Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake
I whipped up this Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake in a matter of minutes for my family last week! It’s the perfect reason to invite a friend over for a visit or to take to your next Church Pot Luck! It melts-in-your-mouth it’s so moist, with hints of swirled cinnamon streusel, and vanilla icing drizzle.
Years ago, my mother-in-law dropped by with a cinnamon bundt cake. Mars…who isn’t much of a “cake” eater…ate a slice. Then he ate another, and another! Who knew that cinnamon coffee cake would be the “it” dessert?
I sat there looking very skeptical. What was up? This man doesn’t really eat sweets! Let alone cake! Within mere minutes, he performed a magic trick. He made that cake disappear! (He made David Copperfield Proud!)
He kept asking if I could replicate that Cinnamon Coffee Cake! Well…sure I could! I’d need a new bundt pan of course! (I use whatever excuse I can to get new cookware friends! Lol. Did I really need a new bundt pan? NO! I wanted one. There’s a difference! Lol) I actually ended up buying an angle cake pan. I love it!
After a couple tries in my “New” Bundt Pan… I hit the nail on the head!
This Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake is even better than the original. It’s SO moist it melts-in-your-mouth and brings a smile to your face, and a skip to your step! I double dog dare you to just eat one slice of this heavenly coffee cake. You will love how easy this cake is to make!
Let’s get started!
How to Prepare Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Preheat the oven to 325°. Prepare a bundt pan, or angel food cake pan, with non-stick baking spray with flour.
In your mixer mixing bowl combine 1 Duncan Hines French Vanilla Cake Mix. (We’ve discussed my love of Duncan Hines before! It’s simply the BEST!) Add a 3.4 oz box of instant French vanilla pudding, 1 cup of sour cream, 3/4 cup vegetable oil, 1/4 cup of warm water, 4 eggs, and 1 teaspoon of imitation butter flavoring.
Mix on low-speed for 1 minute. Increase speed and mix for an additional 3–4 minutes until smooth.
In a separate bowl, mix together 3 tablespoons of brown sugar, 2 teaspoons of sugar, and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. (Keep your fingers out of the cinnamon topping! It’s so tempting to lick your finger and steal a bit! Don’t ask how I know!)
Pour half the cake batter into a prepared bundt pan.
Sprinkle the cinnamon filling over the top of the cake batter. Make sure to spread it evenly over the entire center of the cake.
Top with the remaining cake batter. Use a spatula to gently spread it over the top of the cinnamon filling.
In another separate bowl, mix together 1/4 cup of flour, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Slowly add 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Mix together with a small whisk or fork until a small pea-sized crumble forms.
You can use your hands to get in there and really crumble up that streusel. You may want to yodel while you’re at it! Jump into your roll as streusel maker! Go after it with gusto! (I can hear “little old lady who” in kitchens all over the world! Lol)
Sprinkle HALF of the streusel mixture on top of the cake. (See my tips below for the reason we are doing this!) Reserve the other half and set aside for later.
Place cake in the center of the preheated oven. Bake for 50–55 minutes.
Halfway through baking time, carefully slide the cake out on the oven rack, and sprinkle with the remaining half of streusel mixture. Continue baking until the cake springs back when gently pressed.
Remove the cake from oven and allow it to cool completely.
While the cake is cooking, mix together 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1/2 tablespoons of milk with a splash of vanilla. Mix until smooth and creamy.
Remove the cake from the pan. I used an angle food cake pan that did NOT have a removable bottom, (it’s okay for you to think I’m stupid at this point… I know I was!) Place a plate over the top of the cake pan, invert the cake top carefully onto the plate, then place your cake plate against the bottom and invert it again.
It was my way of honoring the Winter Olympics with a double invert with a twist! (Going for GOLD my friends!) It was executed perfectly! Even though it may not have been my brightest idea…it worked beautifully, and I love how this cake looks baked in that pan!
Drizzle the cake with the creamy vanilla icing. Don’t go too heavy with the icing. Just enough to add a subtle hint of flavor.
Tips for Making Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake
- Mix the cinnamon filling and Streusel topping beforehand. It will make prep a breeze.
- Spray your baking pan with a non-stick baking spray with flour.
- The cake batter is extremely thick! Use a rubber spatula to spread the cake batter.
- Use your hands to mix streusel topping to create the perfect pea-sized crumb.
- Sprinkle only HALF of streusel on top of the cake before baking. It will sink into the cake during baking. That’s okay! We want that center swirl created when this happens. Sprinkle the remainder of streusel halfway through baking. This will stay on top of the cake and create the perfect light crumb topping.
- Store in an airtight container or cake plate with a dome top to keep the cake fresh and moist.
- Call a friend to come over and join you!
Isn’t that a pretty slice of coffee cake?
The cinnamon swirl is so gentle and luscious in this cake. The streusel isn’t over powering. The light drizzle of vanilla icing is delicate, yet adds just the right amount of flavor to this moist, delectable cake.
This is the perfect Cinnamon Coffee Cake to invite a friend over for a slice or two, and a cup of your favorite hot beverage! Remember the days when friends and neighbors visited each other? It was the “perfect” time out for every Mom out there and helped us get through the days a little easier!
Maybe we should rename it “Visit Cake”! I think we could all use a lot more Coffee Cake and visits with friends!
If you enjoyed this recipe, you might like these other Breakfast Cake Recipes.
- Cherry Lemon Danish
- Blood Orange Sweet Rolls
- Cherry Crumb Coffee Cake
- Raspberry Filled Donuts
- Fresh Apple Danish
The printable recipe is below. Thanks so much for stopping by my Nest for Coffee Cake and a Visit! Hope to see ya again… really soon!
Happy Nesting My Friends!
Cake Mix Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 1 French Vanilla Cake Mix or yellow cake mix
- 1 – 3.4 oz. package of instant french vanilla pudding mix
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1 cup sour cream
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 4 eggs
- 1 teaspoon imitation butter flavoring
Cinnamon Filling
- 3 Tablespoons of Brown Sugar
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Streusel Topping
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 – 1 1/2 Tablespoon melted butter
Vanilla Icing
- 1/2 cup powder sugar
- 1/2 Tablespoon Milk
- Splash vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°. Prepare bundt pan by spraying with non-stick baking spray with flour.
- In the mixing bowl of your mixer, add cake mix, pudding mix, 1/4 cup warm water, 1 Cup Sour Cream, 4 eggs, 3/4 cup of vegetable oil, and 1 teaspoon of imitation butter flavoring. Mix on low speed for 1 minute. Increase speed to medium and mix for 3-4 minutes until batter is creamy and smooth.
- Spread half of cake batter in bottom of prepared bundt pan.
- In a small bowl mix together all the cinnamon filling ingredients.
- Sprinkle with Cinnamon Filling mixture making sure to spread it evenly.
- Top with remaining cake batter. Use a spatula to spread evenly.
- In another small bowl mix together dry streusel ingredients. Slowly add melted butter. Use hands to form small pea size crumble.
- Sprinkle top of cake with half of streusel mixture. Reserve remaining half and set aside.
- Place cake in center of rack in the middle of the oven.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes. Half way through baking, carefully slide out oven rack with cake and sprinkle with remaining streusel. Continue baking until when you touch center of cake it springs back.
- Remove cake from oven and cool completely.
- In a small bowl mix together vanilla glaze ingredients. Mix until smooth. Remove cake from pan. Drizzle with vanilla icing.
- Slice and serve.
Video
Nutrition
Meet the Author
Hi! I’m Norine, the cook, baker, and recipe creator behind Norine’s Nest. I love sharing and creating recipes that invite family, friends, and neighbors to gather around the dinner table. Sharing good food and creating memories with those we love brings me happiness. Thanks for stopping by my Nest!
We loved the cake. The only glitch is that the streusel topping crumbled a lot. I did it the way you said adding half the streusel at first and the remaining after the 30 minutes. Next time I am either going to put the streusel in the bottom of the bundt pan or add some honey and a bit more butter and put it on the top at the beginning. Fingers crossed 🫰.
Hi Jeni!
I’m so sorry you had an issue with the streusel topping. Streusel can be so finicky! I like your ideas and I hope that works for you next time. I really appreciate you taking the time to stop by and leave a comment and star ranking. Thank You! I’m going to have to make this again (won’t make my husband sad) and make sure that the streusel still works. With products changing with so many additives it can mess things up. So, I’ll do a test to make sure it still works. It always has, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t having issues now.
I hope you’ll come back again. Thank you again for sharing.
Norine