cinnamon Roll Breakfast Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cakes:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour plus 2 Tablespoons divided
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ½ Tablespoons baking powder
- 1 ½ cup milk
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- ¾ cup unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
- 2 Tablespoons cinnamon
For the Icing:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- For the cake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9-inch cake pans, lining the bottom with parchment paper.
- In mixer, blend 3 cups of the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, milk, eggs, vanilla and 1/4 cup melted butter. Divide batter evenly between cake pans.
- In another mixing bowl, beat 3/4 cup butter with brown sugar, 2 Tbsp flour, and cinnamon. Continue to beat until fully blended and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Using two tablespoons, drop butter mixture onto cake batter. Use a knife to swirl.
- Bake cakes for about 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool in pans 10 minutes. Flip cakes out onto serving plates.
- For icing, whisk the powdered sugar with 1/4 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Drizzle over warmed cakes. Enjoy!
Notes
- Storage: Store cooled cakes in airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Or freeze for up to 3 months.
- Cinnamon Roll cake tastes best when slightly warmed. If you have leftovers, pop a slice in the microwave for 15 seconds to reheat.
I am a college student, I pin all the time. I go to Kendall College…meaning no dorms, but I am just as crafty! I love this recipe, I tweak a lot of things, no milk? Condensed. No brown sugar? Dash of maple syrup…or just don’t fret. I use what I can! I love this recipe…or at least the one I make shifted from it. 🙂
So glad to hear it Lindsey!
I normally never leave comments on recipes but I MUST now! I tried this recipe last week, had one cake stay at home and had my husband take the other one to work. the next day, I was requested to bake 2 more cakes for my husband’s co-workers, 2 more for my husband (he went crazy over these!) and ill be baking 2 more for co-workers! by the end of this week ill be baking 6 of these delicious goodies!! thank you so much for sharing, you have now made me very popular, lol 😉 I also love that the ingredients for these are things I keep in my pantry all the time so I can whip up 2 cakes in no time, it makes me feel like a pro!
This was so good and so easy! Love that it makes two round cakes.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe!!
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!!!
You’re so welcome!!
looks great! has anyone made this without eggs? i’m hoping my regular egg replacer will do the trick…
Amazing! This looks so so so good! 🙂
The icing recipe calls for 1/4 cup milk and 2 cups powdered suger?
Isn’t that to much milk? I had to add 3 more cups of powdered sugar.
I wish I had read the recipe more closely. I would have rather baked it in a 9 by 13 pan. And I thought this made a layer cake so I piled one cake on top of the other before icing. Oh well, it tastes delicious even though it doesn’t look that pretty.
Oh dear. Glad it tastes good!
Still would like to know what kind of flour you used thanks!
All-purpose flour!
Did you use self rising flour or all purpose! Thanks for info. It looks delicious. Be good for a morning after you have gone all week eating less.
Have to ask because this looks so delicious and is hitting my pregant sweet tooth want lol, how do you freeze the second cake? Should you cook it and then freeze it (just have to thaw and rewarm) or do you freeze it raw?
*pregnant, can’t seem to spell <3
After baking the cakes, let them cool. I then wrap it in heavy duty foil. When you want to eat it, allow it thaw (either in the fridge overnight, or on the counter…about an hour). Make up the glaze and drizzle it on!
Thank you so much, I will definitely be trying this 🙂
Made this morning, I thought the 1 1/2 TBsp. Baking powder was a typo, seemed like a lot. I used 1 1/2 tsp. Instead. Needless to say, it was pretty flat. Smells amazing and tastes good, just a little for dense. When I make this next time (yes, there will be a next time!) I will definitely use the right measurements.
Nope, you definitely want to use the full amount of baking powder!! ENJOY.
Is it dark brown sugar or light brown sugar needed?
So happy to see all the “Cinnamon” it’s great for lowering blood sugar!!! Definitely making these!!!
Yum. I’m afraid I have more Day 3s than Day 2s 🙁
Absolutely delicious!
I LOVE this….soo easy and tastes sooo good! My second time making it now..cant wait!
This is in my oven baking right now. Can’t wait!!
I know it’s wishful thinking that second cake was for me (especially since you made it months ago, hehe) Sigh, I’ll just have to dream about this until the weekend when the family can enjoy it with me. Wouldn’t be fair to make it when they weren’t home, would it? Oh wait, it makes 2, I can make it, wait to bake one until dinner but eat the first one in the morning after they go off to work and school and hide any evidence of the first cake! This cake is inspiring evil genius, thank you!
I am so glad I found this recipe as well as your blog! I can’t wait to try this. I heart my cinnamon rolls and sonething tells me this cake just might beat them!
Another big winner I’m going to make. I’ll have to make mine healthier but it should still taste great so thanks for the idea. I’ll use whole wheat flour & splenda, lite butter…