Introducing my easy Cinnamon Tea Cake. It comes together in minutes and boasts a buttery crumb and a sweet cinnamon sugar crust. The perfect cake for morning tea!
The humble tea cake ❤️
I’m so excited to share my Cinnamon Tea Cake recipe with you today. It’s incredibly easy to make but it tastes like you’ve slaved away in the kitchen for hours.
It has a super soft and tender crumb that’s buttery and sweet, and a crisp cinnamon sugar topping.
You only need a handful of ingredients and you’ve got the perfect cake to share with family and friends.
Why you will love this recipe
- The cake is soft and tender
- It’s quick and easy to make
- You only need a handful of ingredients
- It tastes like a hot cinnamon donut
Lately I’m becoming more and more obsessed with easy bakes, including one layer cakes like this one. And I have you to thank for it. My most popular recipes are almost ALWAYS ones that are quick and easy to make and can be replicated again and again with success.
I think that’s why my Apple Cake is one of the most popular recipes on my entire site.
And I’m right there with you. Yes, sometimes I love a challenge or to create something more extravagant, but let’s be real. Most of the time, I need foolproof bakes that can whipped up quick when friends are popping over for morning tea or an easy dessert I can take to a dinner party after I finish a day at work.
So what makes this cake so special? Well apart from being easy to throw together, it’s actually one of my all-time favourite cakes. I have a whole stack of it in my freezer because sometimes you just need a quick cake fix.
And even though this cake has no frosting, that buttery cinnamon crust makes me weak at the knees. After this cake is baked, you actually brush the top with melted butter and sprinkle over cinnamon sugar. If you serve this cake warm, you could close your eyes and think you are eating a warm cinnamon donut. #hello
TIPS FOR MAKING CINNAMON TEA CAKE
- You will need an electric mixer for this recipe. Start with room temperature butter, you don’t want it fridge cold but it shouldn’t be melty by any means.
- We start by beating together the butter and sugar, this process is known as creaming. After a few minutes, the two will combine and turn pale and creamy. This process helps create a nice light and fluffy cake. It can be tempting to beat for 30 seconds or so just to combine the butter and sugar but if you keep going for another minute or so, you’ll see it change texture and almost look a little ‘whipped’. Perfect!
- Next comes the eggs. Sometimes when you add the eggs, the cake batter can turn lumpy and look a little curdled. That’s fine.
- Add half of the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and cinnamon) and ALL the milk. Start to slowly mix together and then add the remaining dry ingredients. Transfer mixture to a cake tin and bake for 30-35 minutes. You’ll know it’s ready when a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- When you remove the cake from the oven, generously brush melted butter all over the top. Then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. This Cinnamon Tea Cake is delicious served warm.
MORE ONE LAYER CAKE RECIPES TO TRY
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Let’s Bake
Cinnamon Tea Cake
A delicious light and tender Cinnamon Tea Cake.
Ingredients
Tea cake
- 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 150 grams (3/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 210 grams (1 and 1/2 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 180 ml (3/4 cup) full fat or whole milk
Cinnamon sugar topping
- 20 grams (1 tablespoon) butter, melted
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon caster sugar or granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Grease and line an 8-inch round cake pan with baking or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer until pale and creamy, approximately 1-2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat briefly – don’t worry if the mixture goes lumpy – then scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the plain flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add half of the flour mixture, along with all the milk and slowly mix together on a low speed. Add the remaining flour mix and continue to mix until cake batter is smooth and creamy.
- Pour cake batter into your prepared tin and bake in the oven for approximately 30-35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- While the cake is still warm, generously brush with melted butter and then sprinkle over cinnamon and sugar. Enjoy a slice while the cake is warm.
Sara says
Hi just wanted to say what an amazing recipe this is. The first time I made it I forgot to add the milk😂 but even without it was perfect. I haven’t tried when it’s cold but the next day I just put the remaining slices in the microwave and they taste just as delicious.
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Sara!
Mrs Dowling says
I made this yesterday and its one of the nicest cakes i have ever made. Its very soft and fluffy and the cinnamon flavour is lovely. My husband loved it!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Aw love hearing that! Thank you for your kind review!
Kristy says
Such a great recipe. My dad and I used to make a boxed version when I was younger and I have been craving it during lockdown. I used lactose free butter and it was amazing. A simple and stunning recipe 🙂
Jessica Holmes says
Aw so glad to hear that Kristy!
J says
What size pan? There are no recommendations so I’m not sure if it’s a loaf pan, round, square etc which can really ruin a recipe.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi, the cake pan is specified in step 1 of the recipe.
Bella says
Hello for some reason it didn’t rise and no matter how long i left it in the oven the top wouldn’t cook properly. Just wondering what I could do for next time to make it actually work because it smelled amazing and I’m so sad it didn’t work out 😭
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Bella, if you didn’t change any ingredients, it sounds like your baking powder might be expired?
Theresa Fernandes says
I made this cinnamon tea cake and the texture was so perfect along with the taste. Thank you for the lovely recipe.
If I want to make a chocolate cake using the same recipe what will be the most of coco powder to be used
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it Theresa! I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that (I haven’t tested it so I can’t say) but you could try my easy Chocolate Buttermilk Cake.
Audrey Spencer says
Could I use brown sugar instead of caster sugar? I’m in America, so no caster sugar and I thought it might taste better than granulated sugar
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Audrey, granulated sugar is a fine substitute for caster sugar, but if you want to use brown sugar you can!
Audrey Spencer says
Thank you so much for your quick response and for all the amazing recipes! I can’t wait to make this cake today!
violet says
Can I use top flour for this recipe?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Violet, I haven’t tried myself so I’m not sure – could work ok!
Janet Morgan says
Made this during lockdown. It was easy to make. We had it cold with ice cream and warm with custard. It was delicious
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it Janet!
Angelina Laura Reggie says
Best recipe I have ever tried!
I also added roasted almonds and it’s amazing!
I love it!!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
So glad to hear that Angelina!
Kasturi Ray says
It came out perfect! The texture, the bite and ofcourse the taste!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that!!
Tanvi says
Hi, could i skip the cinnamon nd just add chocochips to this recipe. Thanks
Jessica Holmes says
Yes you could if you like!
Mich says
Awesome recipe. Tried it, it turned out so light and fluffy.
I love cinnamon and my family do too.
We we’re thinking if there was some way of doing a cinnamon swirl OR soak the apples in cinnamon.
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Mary says
Gorgeous cake, so tender and light and moist – and that cinnamon crust…lovely.
Made a few recipes from your site and everyone is fail safe, thanks for all your testing and trialing to make my bakes perfect!
★★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Aw so happy to hear that Mary! Really appreciate your kind review.
Michelle Landis says
God Bless you for posting this!! My mom always made this when I was a kid at breakfast on weekends and we loved it. I had forgotten about it and something triggered my memory of it and I have been hunting and hunting for the recipe as it wasn’t in her recipe file, due to she probably had it memorized. I am so excited to now be able to share this with my kids who are now in their 30’s an have never had it. When I mentioned to my dad about finally finding the recipe it was then that he told me she had gotten it from his mother’s cookbook from my aunt as my grandmother passed when my dad was only 9. Once again I could hug you for sharing this wonderful recipe and helping me to have a taste of a breakfast past. I praised God as soon as I seen it. And saved it immediately!
Jessica Holmes says
Oh that’s amazing Michelle! I love how food can invoke such clear memories. I hope you and your family love the cake.
Nat says
Just made this cake for my mums birthday and it came out beautifully! Everyone commented on how light and fluffy it was.. whole cake went immediately. Thanks very much. This recipe is a keeper !
Jessica Holmes says
Love that! So glad you enjoyed it Nat!
Sherri Anderson says
I made this tea cake for Saturday morning breakfast. It is delicious with TV. I do have to say that I believe it was too dry. Perhaps a shorter big-time would have helped. But the taste is delicious.
★★★★
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Sherri, so pleased you enjoyed it! If it was dry, you may have added a little too much flour or over baked it like you said.