Better Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting - my improved version of the cinnamon roll cake! It can't be easier than this!
This is the result of my improvement of one of the most popular recipes on this blog. The famous Cinnamon Roll Cake. A lot of you made it and loved it, some run into problems and some complained that there is too much butter involved. I promised to work on a lighter version and one that will be super easy to make.
BETTER CINNAMON ROLL CAKE
Less butter, easier and quicker to make, prettier but still absolutely delicious and fun!
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This cake looks like a giant cinnamon roll. It takes your breath away as soon as it comes out of the oven. The filling creates crevices in the cake during baking, spreading the sweet cinnamon love over the top. Just look at this:
It takes only about 15 minutes to prep this beauty and only 30 to bake it. It requires less work than the original cake because the filling does not need to be whipped and then spread gently over the batter. All you need to do it drizzle it creating circles!
This version is much lighter too! I cut the amount of butter to only ¼ of a cup!! The cake base has oil and buttermilk instead of butter and whole milk. It makes for a fluffy and moist cake that I will be using for other recipes for sure!
The filling is made in a small bowl in just seconds by whisking everything together. You swirl it over the cake batter in a circular motion and reserve almost half of it for drizzling after baking.
The cream cheese frosting is spread over a still warm cake. It's the perfect finishing touch!
Better Cinnamon Roll Cake
Ingredients
for the cake:
- 1 and ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 and ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or almond extract
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
for the filling:
- ¼ cup butter melted
- ¼ cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
for the glaze:
- 3 oz cream cheese softened
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or almond extract
- 2 Tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease and flour a 9" deep dish pie pan or a 9" round cake pan. Set aside.
to make the cake:
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, baking soda.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, vanilla and oil.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Whisk vigorously for 10 to 15 seconds. Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Set aside.
to make the filling:
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together melted butter, sugar, cinnamon, flour and vanilla. Using a small spoon, drizzle the filling over the batter in a circular motion (simply create circles), starting from the outside. You should have about half of the filling mixture left.
- Bake the cake for 28 to 30 minutes, or until the toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and set on a wooden cutting board. Drizzle the remaining filling over the filling crevices that were created during baking.
- Let the cake cool, while you make the glaze.
to make the glaze/frosting:
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk cream cheese, milk and vanilla. Add sifted powdered sugar until the frosting reaches a thick yet drizzling consistency.
- Using the back of the spoon or an offset spatula, spread the glaze over the warm cake in a circular motion.
- Let cool to room temperature.
- Serve.
Linda says
Excellent! I’ve made it many times, and we love it for breakfast. This is so much faster than making cinnamon rolls, but just as good.
Sharlana says
OMG this is so good! Made this as part of a Christmas brunch and everyone loved it! I made this in a gluten free version but no one could tell. I used King Arthur gluten free flour and added 1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum. I added additional buttermilk as I thought the gluten free batter was a little too thick. I also omitted the cream cheese in the glaze. Thanks for the great recipe!! Thinking this would also be good with pecans sprinkled on top…
Anna says
Thank you for making my recipe and for sharing your adjustments. I know they will be helpful for others.
Marina says
This looks delicious! Can I substitute 1/4 cup of unsweetened apple sauce for the 1/4 cup of oil in the cake batter?