Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake
What is better than a freshly baked cinnamon bun? Not much truly, but one giant cinnamon roll cake where every slice has that perfect gooey middle texture is pretty amazing. It’s a fun twist on the cozy and comforting classic and nice to slice and serve for a special brunch.
I first had this idea when I offered to make a friend a birthday cake and they requested cinnamon rolls instead of a traditional cake. I thought this was a great way to still serve something cake like.
Either way, this recipe is the bomb. You know the gooey middle of the cinnamon roll that is just the best? The part that I personally save until the last possible moment to enjoy in its doughy melt-in-your mouth splendor?
Well that’s the texture of this entire thing! The outer-most layer stays crisp while all the others layers are ooey-gooey.
Wouldn’t this be a wonderful addition to your Mother’s Day brunch spread? I like it because you’re not limited to the “one per person” standard of rolls.
My sisters tend to cut little fractions of the individual buns off and that always drives me crazy… who can resist a whole cinnamon roll right??? Well I am a bit embarrassed to admit that I finished this whole pan off with Andy and two of our friends who came over for brunch. I mean- how can you resist a slice of Cinnamon Roll middle gooey-ness?
Forming this mega roll is easier than it may look. Instead of rolling all the dough and cutting it into individual rolls, I cut the dough into strips that I rolled from the inside out, starting with one roll and gently adding to the swirl. I know this would be easier in pictures, but after I took one of the first step, baby boy got hungry and I never got to it. Luckily this dough is very forgiving. Even if it doesn’t look perfectly symmetrical before it proofs, it all puffs togethers after baking. :)
Ingredients needed for Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake:
- All purpose flour
- Egg
- Milk
- Sugar
- Instant yeast
- Cinnamon
- Butter
- Brown Sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Cream Cheese
- Powdered Sugar
Supplies needed for Large Cinnamon Roll Cake:
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Small saucepan
- Pizza Cutter
- 9 inch cake pan or pie dish. (You can always use a springform pan)
- Tea towel or plastic wrap
- Stand mixer with dough hook attachment (optional, you can make by hand too.)
How to make a Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake:
In a small saucepan combine the milk and butter until butter is melted and milk is warmed but not scorched. Set aside while you combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Stir in the warm milk mixture and the egg and use a spatula to stir dough until it comes together in a shaggy mass, scraping the sides of the bowl. Turn it onto a lightly floured surface and knead dough until a soft dough forms. Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest while you make the filling. In a small bowl combine the cinnamon and brown sugar and melt the butter and stir in the vanilla.
When dough has rested for 10 minutes, roll the dough on a floured surface into a large rectangle. Brush the top of the dough with almost all of the melted butter and pour the rest into the bottom of a 9-inch pie dish (or something similar.) Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the dough and gently press it in.
Using a pastry wheel, pizza cutter or knife cut the dough into long strips. Take the first strip and roll it from one end to the other forming a swirl. Set that roll on top of the next strip with the seam-side down and roll the strip onto it.
Repeat for 2 more strips, at which point the roll is probably too large to continue forming this way. Gently place it in the center of the pan. Carefully pick up the remaining strips and swirl them around the roll in the pan. (The roll won’t fill the whole pan but it will after proofing and baking! Cover the pan with your damp cloth, and let the dough rise in a warm spot for 30-45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Bake in a 350F oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 5-8 minutes and then top with cream cheese frosting.
Gooey Cinnamon Roll Cake
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/4 cup butter
- 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 (.25 ounce) package instant yeast
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 egg
For the filling:
- 1 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup butter (1/2 a stick)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or extract if you don't have)
For the icing:
- 1/2 a stick of butter (4 tablespoons)
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste)
- a few drops of milk (if needed)
Instructions
In a glass measuring cup, warm the milk and butter in the microwave until warm with the butter melted.
Whisk together 2 1/4 cups of flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Add the milk mixture, egg and water, and mix until combined. (Dough will be very sticky.) Add the remaining cup of flour gradually, folding it in with a spatula (or gently kneading with your hands.)
When the dough comes together in a soft ball, knead on a lightly-floured surface until smooth and elastic. (When pressed with a finger tip the dough should bounce back.)
Return the dough to your bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Let rest for 10 minutes.
For the filling:
Melt the butter and stir in the vanilla. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
To assemble:
Roll the dough on a floured surface into a rectangle measuring about 9x13. Brush the dough with almost all of the butter and pour the rest into the bottom of a 9-inch pie dish (or something similar.)
Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture over the dough and gently press it in.
Using a pastry wheel, pizza cutter or knife cut the dough into 2 1/2 inch strips. Start with one strip and roll it from one end to the other forming a swirl. Set that roll onto the next strip with the seam-side down and roll the strip onto it.
Repeat for 2 more strips, at which point the roll is probably too large to continue forming this way. Gently place it in the middle of the pan. Carefully pick up the remaining strips and swirl them around the roll in the pan. (The roll won't fill the whole pan but it will after proofing and baking!
Cover the pan with your damp cloth, and proof in a warm place for 30-45 minutes or until doubled in size.
Bake in a 350F oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
For the icing:
Cream the butter and powdered sugar until smooth. Add the vanilla and some milk if icing is too thick. Beat until light and creamy.
Spread on cake and serve immediately. (They are great room temp as well, I just don't think it will last that long. :)
I really like this recipe and have never seen it before, so for me it’s your original idea… I can’t wait to try it!
Seriously amazing! I definitely need a slice.
I am definitely making this for mother’s day…wow!
This is perfect! We can never resist a gooey cinnamon anything!
I was wondering how you would assemble this– cutting into strips! What a great idea. I am going to share this with my dad who loves cinnamon rolls!
I seriously wish I was hosting Mother’s Day brunch now, I need an excuse to make this!
My dreams just came true!
I want this for breakfast EVERY morning, Audra.
I am not embarrassed to admit that I want to make and eat this entire thing all by myself. ;) But seriously — YUM.
Definitely looks amazing! Funny how this happens to all of us though. So much creativity it’s hard to find something that no one has yet thought of.
This cake is my freaking DREAM!!!
I don’t think I could love something more! This is seriously my dream breakfast, would it be wrong if I ate it all by myself?! The cinnamon gooeyness seriously has me wiping drool from the corners of my mouth! Pinned.
This looks delicious. I mean what’s better than cinnamon rolls…a giant cinnamon roll. :)
The inner gooey part looks delicious!! This looks like a perfect single size cinnamon roll!
What I great idea! I haven’t seen this before either. Who can resist a large cinnamon roll that tastes like the inner gooey center?
Oh my goodness, I would not be able to control myself around this! Cinnamon rolls are just the best. Yum!
Oh, my. This looks amazing. I think that would be dangerous to have around because I’d want to eat the entire thing!
Oh heavens, this looks amazing. It’s so hard to be original these days. I blame it on the Interweb. Either way, I love this! Pinned.
Made this tonight and loved it! I cut the recipe in half and it still pretty much filled a 9 inch pie plate. Truly delicious! And relatively easy to make as far as homemade baked goods go. Thanks!
I’ve definitely thought I had come up with some genius idea only to discover it’s been done before. Even if others have done this, your version looks beyond amazing. I’d want to eat the whole thing!
Pshhh as far as I’m concerned you invented it because it is THE BEST of any giant cinnamon roll “cake” I’ve ever seen! Totally drooling over here!
Hahahah, I really had to lough ;) Your story sounds soooo familiar! Sometimes I am afraid that I spend too much time to think/create new and creative recipes to share on my blog, but in the end forget to just make something that is delicious and what I actually really want to eat myself :P And I also more than once thought I had finally found something super creative, just to see that it was already out there ;) Anyway, I love your giant cinnamon roll and definitely will make it!
Take care,
Rebecca
icing-sugar.net
I wanted to tell you that THIS RECIPE IS FRICKIN’ AMAZING! I made two of these yesterday…and it was such an easy recipe to follow. In the past I have steered away from rolling ANYTHING because I can never get dough to roll properly. This, however, was a piece of cake (no pun intended). It rolled out so easily and beautifully. And I LOVE the assembly of the strips! I tweaked your recipe a little to accommodate the gluten intolerance that my son has (so I used gluten free all purpose flour) and it came out absolutely amazing. Thanks for this recipe, as well as the many others that I have tried and tested on your website. KEEP ‘EM COMING!!!
Haha, that happens to me as well! Google ruins my excitement of most new found ideas. LOL
I`ve seen cinnamon roll cakes around, but have yet to try. This is making me crave for some again!
So I tried this yesterday, and it was delicious! So so good. Thank you for the recipe!
I’m 16 years old and I made it with my 14 year old sister. We have never baked anything besides brownies so this was an ambitious weekend project . We had some problems with the dough with was too sticky but OMG IT TASTES LIKE HEAVEN. I am totally in love with it and so is my family. Definitely trying it again
Hi Lynn! Next time add a bit more flour to the surface and your hands for the sticky dough :)
I made these last night. Didn’t have AP flour but used bread flour instead and accidentally put 1 cup of milk for the dough. Added more flour to compensate and they still turned out delicious. I only let it rise once in the oven with the door cracked for 3hrs. These are goey and the texture fluffy and a bit chewy. Will make these again for sure!
I’m so glad you liked it!
Was wondering if this could work as a make ahead recipe? Either for fridge or freezer. Looks amazing.
Yes I think you could make it and then cover with plastic wrap and proof it before baking.
Did you use a regular 9inch cake pan or would a spring form pan work better? just curious.
I actually used a 9 inch pie dish for this but either a spring form or cake pan would work great!
Is this something I could make, leave over night and Bake in the morning?
I would say yes! Don’t to the final proof- just form the roll and then cover and chill. Let it proof room temperature before baking.
Hi there :) i made this cake yesterday and it was absolutely amazing!!
just wondering why it was not as gooey as yours.. there was none of that gooeyness goodness at the bottom and in between the rolls.. what would you recommend for next time in order to get that?
The only things I can think of is that 1- you baked it a little too long or 2- some of the butter/cinnamon sugar mixture got got smooshed out. Make sure you spoon it back into the middle before baking :)
Hi! I was just curious to see of this can be prepared at night then baked in the morning? Or will it rise too much by then?
Wow! It really is gooey!! Have just finished baking it and icing it and waited about 5 minutes before I sneakily took off a piece from the outside, to hell with slicing it! So gooey and soft that the centre seemed to sink under the weight of gooeyness (not sure if that’s a word) and it tasted delicious. The recipe itself worked well, though I did have to add a little bit more flour as it was too sticky. The assembly was quite messy as it was a little difficult to roll out the strips, whilst keeping the filling inside. Whilst not aesthetically beautiful, the taste certainly made up for it!
Hi!! i was wondering if i bake this like some days in advance can i freeze or refrigerate it and then let it thaw the day im supposed to eat it? or will it be too dry? what about the icing?’ TIA!
I made this for the first time a for easter this year, and its been requested many times since! I love this recipe because its wasy and im not in the kitchen all day! Thank you for providing this! I hope to try many more of your recipes!
This looks amazing. Can’t wait to try it. Your baking always looks like perfection.
This tasted really, really good! Even seemed to turn out well with me misreading directions a couple of times. The only thing is I baked mine about 22 min after losing track of time. It looked perfect but it was a little too gooey for me as I got about halfway toward the center after letting it cool for 15-20 min. I probably could’ve bake it at least 5-10 minlonger and lightly covered it with foil since it was perfectly golden brown after 20 min. Any other suggestions? Will definitely try this again. Thanks!
Hi!
How can I prevent the middle collapsing?
It probably needs to bake a little longer