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.
Laura says
Very delicous moist cake. I like how it isn’t extremely sweet and the sugar on top gives it a maverlous crunch. Adding to one of my favourite recipes!
Jessica Holmes says
So happy to hear that Laura!
Beverley says
This is the best cake I have ever made. It came out perfect. Well risen and light and moist. So tasty and kept well. I cannot believe how easy it was to make. My baking is a bit hit and miss so I think the success is mainly down to the quality of this recipe. Thank you.
Jessica Holmes says
That’s wonderful to hear Beverley! So glad you enjoyed this cake as much as I do!
ELENA says
Hi Jessica !
Is there a special reason for using 2 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder in this recipe and not 2 tsp baking powder + 1/2 tsp baking soda (like in cinnamon apple cake recipe)?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Elena, yes there is! Baking soda typically needs acidity to react and neutralise its taste – the greek yogurt helps with this in the apple cake recipe. This recipe just uses regular milk and doesn’t have another acidic ingredient so it’s best to just use baking powder. Hope that helps!
ELENA says
Thank you Jess! Yes, I knew about the acid and baking soda but was still a bit in doubt. Also wondering why lemon yogurt cake recipe only uses baking powder and not soda even though there is both Greek yogurt and lemon juice there..
Jessica Holmes says
I tested the Lemon Cake many times with different combinations of raising agents but found using just baking powder yielded the most consistent result.
Negar says
Hi, Jessica
The recipe is amazing, very delicious, thank you. I was wondering is it possible to use vegetable oil instead of butter?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi I haven’t tried!
Gillian says
Yummy 🤗💜 thank you for this recipe , it’s Delish , everyone loved it . I’m not that great at baking, but this recipe was perfect and a good boost for my confidence too .
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so happy to hear that Gillian!
Kim L says
Absolutely delicious! Made this today for a group of friends, one of whom is gluten intolerant. I substituted plain flour for gluten-free flour. It turned out a treat. Light and moist. Jess, thank you for this recipe. I will definitely be baking this again soon.
Jessica Holmes says
That’s wonderful to hear Kim! So glad it worked well with gluten free flour!
Ani says
Hi 😊
This cake looks super yummy 😋
I need one suggestion from you
How can I replace the egg?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Ani, I’m sorry I haven’t tried this recipe without eggs.
Elijsha Lorey says
It’s really good
Kayla says
I halved the recipe to make a small batch, turned them into mini muffins and subbed soy milk for dairy milk (all I had) and subbed brown sugar for white sugar (I just felt like it would have a nicer flavour! Turned out so yummy, thank you for the recipe 😊 they were gone within the hour.
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Kayla!
Kieren says
bloody good cake, must try
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you liked it Kieren!
Shonan Kothari says
Hey! I would like to substitute the egg in this recipe. What would you recommend? A chia/flax egg?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Shona, I haven’t tested the cake without eggs so I’m not sure, sorry!
Ashton Fernandes says
Can i freeze this after the sugar cinnamon topping? x
Jessica Holmes says
Yes I do!
ruqy says
wow it turned out so lovely thanks for the beautiful recipe
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them!
Lisa Barnett says
Absolutely gorgeous, so moist
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Lisa!
Loretta says
I made this cake yesterday and it was so delicious, my son said it was the best! The receipe is easy to follow and cake tastes amazing.
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Loretta!
Shafaq says
Just made this and everyone loved it! It’s just delicious with a cup of tea. Perfect balance of sweet and cinnamon and the topping completes the cake!
Jessica Holmes says
Aw love hearing that!
Estrella says
Can you use skim milk?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Estrella, it will work but full fat is best.
Hermana Leigh Albert says
Hello Jess,
I have just completed baking this absolutely delicious cinnamon tea cake!
5 stars all the way!!!!
The recipe is spot-on, and very flexible – I added some crushed walnuts to the batter.
Soft, flavourful and scrumptious!
Congrats on your excellent post, and thanks for sharing!
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you loved it Hermana! Love the idea of adding walnuts too.
Sarah Illyas says
AH-MAH-ZING !!
It’s sooo light and fluffy 😍😍😍
Everyone loved it ❤️❤️
Even my dad who’s not a fan of sweets loved this cuz it wasn’t too sweet yet sweet enough…
And I loved the cinnamon flavour … Next time I’ll probably be adding a bit of fresh ground tea masala to it 😋😋
It came out perfect and I’m looking forward to trying more of your recipes soon 🤤🤤
Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe ❤️❤️✌🏻✌🏻
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so happy to hear you loved it Sarah! Thank you for your kind review!