Cinnamon Roll Cake

Is it just me, or are the holidays flying by even faster than in years past? I thought that, surely, with Thanksgiving so early this year, I’d be able to just cruise through given that extra week of time.  No, not the case;  I’m as frantic and frazzled as ever, but perhaps a lot of that has to do with the continuing care I’ve been giving my mom, the support I’ve been giving my dad, and taking on twice as many tasks as usual.  But I digress.  Thank goodness for two able-bodied sons!  Number two son came by last week with some wreaths – a story in itself that I soon hope to be able to tell you – this week, number one son came by and helped me begin decorating (yes, I’m embarrassed to admit that I’ve only just begun).  I provided him with dinner and asked what he’d like to have.  Bless him, he wanted something simple, and chose the Slow Cooked Spicy Kielbasa.  When offered a choice of desserts between the tried and true Chocolate Stout Cake and a new recipe for Cinnamon Roll Cake, he chose the latter.  Always up for a challenge, I was happy to comply.  The cake, surely meant for the breakfast or brunch table, was quite tasty and really did have the taste and near texture of a cinnamon roll.

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Ingredients:

3 cups flour

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup granulated sugar

4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 cup whole milk

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

4 Tb. butter, melted

2 sticks (1 cup) butter, room temperature

Filling:

1 cup dark brown sugar

2 T. flour

2 T. cinnamon

1/3 cup finely chopped pecans

Glaze:

2 cups powdered sugar

5 T. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

  

Preheat oven to 350°F.

With an electric handheld or stand mixer, mix flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, milk, eggs, and vanilla. Once combined, slowly blend in 4 T. melted butter. Pour batter into a greased 9"x9” baking pan.

In a large bowl blend the 2 sticks of softened butter, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nuts until well combined. Drop evenly over cake batter by the tablespoon and use a knife to marble/swirl through the cake. Bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick comes out nearly clean from center. Place powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla in a large bowl. Whisk until smooth. Drizzle over warm cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This post is linked to:

On the Menu Monday

Totally Tasty Tuesdays

Try a New Recipe Tuesday

Wow Us Wednesday

Foodie Friday

Sweets for a Saturday
Sugar and Spice

CINNABON Bakery Mix Product Review

I love to wander through Sam's during the holiday season. I love the piles of bright red poinsettias, the potted Norfolk Pines sprinkled with pixie dust, the aisles of festive wrap, ribbon, boxes, and cards, the reindeer, the scary over-sized decorations, and the aisle of prepackaged baskets full of artfully displayed name-brand over-priced goodies. Ahhhh, the holidays. It was during one of my jaunts that a particular product gave me pause. I'd rounded a corner and there it was, a mountainous stack of boxes of Cinnabon baking mix. I could almost smell the heady aroma of hot cinnamon and glaze. I hesitated grabbed at it and put it in the cart, shoving fruit and vegetables out of the way to make room for this star. I could hardly wait to get my treasure home. 

The box, a 2-pack, says it makes either 16 scones, 36 muffins, 2 coffee cakes, or 2 bread loaves. I decided to make scones because I just love that wedge shape and it called for a full cup of cream, so they just had to be authentic. Having only recently priced (Yikes!) and purchased cream, I thought these had better be good.



The process is simple thanks to four packages of ingredients for each pack.   

I gathered my utensils and followed the instructions. 



 I dumped the packet of backing mix into a large bowl, shook in some raisins, and added the egg and cream. I stirred the ingredients together until just mixed.

The top was sprinkled with the packet of cinnamon swirl mix.



Seven stirs incorporated the cinnamon quite well.

I formed an 8" round (with floured hands, this was not mentioned on the box but should have been).

  

 The round was cut into 8 wedges (again flour is needed here, on the knife)

     

The scored round is then topped with the streusel mix.

 

Into the oven for 35 minutes, it came out looking like this. I can't begin to describe how fabulous the house smelled while the baking was going on. It smelled so good I wanted to swoon; I think Heaven must smell like this.

I slid it from the baking sheet onto a rack to cool. Once slightly cooled, the final step is to drizzle with glaze. Is this beautiful, or what? Aren't you dying for a bite?

 

Obviously I was. My husband, who was eating his lunch of a hot dog, was poised over my scone, fork in hand waiting to try it.

DELICIOUS! This is a great product, two thumbs way up.

One caveat. This does not have the denseness of an English scone. (My husband's observation, he the maker of classic English scones.) This is true, this version (and those you find at St. Louis Bread Co/Panera) all have a texture that more closely resembles a coffee cake. But I say...who cares? It's wonderful. And I have another set of ingredients left!

RECOMMENDED!