Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I love cinnamon rolls. The thing with cinnamon rolls is that they really are a labor of love. When I created this cake my primary focus was the cinnamon and the frosting. My favorite cinnamon rolls knock you out with cinnamon. My favorite frosting for cinnamon rolls is cream cheese, like actual cream cheese frosting. Putting a glaze on cinnamon rolls is a waste. Cream cheese frosting is the perfect balance for the sweetness of the roll.

Having cinnamon flavored cake layers wasn't good enough for me. I wanted the layers of cinnamon sugar like you do with the rolls. Enter: cinnamon streusel. At first, Mister though I was crazy to bake a streusel layer under the cake layers. The second he smelled what was going on in the kitchen he knew it was so right. This cake has the perfect match-up of textures and flavors. It really is a home run. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

Tips for this Cake

• The frosting made just enough to frost the cake. If you prefer to use a piping bag to apply your frosting, or if you would like more to decorate with add more powdered sugar to give you a bit  more.
• This frosting is meant to be less sweet to balance out the sweetness of the cake (similar to  Cinnabon frosting) if you would prefer your frosting to be more sweet add more powdered sugar.
• Be sure to beat the frosting for the full 12 minutes. This is to get the frosting stiff enough that the cake will be stable when constructed.
• I used Torani "Brown Sugar and Cinnamon" syrup on my cakes. If you don't want to buy the syrup just make the simple syrup recipe provided below.

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Yield: 4-layer 6-inch or 3-layer 8-inch round cake

Sweet cinnamon cake layers with crisp streusel bottoms topped with a decadent cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

Ingredients

Cinnamon Streusel

10 Tbs unsalted butter, cold

1 c dark brown sugar

1 ½ c all-purpose flour

2 Tbs cinnamon

Cinnamon Cake (adapted from Cookies and Cups)

2 ½ c all-purpose flour

1 ½ c granulated sugar

4 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp salt

¾ c unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ c sour cream or plain Greek yogurt

2 tsp vanilla

6 large egg whites, room temperature (divided)

¾ c milk, room temperature

¼ c water, room temperature

Cinnamon Syrup

½ c brown sugar
½ c water
½ Tbs cinnamon

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

1 c unsalted butter, room temperature

8 oz cream cheese, room temperature

1 lb powdered sugar, sifted
1 Tbs cinnamon

1 tsp lemon extract or juice

1 tsp vanilla

Cinnamon Sugar

¼ c light brown sugar

½ Tbs cinnamon

Instructions

For the Cinnamon Streusel

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Grease your cake pans, line with parchment paper, then grease the parchment paper.
3. Add butter, flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon to a food processor and pulse until coarse crumbs form.
4. Divide evenly in pans and press flat with hands.
5. Bake 5-7 minutes. Allow to cool before adding cake batter.

For Cinnamon Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes). Add the sour cream and vanilla, mix until well combined. Add half of the egg whites and mix until well combined. Add the remaining egg whites and mix until well combined. Scrap down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure everything is incorporated.
3. Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to fully incorporate. In a small bowl, combine the milk and water. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the flour mixture into the batter and mix until just combined. Add the milk mixture and mix until just combined. Add the rest of the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Scrap down the sides and bottom of bowl as needed to make sure everything is incorporated. Do not over mix.
4. Divide the batter even into each of the pans. Bake for 23-25 minutes or until cakes are completely baked.
5. Allow the cakes to cool for 10 minutes in the pans and then remove them from their pans onto a cooling rack. Flip cakes so streusel is on the bottom and poke the tops of the cake with a wooden skewer. Pour the cinnamon syrup onto the top of each cake (divided evenly) and allow to soak in while cakes finish cooling.

For Cinnamon Syrup

1. Add water and sugar to a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring mixture to a simmer and cook, swirling the pan occasionally until the sugar has completely dissolved. Stir in cinnamon and allow to cool before pouring over cakes. Can be stored in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 4 weeks.

For Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

1. Allow butter and cream cheese to reach room temperature. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a balloon whisk attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese together until well combined. Slowly add in sifted powdered sugar and cinnamon. Once all the sugar and cinnamon is incorporated, mix for at least 12 minutes (this is very important). When almost done, add in the extracts and mix until well combined.

For Cinnamon Sugar

1. Mix ingredients in a small bowl. Divide evenly between each layer of cake by sprinkling over the frosting. Reserve a bit for decorating the top of the cake (optional).

Assembly

1. Level each cake with a cake leveler or knife.
2. Using chilled cakes, place the first cake layer on the cake plate or stand with the streusel on the bottom.
3. Spread about ½ - ¾ cup of frosting on top of the cake layer. Spread to the edges and make sure it is level. Sprinkle with with about ½ of the cinnamon sugar. Repeat for each level.
4. Place the final layer of cake on top with the streusel on the bottom.
5. Frost the cake with a thin layer of frosting to lock in the crumbs. Freeze for about 10 minutes to set the crumb coat.
6. Continue to decorate with remaining frosting. If frosting softens refrigerate for 10-15 minutes then beat to smooth out.