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.
Daisie says
Hello! Would I be able to use Greek yogurt? If so do I add the same amount 3/4 cup, more or less?
Thank you!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Daisie, if you want to use yogurt, I would suggest adding 1/2 full fat Greek yogurt, with 1/4 cup whole or full fat milk. Hope that helps!
Rashika says
Hi! I am so excited to make this cake. Is it fine to prepare the batter of this cake without an electric blender?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi, yes you can make this cake by hand. But you’ll need to really mix your butter and sugar well by hand to cream it – it will take a bit of elbow grease! Your butter might need to be slightly softer than if you were using an electric mixer.
Rickie says
Reminds me of an 8″ square tea cake I used to love and buy at a popular German bakery in San Francisco in the 1980’s, except that yours has a topping. Your recipe sounds perfect. Looking forward to making!
Jessica Holmes says
I hope you enjoy it Rickie! You could also use an 8-inch square cake pan if you like!
CeeBee says
Ah-mah-zing!! No other words. So simple and oh so good. Just as good microwaved next day. 2 very enthusiastic thumbs up.
Jessica Holmes says
Yay! Thank you for the kind feedback CeeBee!
Bella says
I’m really keen to try this. I have a friend who would like a semi naked cinnamon tea cake for her wedding. Do you think this recipe would be suitable for layering to create a tall cake?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Bella, how exciting! It depends how tall you are talking. It is quite a soft, light cake but you could definitely get a few layers out of it.
Ben says
Amazing recipe! it’s so simple and really perfect for having with tea. It’s perfect and I will be making it again
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it Ben!
Jennifer Matthews says
Hi I’m about to make this yummy cake & wanted to kno if I cld use a Bundt pan? I don’t have any round baking tins.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Jennifer, it might not be quite enough batter to fill a bundt pan. You might also find that since the cake is very light and soft, to may be prone to tearing if using an intricately decorated bundt pan. You could use a square cake pan or make mini muffins instead.
Berna says
So delicious
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it!
Kristine says
Hi, upon seeing all the comments and ratings, I think this is the best cinnamon cake recipe out there and I really want to try it but I don’t use eggs for my desserts. Can you recommend any egg substitute for this recipe? Thank you!
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Kristine, I’m sorry but I’m not sure as I haven’t tested this cake with any egg substitutes.
Selin Su Varol says
This is the second cake recipe I’ve tried from Sweetest Menu and they both turned out to be amazing !!! I used Einkorn Flour for this one and boiled lavender tea with the milk to turn this into a lavender cake and it was beautiful !! Thank you for this recipe, I’ll keep trying other ones
Jessica Holmes says
Hooray! So glad you enjoyed it Selin – a lavender version sounds amazing.
Vanessa says
I love this recipe and have adapted it in a few ways! I found that I needed a bit more liquid (1/4 cup?) to make it a battery consistency that I was more comfortable with but that’s easy enough.
I have made this as a ginger/nutmeg spice cake and also as a chai cake using just a packed of chai tea. Major hit each time. I intend to keep using this (sans cinnamon) as a base for cakes in the future.
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Vanessa! Thank you for your feedback.
Jeremy says
Such an easy recipe and such a delicious cake! Just made it after my wife had been craving Tea Cake it we couldn’t find any in cafes or shops. It’s simple but incredibly fluffy & delicious! Thank you
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Jeremy! So glad it hit the spot!
monica says
This recipe is PERFECT when I want to bake something delicious with very little prep time. I’ve made this several times and the kitchen smells wonderful when baking.
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Monica! Thank you for your kind feedback.
Flo says
Absolutely fantastic!quick and easy and super yummy
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed it Flo!
Lilly says
I hope it’s good!