Cinnamon Roll Cake

I’m so easily tempted by cake. The combination of tender, sweet crumb and rich frosting on top is always decadent and usually a sign of a celebration. The new book Layered: Baking, Building, and Styling Spectacular Cakes by Tessa Huff has you covered for every type of cake you could want to bake, and I received a review copy. These are all very pretty, polished cakes, and there are instructions for achieving each type of finishing touch shown throughout the book. But, don’t be intimidated by the professional look of these cakes. There are photos and instructions for piping, swirling, and smoothing frosting. There are also options for applying frosting and decorations in different ways, and you’re encouraged to mix and match flavors and toppings however you wish. Many of the cakes are constructed from six-inch layers, but there are some eight-inch cakes as well. They’re organized by category like Classic Cakes, Chocolate Cakes, Casual Cakes, Whimsical Cakes, Adventurous Cakes, and Holiday Cakes. The instructions give you a sense of ease about bringing these lovely creations to life, and you can always simplify the presentation or reduce components. There are several I wanted to bake right away like the Cookies and Cream Cake with chocolate layers and white chocolate-cream cheese frosting with crushed chocolate sandwich cookies, the Lemony Zucchini Cake with goat cheese frosting between layers and a lemon glaze drizzled on top, and the Oatmeal Cookie Cake with oatmeal cookie dough frosting as a filling. Some of the more intricate cakes include a Strawberry Confetti Cake with both strawberry and vanilla layers, strawberry cream, confetti buttercream, and homemade sprinkles; a Raspberry Stout Cake with raspberry cheesecake filling and raspberry chocolate bark on top; and a Pumpkin Vanilla Chai Cake with pumpkin ganache, pumpkin chai buttercream, and homemade spiced marshmallows on top. I want to try all of the techniques used, and I really want to taste all of these cakes. First, I chose something a little simpler. The Cinnamon Roll Cake sounded like a sweet tooth’s dream, and there was no need for a piping bag to frost this one. 

This cake was made from two eight-inch layers, and the cake batter was made with sour cream, milk, butter, cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and eggs plus an egg yolk. I sensed this was going to be a delicious cake with all that richness baked into it. In addition to the cake batter, a mixture of melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon was prepared for swirling into the layers. One quarter of the cake batter was added to each prepared pan, one quarter of the cinnamon mixture was drizzled over each, a skewer was used to swirl the cinnamon mixture into the batter, the remaining batter was added to each pan, the remaining cinnamon mixture was drizzled over each, and the swirling was repeated. While the layers baked, a cinnamon crumble was made with flour, brown sugar, butter, honey, and cinnamon. Clumps of crumble were baked until set and golden. Next, frosting was made with cream cheese, butter, confectioners’ sugar, milk, and vanilla. There was to be a fourth component of cinnamon syrup to drizzle on top of the assembled cake, but my sweet tooth hit a wall at that point. The cake was already going to be so delicious I decided to skip the syrup topping. So, in my case, assembly involved placing the bottom layer on a platter, topping with cream cheese frosting, scattering the baked cinnamon crumble over that layer, adding the second cake layer, and topping with more cream cheese frosting. 

I have to tell you, even without the cinnamon butter swirl that went into each layer, these would have been the tastiest vanilla cakes I’ve ever made. That cinnamon swirl made them perfect for a cinnamon roll cake. I already mentioned my sweet tooth surrendered before I got to the cinnamon syrup step for finishing, but I also wondered about the cinnamon crumble to be added between layers. I’m glad I went for it with the crumble because it added crunchy cinnamony-ness to the middle of the cake. And, cream cheese frosting is never anything but great. This was deliriously decadent, and now I can’t wait to try more cakes from this book. 

Cinnamon Roll Cake 
Recipe reprinted with publisher's permission from Layered: Baking, Building, and Styling Spectacular Cakes.

MAKES ONE TWO-LAYER 8-INCH (20-CM) CAKE; SERVES 10 TO 12 
My husband, Brett, and his siblingswere often treated to cinnamon rolls on the weekends. Brett is the youngest child by many years and always got to select which roll he wanted first. Being the big sweet tooth that he is, he remembers always picking the one from the middle of the pan—the one with the most frosting. Clever kid! I developed this cake with him and the roll in the middle of the pan in mind. The cream cheese in this Cinnamon Roll Cake makes it extra rich and velvety, while the ribbons of cinnamon throughout give it a punch of flavor. Serve it as a special weekend breakfast treat or to celebrate with any cinnamon roll enthusiast. 

Cinnamon Swirl Cake: 
Butter or nonstick cooking spray, for the pans 
2 1⁄4 cups (295 g) cake flour, plus more for the pans 
2 teaspoons baking powder 
1⁄2 teaspoon salt 
1⁄4 cup (60 ml) sour cream 
1⁄2 cup (120 ml) whole milk 
1 cup (2 sticks / 225 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature 
4 ounces (115 g) cream cheese, softened 
1 1⁄2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar 
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste 
3 large eggs 
1 large egg yolk 
4 tablespoons (1⁄2 stick / 55 g) butter, melted 
1⁄4 cup (55 g) firmly packed brown sugar 
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 

Cinnamon Crumble: 
1/2 cup (65 g) all-purpose flour 
1/3 cup (75 g) firmly packed brown sugar 
4 tablespoons (1⁄2 stick / 55 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature 
1 tablespoon honey 
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 

Cream Cheese Frosting: 
8 ounces (225 g) cream cheese, softened 
3⁄4 cup (1 1⁄2 sticks / 170 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature 
3 cups (375 g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted 
2 tablespoons whole milk 
1 1⁄2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste 

Cinnamon Syrup: 
1⁄2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar 
1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1⁄8 teaspoon salt 
1 tablespoon unsalted butter 
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour 

Make the CINNAMON SWIRL CAKE: 
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 8-inch (20-cm) cake pans and set aside. 
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside. 
3. Stir together the sour cream and milk and set aside. 
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and mix on medium-high until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl. 
5. Turn the mixer to medium-low and add the vanilla, then add the eggs and egg yolk one at a time. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl. 
6. Turn the mixer to low and add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix on medium for no more than 30 seconds after the last streaks of the dry ingredients are combined. 
7. In a small bowl, mix together the melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. 
8. Pour one-quarter of the batter into each of the prepared pans. Spoon one-quarter of the cinnamon mixture on top of the batter in each pan and use a wooden skewer or the tip of a knife to gently swirl it. Divide the remaining batter between the pans. Divide the remaining cinnamon mixture between the pans and gently swirl it. Bake for 24 to 26 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Let them cool on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes before removing the cakes from their pans. Make the CINNAMON CRUMBLE: 
9. While the oven is still at 350°F (175°C), line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
10. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, butter, honey, and cinnamon with a wooden spoon until combined. The mixture should resemble little clumps of sand. Sprinkle them over the lined baking sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring halfway through, or until golden brown. Let the crumble cool before use. 

Make the CREAM CHEESE FROSTING: 
11. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on medium speed until smooth. With the mixer on low, gradually add the confectioners’ sugar, milk, and vanilla until incorporated. Turn the mixer up to medium- high and mix until the frosting is fluffy. 

Make the CINNAMON SYRUP: 
12. Just before assembling the cake, in a saucepan, place 2 tablespoons water with the sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Heat over medium-high until the sugar has completely dissolved and the mixture starts to simmer. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter until melted. Mix in the flour until combined. 
13. Let the syrup cool slightly, then use it immediately before it thickens. 

ASSEMBLE THE CAKE 
14. Once the cakes have completely cooled, level them and choose which layer will be at the bottom. Place it on a cake plate or serving dish. Spread on half of the cream cheese frosting with an offset spatula. Sprinkle it with the cinnamon crumble pieces. Drizzle half the cinnamon syrup over the top. Top with the second layer of cake and repeat with the remaining frosting. Use a spoon and a zigzag motion to drizzle the remaining cinnamon syrup across the top layer of cake, letting it drip over the edges. Discard any extra syrup. 

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Ginger Pear Crumble Slice and Ginger Crunch Slice

It’s been a month since we were on vacation. I don’t know where that month went, but in early September I was lounging by a sparkling pool with the hot, bright sun in my face, lazily reading Donna Hay magazine issue 51 to be exact. I cut several pages from that issue and I’ll be mentioning some other dishes soon, but first I have to tell you about these cookie squares. They’re from an article about classic bars, or slices, ranging from lemon to chocolate peppermint, and they all looked delicious. What you see here are the first two I tried which were the filled crumble slice and the ginger crunch slice. In the article, the crumble slice was made with a fresh rhubarb filling. Rhubarb season is long gone here in the northern hemisphere, so I used preserves instead. These weren’t just any preserves though. My friend Stephanie has started a new business called Confituras selling her amazing preserves, jams, pickles, and all manner of confitures. Everything is made with locally sourced ingredients, and if you can’t make it to the farmers’ markets or local shops where jars are sold, you can order online. Her lovely ginger pear preserves were delicious in these crumble bars.

The cookie base was made with sugar, flour, baking powder, egg and melted butter. It was pressed into a pan and baked until golden. I spread twelve ounces of ginger pear preserves over the base and then added the crumble topping made by rubbing cold butter into flour and sugar with your fingertips. It went back into the oven for another 40 minutes. These were rich, little squares, and the bits of pear with ginger flavor in the preserves made a nice fruit layer in the middle.

The second cookie bar, and the one shown below, was called ginger crunch. The base for this one was made more like a pastry crust. Cold butter was pulsed in a food processor into a mixture of flour, baking powder, sugar, and ground ginger until crumbly, and then that combination was pressed into a baking pan and baked for about 30 minutes. Once cool, it was topped with a thick glaze made by melting butter with honey and more ground ginger, and then whisking in confectioners’ sugar. I actually ran out of ground ginger and only had about a teaspoon to use rather than the full one and a half tablespoons suggested for the glaze, so I used a little grated, fresh ginger as well. These squares were crunchier than the crumble bars, and the glaze was rich and buttery and fragrant with ginger. Both of these cookie squares are classics for a reason. They're easy to bake and to serve, and I know I'll be making them both again.

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Blueberry Crumble Tart

I always bring a few snacks to an annual Oscars party we attend, and for last Sunday’s party, I wanted to sort of work with a theme. I was certain it was going to be an Avatar-dominated Oscars so I was thinking ‘blue.’ I couldn’t have been more wrong, and obviously, I didn’t do so well with my Oscars betting this year, but at least this blueberry crumble tart was tasty. The recipe is from The Modern Baker, where it’s called a blueberry crumble pie. I wanted the cut pieces to be a simple, square form that would be easy to pick up at the party, so I baked it in a rectangular tart pan. I was also a little worried about how runny and gooey the filling would be, and to make it firmer and easier to handle, I used a little extra cornstarch. That part of my plan came together well. The pieces were easy to cut and easy to pick up without the filling running all over the place. At least that prediction worked out for me.

The tart crust was made from the sweet tart dough recipe in the same book. That dough includes an egg, an egg yolk, and baking powder in addition to the butter, flour, and sugar. It was mixed in a food processor and then wrapped in plastic and left to rest in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or so. It was more dough than I needed for my rectangular tart pan, so I also made a small, free-form rustic tart to leave at home. The filling was made with frozen blueberries, sugar, a tablespoon more of cornstarch than the four tablespoon suggested, and nutmeg. After cooking and thickening, cold butter was stirred into the blueberry filling mixture. The ample crumb topping was made by combining flour, baking powder, cinnamon, brown sugar, and melted butter. Once folded together, it was left to sit while prepping the tart shell and filling. Often it’s tempting to double the quantity of a crumb topping, but I can tell you this recipe made plenty and doubling it would have been way too much. Once the filling was spooned into the shell and the crumble topping was sprinkled on top, the assembled tart baked for 40 minutes.

The crust was flaky and golden and lovely, and the filling was just firm enough and full of blueberry goodness, but the crumble topping was my favorite part. Those nuggets of buttery, crunchy, fun were a delight on top of the tart. It could have been almost any fruit in the filling because in the end, the blueness of it didn’t matter at all, but I’m glad that concept led me to this tart anyway.




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Apple Cranberry Crumble

The fall meal from the ‘What’s for Dinner’ recipe cards concluded with apple cranberry crumble for dessert. While making the crumble, I realized this might be the most forgiving dessert there is. You place fruit in a baking dish and top it with a crumbly, buttery mixture. You can use a combination of fruits as was done here or you can use all of one kind. You can use a little more or a little less, and you can peel or not peel, slice or chop, mix and match as you wish. Then, the topping quantity is really just a suggestion. If you like a lot of crumble topping, you can increase the total amount and mound it over the fruit. If you prefer the dessert to be more fruit-focused, cut back on the crumble quantity for little bits of buttery crunch. It’s really all up to you, and I like that about a crumble.

For this one, I used three gala apples, I left the peels on, and I sliced them. One half cup of fresh cranberries was suggested, but I used a little more than that. The fruit was tossed with sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt and was placed in a buttered baking dish. The crumble topping was made with butter, flour, oats, chopped pecans, and light-brown sugar. I went with the suggest quantities but added just a few extra pecans. The topping was sprinkled over the fruit, and the dish baked until golden for about 30 minutes. Not only is this dessert forgiving, baking this is one of the easiest ways to make your house smell amazing.

I like that the apple slices have a little more texture when the peel is left intact. And, I really like the tartness of the cranberries studded throughout the dessert. Of course, the crumble topping is what makes it what it is, and the mix of oats and chopped pecans with the cinnamon-spiced fruit is always a natural fit. Next time I might use a colorful combination of red apples and granny smiths, and I might increase the amount of cranberries even more. It’s so easy and foolproof, it makes a perfect, quick dessert for a fall meal.

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