Cinnamon Roll Pound Cake
Cinnamon Roll Pound Cake is a moist and dense cake with swirls of cinnamon sugar and finished with a classic homemade cream cheese frosting.
A Simple Dessert Recipe
I can’t get over how good this Cinnamon Roll Pound Cake is! We’re jazzing up a boxed cake mix (to make it taste more like a pound cake and less like a light and fluffy cake) and swirling in some delicious cinnamon brown sugar and topping it off with that classic cinnamon roll cream cheese frosting. It’s a classic flavor that everyone knows and loves!
Frequently Asked Questions:
While this isn’t a common problem for me, I have found that using Baker’s Joy or Pam for Baking (paid affiliate link) and spraying liberally helps when I may have this issue with other pans. I have never buttered and floured a pan. It is time consuming and isn’t always consistent. Spraying very well with a cooking spray with flour in it works for me everytime and has done for over 30 years.
If you don’t want the frosting, you can just dust with powdered sugar, but, this is supposed to mimic a cinnamon roll, hence the frosting. You can make it with a plain buttercream frosting and just leave out the cream cheese. If doing this, you might have to adjust the powdered sugar/milk ratio.
You could use a clean butter knife to swirl the filling into the batter.
Make sure your cream cheese is properly softened before making the frosting or you’ll end up with little chunks of cream cheese left in the frosting.
This cake can be kept covered in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
Ingredients Needed: (See Recipe Card Below For The Full Recipe)
- yellow cake mix– It’s worth noting that different brands make different sizes of cake mix these days. I tend to stick with Duncan Hines or Pillsbury these days as they’re still offering 15.25 ounces of cake mix (as of writing this), while others like Betty Crocker have decreased down to 13.25 ounces. French Vanilla Cake mix would be another great option. As always, using Homemade Yellow Cake Mix is also a good alternative.
- all-purpose flour – we’re adding extra flour to thicken this cake up a bit since boxed cake mixes have gotten smaller over the years and they don’t fill out a bundt pan like they used to and I want this to have more denseness like a pound cake.
- instant vanilla pudding – you’re just using the dry pudding mix in the box. You aren’t adding anything to it to make the actual pudding.
- granulated white sugar
- unsalted butter – you can use salted butter if that is all you have but the cake and buttermilk already will add saltiness to this so I will leave that up to your best judgement on whether you think that will work for you and your tastes.
- buttermilk – this is really going to add so much moistness to this cake. Don’t skip it!
- sour cream– just know that you don’t taste this as an ingredient in the recipe. We only add it for moistness. You won’t even know it’s in there.
- eggs– room temperature as they tend to mix easier that way
- vanilla bean paste– or you can just use vanilla extract if you don’t have paste.
- dark brown sugar – you can use light brown sugar if that is all you have.
- ground cinnamon
- cream cheese– softened to room temperature. I have Tips to Soften Cream Cheese Fast if you didn’t let it soften early enough.
- powdered sugar
- heavy whipping cream – for the best flavor and texture, use heavy whipping cream or half and half.
How To Make Cinnamon Roll Pound Cake
Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Prepare a 10-cup bundt pan by spraying it with non-stick cooking spray really well, getting into all the nooks and crannies (I prefer the kind that has flour in it). Set aside. Add the cake mix, instant pudding mix, flour, sugar, 1 cup melted butter, buttermilk, sour cream, eggs and vanilla bean paste to a large bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined and smooth. Set aside. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon and the remaining ½ cup of melted butter to a medium bowl. Stir until combined.
Add approximately half of the cake batter to the bundt pan. Add approximately half of the cinnamon filling and use a knife to gently swirl the filling into the batter. Add the remaining batter over the top, followed by the remaining cinnamon filling. Gently swirl the filling into the batter again.
Bake on the middle rack for approximately one hour or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs. Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for 15-20 minutes before flipping it onto a cake plate. Then allow it to cool completely before frosting.
To create the cream cheese frosting, add the softened cream cheese, vanilla bean paste and powdered sugar to a mixing bowl. Mix on low/medium until combined. Add the heavy cream and mix again until combined and smooth. Drizzle the frosting over the cake. Slice and serve!
Craving More Recipes?
Cinnamon Roll Pound Cake
Ingredients
Ingredients for the cake:
- 15.25 ounce box yellow cake mix
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, melted (yes, that is the correct amount, divided use)
- 1 cup buttermilk
- ½ cup sour cream
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed (can use light brown sugar)
- 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
Ingredients for the frosting:
- 8 ounce block cream cheese, softened to room temperature (see notes below)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
- Prepare a 10-cup bundt pan by spraying it with non-stick cooking spray really well, getting into all the nooks and crannies (I prefer the kind that has flour in it). Set aside.
- Add the 15.25 ounce box yellow cake mix, 1 cup all-purpose flour, 3.4 ounce box instant vanilla pudding, 1 cup granulated white sugar, 1 cup melted butter, 1 cup buttermilk, ½ cup sour cream, 4 large eggs, room temperature and 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste to a large bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined and smooth. Set aside.
- Add the 1 cup dark brown sugar, packed, 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon and the remaining ½ cup of melted butter to a medium bowl. Stir until combined.
- Add approximately half of the cake batter to the bundt pan.
- Add approximately half of the cinnamon filling and use a knife to gently swirl the filling into the batter.
- Add the remaining batter over the top, followed by the remaining cinnamon filling. Gently swirl the filling into the batter again.
- Bake on the middle rack for approximately one hour or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out with just a few moist crumbs.NOTE: Oven times can vary. Please go by cake doneness, not just by time.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for 15-20 minutes before flipping it onto a cake plate. Then allow it to cool completely before frosting.
- To create the cream cheese frosting, add the 8 ounce block cream cheese, softened to room temperature, 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste and 2 cups powdered sugar to a mixing bowl. Mix on low/medium until combined.
- Add the ¼ cup heavy whipping cream and mix again until combined and smooth.NOTE: If you would like the frosting thinner, add more heavy cream. If you want it thicker, add more powdered sugar.
- Drizzle the frosting over the cake. Slice and serve!
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- If your cream cheese is not fully softened to room temperature, it will be lumpy.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
OMG! This was so delicious and definitely make it again.
Thanks so very much Brita! I appreciate you taking the time to come back and comment!
Love it! Added to my favorites list.
Thank you for your recipes. I can’t wait to make this one.
Could I add nuts to the cinnamon sugar