Cinnamon Roll Cake

This Cinnamon Roll Cake Recipe skips the yeast and rising time for a fast, straightforward bake. Finish it with a quick cream cheese glaze and serve warm.

author’s note

The Shortcut That Changed Cinnamon Rolls for Me!

Cinnamon rolls are an iconic dessert, but they can be time-consuming. Waiting for the dough to rise twice, plus making the dough, filling, and glaze—it’s a lot.

While I spent months perfecting my straightforward Cinnamon Roll Recipe (with no kneading, no mixer, and the quickest dough prep possible), it still takes a fair amount of time to get from start to cinnamon rolls on the table.

That’s why this Cinnamon Roll Cake recipe is the best:

• It’s fun! This cake is a blast to assemble and even more fun to eat (obviously!).
• All the flavors you love from cinnamon rolls.
• No kneading, no rising, no mixer needed. You don’t even make the dough, thanks to a shortcut ingredient!
• This cake can be on the table in about 30 minutes. Seriously! The prep and bake time are both quick.

The “Short-Cut”

So how do we finish this cake so quickly? With refrigerated buttermilk biscuits!

The biscuits are the reliable substitute for cinnamon roll dough, and no one will know you used a store-bought shortcut because this cake is just that good!

You can grab a 4-pack of buttermilk biscuits to make either one large cinnamon roll cake or a couple of smaller ones. If there are leftovers, I use them for a breakfast favorite; Biscuits and Gravy!

Featured Comment

“Holy Cow!! This was satisfying!!!! My family rated it a 20+ out of 10! Fantastic…and so straightforward. I don’t have a skillet, so just used an 8″ cake pan, and it worked evenly. THANK YOU for the awesome recipe!”

– Kara

How To Make This Cinnamon Roll Cake Recipe

1. Flatten each biscuit as thin as possible using a rolling pin or your hands.
2. Dip the biscuit in melted butter, then in cinnamon-sugar.
3. Roll coated biscuit tightly into a cylinder and place it on the outer edge of skillet.
4. Continue placing the biscuits in a spiral, seam side down, until they reach the center.
5. While the cinnamon roll cake bakes, whip up the glaze to spread over the cake!

Cinnamon Roll Cake Recipe Pan To Use

This recipe is very forgiving. As long as you have plenty of butter, sugar, cinnamon, and biscuits, you can make the cake as big or small as you like.

I often make this cake in a small 6 to 8-inch cast iron skillet, but if I’m feeding others or feeling extra hungry, I use a 9-inch pie pan.

The bigger the pan, the longer the preparation takes, but you’ll be impressed by how quickly it comes together once the assembly line is set up.

chelsea’s recipe tip

My Biggest Tip: Set Up an Assembly Line

This recipe moves really quickly if you set everything out before you start.

You can have:

Flattened biscuits → melted butter → cinnamon sugar → prepared pan

Then you can just dip, coat, roll, place, repeat.

It also keeps things a whole lot less messy than trying to flatten biscuits with cinnamon-sugary hands!

Storage

This cinnamon roll cake recipe is best enjoyed the same day it’s made, especially while warm. Like most from-scratch cinnamon rolls, this is particularly true with this cake because we’re using biscuits. The biscuits will harden and lose flavor the longer the cake sits out.

More Cinnamon Roll Favorites:

Desserts

Cinnamon Roll Cookie Recipe

Desserts

Cinnamon Roll Cheesecakes

Breakfast

Cinnamon Roll Monkey Bread

Ingredients

• 2 7.5-ounce packages buttermilk biscuits see note 1
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 2 ounces cream cheese softened (see note 1)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk I use whole milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Method

1. Prepare Pan: Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a pie pan, cake pan, or skillet with cooking spray.
2. Flatten Biscuits: Remove biscuits from packaging. Flatten each with a rolling pin or your hands.
3. Coat Biscuits: Dip each biscuit in melted butter, shake off excess, then coat in cinnamon sugar. Shake off excess again (see Note 2).
4. Assemble Cake: Roll biscuits tightly and arrange in a spiral pattern in the prepared pan, starting at the outside edge and working inward.
5. Bake: Bake for 20–25 minutes, adjusting for pan size. If edges brown too quickly, tent with foil.
6. Make Glaze: Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and salt. Beat until light and fluffy.
7. Glaze Cake: Let cake cool 5–7 minutes. Spoon glaze over warm cake, letting it drip into crevices. Add more glaze once cooled slightly, if desired. Slice and serve warm.