Tender, Rich Cinnamon Roll Pound Cake drenched in Cinnamon Swirl Icing. Easy to make, addicting to eat and perfect for your morning cup of coffee!
When I was in junior high I took my first cooking class. Okay, maybe not a “cooking class” but it was home economics. We learned three recipes that I can actually remember to this day, homemade lasagna with fresh noodles, marshmallow butter biscuits where you take premade biscuits and wrap them around marshmallows and bake them with butter, cinnamon and sugar and a microwave cinnamon cake.
Of the three recipes, the lasagna was a FANTASTIC recipe and my mom even references it fondly to this day, but the marshmallow bake and the microwave cinnamon cake were… adorable when you’re the mom but a fail if you weren’t related to me. The one cool memory was coming home and making that microwave cinnamon cake for my mom. I was so excited for her to see it and she was kind about not telling me how bad it really was.
As a kid I had a lot of errors in the kitchen (not understanding the difference between baking soda and baking powder and ending up with a cake pancake instead of a pound cake) but that cinnamon cake was a flavor memory that stayed with me. As I got older I experimented with better, non microwave (shocking, I know!) recipes until I found a bunch of favorites. This pound cake is popular with friends during the holidays. I would order mini ceramic loaf pans and wrap them with cellophane wrap and attach a tiny recipe card to them.
Easy to make, impressive to serve and always a huge hit! This pound cake is one of my favorites (my absolute favorite is a Brown Sugar Pound Cake, which is coming soon 😉 ) and is one of my favorite dessert flavors, cinnamon as evidenced by my previous cinnamon roll desserts (Cinnamon Roll Cookies, Cinnamon Roll Coffee Cake, Cinnamon Roll Pancakes and Cinnamon Sugar Crispy Sopapilla Tortillas).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9×5 loaf pan with baking spray. In a stand mixer beat the sugar (not including the ¼ cup) and butter together for 2-3 minutes or until noticeably lighter in color and fluffy. Add in the eggs, yogurt, milk and vanilla and mix until well combined. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
Using the last ¼ cup of sugar, add the 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to it. 
Add in half of the batter, then half the cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top. 
Add another half of what you have left (so a quarter of all the batter you started with) and sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon sugar over that layer. 
Add the rest of the batter. Bake for 60 minutes or until your tester comes out clean. 
Cool cake completely before adding the icing. Mix the powdered sugar and milk (just enough to have a thick but pourable consistency, like honey.) Please note, my hubby likes his the consistency of syrup, so I added an extra 2 tablespoons of milk.
To have it like honey, stick to the amount in the recipe. Reserve ¼ cup of it and add the ½ teaspoon of cinnamon to it. Pour the regular icing over the cake. Add the cinnamon frosting to a small ziploc bag. Cut a tiny bit off the edge and pipe a zig-zag line on the top of the cake.
You can be as messy with this as you want!
I mean… c’mon. Turn that down, I dare you! Or if you want to be more demure about your icing…. (this is from a second loaf I made with thicker icing <– made as written in the recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 stick butter , softened
- 1 1/2 cups, plus ¼ cup sugar , divided
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons milk
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9x5 loaf pan with baking spray.
- In a stand mixer beat the sugar (not including the ¼ cup) and butter together for 2-3 minutes or until noticeably lighter in color and fluffy.
- Add in the eggs, yogurt, milk and vanilla and mix until well combined.
- Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Using the last ¼ cup of sugar, add the 2 teaspoons of cinnamon to it.
- Add in half of the batter, then half the cinnamon sugar sprinkled on top.
- Add another half of what you have left (so a quarter of all the batter you started with) and sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon sugar over that layer.
- Add the rest of the batter.
- Bake for 60 minutes or until your tester comes out clean.
- Cool cake completely before adding the icing.
- Mix the powdered sugar and milk (just enough to have a thick but pourable consistency, like honey.
- Reserve ¼ cup of it and add the ½ teaspoon of cinnamon to it.
- Pour the regular icing over the cake.
- Add the cinnamon frosting to a small ziploc bag.
- Cut a tiny bit off the edge and pipe a zig zag line on the top of the cake.
Nutrition
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The batter measurements are waaaaay off. Definitely use less than half the batter for the first layer, otherwise you’ll completely run out of batter!
Divide the sugar? Please be more specific with your directions. I am in the middle of making this and am really unsure as to the sugar in the cake and the sugar for the cinnamon swirl. Hope it comes out okay.
So sorry about your question. It was stuck in my spam filter. The ingredient list shows that the first divided portion is 1 1/2 cups (step 2) and then other is 1/4 cup (step 5). I really hope it all worked out for you.
Can I use all purpose flour o should it be self rising?
The recipe uses all purpose flour.
Just made this and it seemed a bit dry. Should it be slightly underbaked? In order to get the knife to come out clean I added about 7 minutes more. Wondering if buttermilk might have made it more moist??
I’ve not tested it using buttermilk so it might have.
Bad, bad directions. Following the steps it say mix all dry ingredients together, so I do. Then in another step it say “Use the 2 tsp of cinnamon” and mix with the 1/4 c. sugar. WELL I had already mixed the cinnamon into the DRY ingredients in the previous step!!??
So sorry for the confusion! I usually separate them out better but must not have had enough coffee when I made this recipe card. 🙁 Hope it still turned out okay and if not, you give it another try.
Just wondering if you have ever baked in an actual pound cake pan or bundt pan? How did it turn out?
I haven’t made it that way but it would totally work. I would recommend doubling the recipe and then it’ll need to bake 45-50 minutes. I’d love to know what you think after trying it.
What could I substitute for greek yogurt?? It looks amazing
Thank you so much! You could substitute with either buttermilk or sour cream.
Thisvis a terrible recipe. Flavor is ok, little to no rise, not attractive. It gave 5 stars when i intended to leave one
Hi Wayne, this is a staple recipe for me and I’ve made it dozens of times. Would be happy to help you troubleshoot if you would like, I am not sure why your cake didn’t rise. sabrina @ dinnerthendessert.com
I am starting to love your blog, Sabrina because your recipes that I’ve seen so far look so good. This cake looks so good and anything with cinnamon is welcome in my house. I have to try this recipe.
I’m so glad Neeli! I think you should come back every day! 😉
That looks soooo good! Please, please invite me over.
Anytime 😉
I so am going to try making this for my family – yum! I bet it tastes great hot out of the oven!
YES! So good, we eat it warm with the glaze on it.
I am going to add this to my bake list for this Sunday. My kids and i always do all of our baking for the week on Sundays.
Wonderful! I hope you all love it!
This looks so delicious. I love trying new recipes. I am going to make this tomorrow for dessert.
Awesome! I hope you love it!
Whoa1 This looks amazing. The perfect weekend breakfast.
Thanks 🙂
Hey, I wish I had learned recipes in school! It sounds like you’ve really perfected this over the years. It sounds so good.
It has definitely come a long way!
Okay, ultimate is a great word for this, as it looks and sounds AMAZING. I totally need to make this. The only issue is actually sharing it. LOL
It is hard to share, I agree 🙂
I really love cinnamon so much! I think this cake would go amazing with some iced cold milk too!
Oh yes, but I need my gigantic cup of coffee with it 🙂
I love cinnamon and have been craving a cinnamon roll for quite some time. This would go perfect for coffee.
So delicious and pretty too!
Thanks!
I am such a sucker for cinnamon breads or desserts! And this cinnamon pound cake looks absolutely amazing! I’ve never had a pound cake with cinnamon in it! I want to try this recipe!
Thanks so much Amber!
Two of my favorite things–pound cake and cinnamon rolls–packed up in one delicious package! Genius! (and I’m a fan of thicker glaze because it sets up thicker. Life is too short for thin glaze. Tell your husband for me)! lol
Haha! Will do! I am a fan of the thicker glaze too! More portable!
This looks absolutely delicious! It would be worth falling off the diet wagon just o try a piece!
One small bite won’t hurt 😉
Considering I just posted Cinnamon Roll Pancakes on my blog this week – we must be thinking alike! Love all the frosting:)
I looked at your post for the pancakes! Looks delicious!
THE ULTIMATE brunch treat!!
That glaze tho! Makes me want to lick the screen. Or at leat get in the kitchen and make a loaf of my own ASAP 😀
Haha yup 🙂
I am drooling looking at your recipe!!! This cinnamon roll pound cake looks to-die for!
Thanks Cathy!
That looks AMAZING! I love to eat baked goods, but I’m not a great baker. But… I think I could give this one a try!
Thanks Sunny! This recipe is super easy, so I think you should totally give it a try!
OMG those sound amazing! I would lick all the icing off first.
I like your style Robin!
It’s just about coffee time for me and I wish I have this to munch on as well. This cinnamon roll pound cake totally screams deliciousness! Yum!
Thanks! I had some with my coffee this morning…and it was goooood.