This super moist Cinnamon Roll Swirl Coffee Cake is worth making from scratch! Rich, moist coffee cake is swirled with a cinnamon roll filling and topped off with a simple glaze. This cake is to die for!
The first time I made a cinnamon swirl coffee cake was years ago. My sister has posted a recipe she called Honey Bun Cake on her blog. (That’s right, blogging is a family thing for us!). It was absolutely delicious, just like she said. I’ve made it several times since. Hers uses a cake mix and I wanted to give you a “from scratch” version since that’s more my style. This cake is amazing! It is super moist, and thick, and decadent….everything a coffee cake should be. The batter is quite thick, much thicker than a cake mix so don’t be surprised by that. That’s exactly how it is supposed to be.
If you like this recipe, you may also enjoy some of my other cinnamon recipes like my Sour Cream Coffee Cake Muffins or my Cinnamon Roll Twist Bread. You may also enjoy some of my other cake recipes like my Most Amazing Chocolate Cake or my Most Amazing White Cake. Both of those are super popular, and for good reason!
SWIRL OPTIONS: You have a couple of different options for the cinnamon swirl. You can simple swirl it in up top like I’ve done here, or you can layer it by pouring half the batter into the pan, doing a swirl layer, then the remaining half of the batter and another swirl layer. Feel free to do whichever works best for you.
How long does this cake stay good?
This cake stays good for about 3 days before it starts to dry out. Make sure you cover it after it has been sliced into, otherwise it will dry out immediately. Store at room temperature.
Why doesn’t it have any coffee in it? Why do they call it a coffee cake?
Now, before anyone gets mad about me calling it a coffee cake, let’s get one thing straight: coffee cake doesn’t have any coffee in it and it isn’t supposed to! It’s called coffee cake because it is meant to be served up with coffee. I’m not a coffee drinker, but the sweetness of the cake is supposed to be a good balance to the dark flavors of coffee.
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
I made this cake today it was delicious!!
Can I use less sugar in the bottom layer?
Katy
I made it it was delicious and every love it. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
I have to eat GF so would use my flour but I’m finding everything I bake is so dry. How can I get the moisture back in my cakes & etc..
Check out bread recipes that are specifically designed to be gluten free. That will definitely help 🙂
It really depends on the flour mixture you use. Several of the gluten free flour options require more moisture and are affected by the local humidity level. My go-to flours for baking recipes like this are Bob’s Red-Mill gluten free flour or Pamela’s Artisan Blend. I use them one-to one, but after mixing the entire recipe, I let them sit for about five or ten minutes and then re-stir. If the batter seems too dry, I will add a bit of moisture; likewise a bit more flour if too wet. Baking gluten free really takes a lot of experimentation, but… Read more »
I found if you use gelatin as a binder ( provided you are not baking vegetarian or vegan) the product comes out a little more moist and a little more butter or oil
Can cake flour be used instead of all purpose flour, baking powder and salt?
No. Cake flour is not recommended for this recipe. Cake flour is a finely milled flour with cornstarch cut in. It will not sufficiently replace flour, baking powder, and salt.
Can this be made the day before?
Yes, it can.
I used cream cheese because i didn’t have sour cream or greek yogurt, the batter is pretty thick but i’m excited to see how it turns out.. will it be thick and buttery or crumbly and dry?! Either way it’ll be sugary and delicious!
oooo, I am not sure how that will turn out at all. Cream cheese is very different than sour cream and greek yogurt so I’m not sure what to expect here. Be sure to come back and let us know.
It is very rare I can find a desert that both my kids enjoy…
This sucker was gone in 2 days!
And they both begged for me to make it monthly. 5 STARS! This site is now bookmarked for future yumminess.
Is there any substitute of sour cream? I can’t get sour cream here.
Depends on where you are! There’s usually something similar. Google is your best friend here.
Plain Greek Yogurt is a good substitute for sour cream
I’m diabetic, but want to try this badly! Can I use sugar substitute? (Like Splenda for baking)
It might be worth experimenting with, but this has such a large amount of sugar in it that it could cause serious differences in the texture of the cake to substitute with splenda.
I have swapped the sugar for Stevia and had excellent results. My mother used Equal in place of the sugar and hers came out perfect too! Hope this helps!
So how much stevia or equal to replace the three cups of sugar did these ladies use?
Just out of curiosity, have you ever made muffins out of this instead of a cake? I’m still in search of the perfect cinnamon struesel muffin and this is the absolute best cinnamon coffee cake I have ever tasted and thought it would make fabulous muffins. Let me know what you think!
I haven’t, but in theory they would sort of work. You wouldn’t get that beautiful rounded top though without some adjustments and experimentation. But honestly, I wouldn’t complain about not having a rounded top if someone gave me one of these in muffin form. They are just too good!
I think I will give it a whirl and will report back with my results. Fingers crossed it works–this cake is way too good to mess up and have to toss it!
The cinnamon filling sank to the bottom and stuck. In spite of this, the cake was delicious. Any ideas as to what I could have done wrong?
hmmm, perhaps you added too much liquid to the batter? The bottom layer of batter should be thick enough that the cinnamon roll drizzle shouldn’t sink. Perhaps just add a little more batter on the bottom next time.
I was watching you live cinnamon roll video and you are say 1/2c melted butter for the filling you place on top, but you pouring in a cup or more. which is it?
Thank you,
Paula
I was making two cakes and thought nobody would notice. Shhhhh! Don’t tell anyone! 😉
This has SIX cups of sugar in it!!! That’s outrageous… and not in a good way.
The sugar police have caught me again! I believe in a life of moderation. Nothing wrong with a piece of sweet cake now and then.
Agreed…?
can this be made in a bundt pan?
In theory it can. It would require a longer baking time though.