Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

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A square of cinnamon swirl coffee cake

Father’s Day is coming up soon and this cinnamon swirl coffee cake is my stepdad’s absolute favorite. It’s literally a cinnamon roll in cake form, with cinnamon sugar swirled in moist vanilla cake topped with a sweet glaze. 

As an added bonus, this recipe uses a little shortcut- a box of white cake mix. With just a little doctoring up, it turns into a light and super moist cake, which is important because who likes a dry cake? Nobody.

A photo of the ingredients for the cake component of cinnamon swirl coffee cake.
Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake Ingredients

If you are a cinnamon roll lover, I strongly suggest you give this coffee cake a try. Read on for the recipe!

A slice of cinnamon swirl coffee cake on a white plate.

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

When you're craving cinnamon rolls but don't want to go through the work of making them, whip up this cinnamon swirl coffee cake instead. Cinnamon sugar swirled through moist vanilla cake is topped by a simple glaze that perfectly captures that cinnamon roll essence... but in coffee cake form. As an added bonus, this recipe includes a major shortcut that will save you time- starting with a boxed cake mix.
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: "Cheater" Recipes, Cake Mix Recipes, Coffee Cakes
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 32 minutes
Total Time: 52 minutes
Servings: 12
Author: Camy

Equipment (Shop on Amazon)

Ingredients

Vanilla Cake

  • 1 Betty Crocker white cake mix (14.25 oz)
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • ¾ cup avocado or other neutral vegetable oil
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract (shop my favorite on Amazon)

Cinnamon Sugar Swirl

  • cup brown sugar (light or dark- whichever you prefer)
  • tsp ground cinnamon

Glaze

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • approx. 2 tbsp water (or milk)

Instructions

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

  •  Preheat your oven to 325°F.
  • Using a hand mixer, combine all the vanilla cake ingredients in a medium mixing bowl until well combined.
    1 Betty Crocker white cake mix, 4 eggs, 1 cup sour cream, ¾ cup avocado or other neutral vegetable oil, 1 tbsp vanilla extract
    A mixing bowl containing the vanilla cake batter with the hand mixer.
  • Pour approximately ⅔ of the cake batter into a sprayed 9 x 13 pan. Set the remaining ⅓ aside.
  • Mix the brown sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl.
    ⅓ cup brown sugar, 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
    Mixing up the cinnamon sugar.
  • Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the cake batter in an even layer. Then pour the remaining ⅓ of the cake batter over the cinnamon sugar layer.
    Drizzling Cake Batter on Top of the Cinnamon Sugar
  • Lightly swirl the cinnamon sugar into the cake batter using a knife or kitchen skewer.
    Swirled and Ready for the Oven!
  • Bake the cake for 33-35 minutes at 325°F, until the top of the cake is golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the cake. Prep your simple glaze while the cake is baking.

Simple Glaze

  • In a small bowl, mix all the glaze ingredients until the mixture reaches a smooth consistency with no lumps.
    1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tbsp maple syrup, approx. 2 tbsp water (or milk)
  • Pour the glaze over the cake while it is still warm from the oven. Let the cake cool for an additional 15 minutes or so. Then enjoy!
    Freshly Glazed Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

Have you tried this cinnamon swirl coffee cake?

If you have, leave a rating down below to let me know how you like it. If you’re looking for another yummy cake to bake, check out my very favorite double chocolate zucchini cake or this pumpkin vanilla swirl cake.

Pin the image below to come back to this cake mix recipe later!

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake Recipe (Pin for Pinterest)

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Camy

Welcome to Happy To Be Here Blog! Here you’ll find lots of recipes, gift guides, lifestyle content, glimpses into my life in the Northwoods, and so much more.

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