Forget lining your pan with parchment paper - line it with cinnamon sugar! This technique takes a basic butter cake and turns it into the most amazing Donut Cake. The cake is light and fluffy, and surrounded on all sides by a delicious layer of cinnamon sugar. You'll be eating this straight from the pan warm - it's that good!
Hi hi! Just popping in to share this donut cake recipe with you! When I was making my spice cake recipe, which I top with cinnamon sugar, I tried a non-spiced version and instead of lining the pan with parchment, I lined the entire thing with a layer of crunchy cinnamon sugar.
The result was amazing - a fluffy donut cake, covered with a layer of crunchy sugar. It is super easy to make, but the sugar in the pan trick is just enough to elevate it to something very magical. We ate the whole thing out of the pan in the first day, it's just that good.
Like the spice cake, this is a twist on my butter cake recipe, which is a super versatile girlie - a tender and fluffy cake, made with sour cream. This donut cake is so good it deserved its own post though!
The trick to a donut cake - line the pan with sugar!
There's something about a cinnamon sugar donut that I love so much, so I wanted to channel that for this donut cake. Instead of lining the pan with parchment paper which I usually do, I generously coated the pan in butter, then dusted it in cinnamon sugar which I made with turbinado / demerara / whatever your name is for the crunchy raw sugar.
While this does make it a tiny bit more work in terms of taking the extra step to line the pan and being careful to smooth the batter down so that it doesn't take too much of the sugar off the sides, it is very very worth it.
I used a non-stick pan (mine is the brand USA pan) and made it in an 8" (20cm) pan rather than my butter cake recipe which is made in a 9" (23cm) pan so a little thinner. I wanted a nice thick fluffy cake. I haven't tried this with any other kinds of pan sorry but I would go for a non-stick one to give you the best chances of a smooth removal!
My Favourite way to eat leftover donut cake
When I was a kid we used to get these little cinnamon sugar donuts from the supermarket, and would always microwave them until they were screaming hot. I often pop leftover cake in the microwave if it is after the day that I made it, and this donut cake microwaved is next level. I start with about 20 seconds and go from there!
How to slice a donut cake to get it out of the pan?!
Because this donut cake isn't made in a lined pan, you do have to be a little more careful when you are removing it from the pan. The main thing that I try to watch is that i'm not scratching my non-stick pan, so I cut it with a plastic bench scraper then use a plastic spatula to get the first piece out. Once the first piece is out it is fairly easy to get out of the pan.
You can also turn the whole thing out - if the cake is cooled it should manage this ok, but you might damage the crackly top. You do you here. We often just eat it out of the pan.
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Answers to your baking questions
Over the years, many of you have asked me questions about:
- baking in grams
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- what kind of salt to use
- and many more!
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Fluffy Cinnamon Sugar Donut Cake
- Author: Erin Clarkson
-
Prep Time: 15 minutes -
Cook Time: 50 minutes
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Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
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Yield: 16 servings -
Category: Cake -
Method: Baking -
Cuisine: American
Pin RecipeDescription
Forget lining your pan with parchment paper - line it with cinnamon sugar! This technique takes a basic butter cake and turns it into the most amazing Donut Cake. The cake is light and fluffy, and surrounded on all sides by a delicious layer of cinnamon sugar. You'll be eating this straight from the pan warm - it's that good!
Ingredients
Cinnamon Sugar
- 60g raw / turbinado sugar
- ½ tsp cinnamon
Donut Cake
- 150g unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 320g granulated sugar
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 2 large eggs (about 110g, not including the shell), at room temperature
- 165g sour cream, at room temperature
- 250g all-purpose flour
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp kosher salt (use less if you are using table salt or salted butter)
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 330°f / 165°c. Combine the raw sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Grease an 8" (20cm) square baking pan well with butter. Dust the pan with cinnamon sugar, making sure that you get a generous coating on every side of the pan. Shake the remaining cinnamon sugar back into the bowl - this will be used to top the cake with.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium to high speed until very light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing to combine between each, then beat the mix for a further 2-3 minutes on high speed until it has thickened up, and is very light.
- Measure out the sour cream into a small bowl. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
- Alternately add the flour mixture and the sour cream, starting and ending with the flour - add the flour in three additions and the sour cream in two, and briefly mix between additions. Switch to a spatula and give the mixture a few turns to ensure that it is evenly mixed.
- Transfer the mix to the prepared pan and smooth down with a spatula or the back of a spoon, making sure that there are no large air bubbles in the mixture.
- Sprinkle the top of the cake with the remaining cinnamon sugar.
- Bake the cake for 45-50 minutes, until the middle springs back when lightly pressed with a finger, and a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached.
- Remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool in the pan. Slice into pieces using a plastic knife or scraper (if you are using a non-stick pan).
- Store the cake at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 4 days. I like to microwave the cake if it is past the day that I made it to re-warm and freshen up the cake.
Notes
I used a non-stick USA pan brand cake pan. I have not tested this recipe in a pan that is not non-stick or a glass pan.
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