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This Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake is guaranteed to become your new family favorite breakfast treat! It’s filled with the best buttery, cinnamon sugar, then rolled into a giant cinnamon roll and drizzled with a cream cheese frosting that’s entirely vegan.

horizontal image of cinnamon roll cake on a stand

Ingredients You’ll Need
Equipment Needed
How to Make a Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake
Serving Suggestions
Make Ahead Instructions
Storage Instructions
Helpful Baking Tips
More Cinnamon Roll Recipes You May Enjoy:
Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake Recipe Recipe

up close image of the top of a giant cinnamon roll cake

After perfecting the BEST Vegan Cinnamon Rolls recipe that has since received rave reviews, we decided to take it to the next level and turn the crowd-favorite recipe into an irresistible Giant Cinnamon Roll! It has all the flavor of a cinnamon roll, but made into a impressive, delicious cake.

So get ready to set aside the coffee cake, and serve this easy cinnamon roll cake recipe instead. It’s the perfect vegan brunch recipe to serve for birthdays or holidays like Mother’s Day, Valentine’s day, or for breakfast on Thanksgiving or Christmas!

Ingredients: all-purpose flour, non-dairy milk, sugar, powdered sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, active dry yeast, vegan butter, non-dairy cream cheese, vanilla extract

Ingredients You’ll Need

Non-dairy milk: We typically use our Homemade Almond Milk, or a similar store-bought plant milk. Feel free to opt for any unsweetened or lightly sweetened non-dairy milk of choice.
Sugar: For this recipe, you’ll need granulated white sugar (for the dough), brown sugar (for the filling), and powdered sugar (for the cream cheese glaze).
Vegan butter: You’ll need melted vegan butter for the dough and softened butter for both the filling and the cream cheese glaze. We always recommend vegan butter sticks over butter spreads for the most accurate consistency and moisture content.
Active dry yeast: Similar to our classic vegan cinnamon rolls, this cinnamon roll cake can be made with either active dry yeast or instant dry yeast. We find active dry yeast to make a more complex flavored dough, but use what you have!
Flour: We’ve only tested this cake recipe using all-purpose flour and cannot recommend a gluten-free flour substitute.
Baking powder: While the yeast helps the cake rise and become light and fluffy, additional baking powder gives the dough an additional lift and helps keep this giant cake tall and light in texture.
Cinnamon: You’ll need 2 full tablespoons of ground cinnamon for the cake filling!
Vegan cream cheese: We prefer our cinnamon rolls with a cream cheese frosting as opposed to a more simple vanilla glaze. We like to use Kite Hill but use any plain vegan cream cheese brand of choice.

The measurements and instructions for the full recipe can be found at the bottom of the post in the complete recipe card.

up close image of cinnamon roll cake slice on a plate

Equipment Needed

Mixing bowls
Whisk
Wooden spatula
Clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap
Rolling pin
Sharp knife or pizza cutter
baking spatula
Cooking oil
9-inch pie pan or baking sheet
Aluminum foil (if needed to prevent over-browning)
Fine mesh sieve or sifter

How to Make a Giant Cinnamon Roll Cake

Proof the yeast. Whisk together the non-dairy milk, sugar, and vegan butter in a large bowl. The mixture should be warm to the touch but not so hot that it will kill the yeast. Sprinkle the yeast evenly over the mixture, stir to combine, then let sit in a warm place for 10 minutes. Once proofed, stir in the vanilla extract.
Add the flour mixture. Next, add in 4 cups of the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl to incorporate all of the dry ingredients.
Rise for 1 hour. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and place the bowl in a warm place to rise for 1 hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.
Prepare the cinnamon filling. While the dough rises, prepare the cinnamon sugar filling. In a small bowl, whisk together the softened butter, light brown sugar, and set aside.
Knead the dough. On a clean, floured work surface, knead the dough for at least 10 minutes, adding additional flour as needed to prevent sticking. After 10 minutes, the cinnamon roll dough should be soft to the touch and no longer sticky.
Roll out the cinnamon roll dough. Once the dough is soft and springs back when poked, roll the dough out into a 12×16″ rectangle with the shorter ends being on the left and right.
Add the cinnamon sugar mixture. Using a spatula, spread the cinnamon mixture evenly over the dough.
Cut the dough. Cut the dough horizontally into 4 even strips.
Roll the cake. Roll the top strip from the left to the right, forming a tight spiral. Place the rolled strip on top of the second strip, and roll it around the original spiral. Repeat this process with the remaining strips until a giant cinnamon roll forms.
Rise for an additional hour. Loosely cover the homemade cinnamon roll cake with an oiled piece of plastic wrap and place the cake in a warm area to rise for an additional hour.
Bake. Once the dough has risen, bake the cake in a pie dish coated with nonstick cooking spray for 50-65 minutes, or until the top of the cinnamon roll is golden brown and completely cooked through the center. If it appears the cake is browning too quickly on the top, loosely tent with a piece of aluminum foil.
Prepare the cream cheese frosting. While the cake bakes, prepare the glaze ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the softened vegan cream cheese and soft butter until well combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and stir the sweet glaze until well combined.
Drizzle the cake with frosting. Let the baked cake cool for 10 minutes, then generously drizzle with the cream cheese frosting or spread with a butter knife, if desired. Slice and enjoy immediately while warm!

cut open cinnamon roll cake with the inside showing

Serving Suggestions

A slice of this giant cinnamon cake can be served just as you’d serve homemade cinnamon rolls. Enjoy it as a breakfast cake, birthday cake, or easy-to-share dessert! Serve warm as is, or with a cup of coffee, a scoop of ice cream, or a generous serving of fresh berries dusted with powdered sugar.

a cinnamon roll cake slice on white plate

Make Ahead Instructions

This giant cinnamon roll can be made up to 24 hours in advance. Simply follow the instructions through placing the rolled cake in the greased pie pan, then instead of rising in a warm place, cover the cake and do a slow, long rise overnight in the refrigerator.

Then, the next day, remove the cinnamon roll cake from the refrigerator and let the dough warm to room temperature, for about 2-3 hours depending on the temperature of your home. Once room temperature, bake as usual until cooked though!

giant cinnamon roll cake on a stand with icing dripping off the side

Storage Instructions

This cake is best when served fresh, but the leftover cake will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Reheat slices of cake for 15 seconds in the microwave to help soften and make it fluffy again!

Helpful Baking Tips

When kneading the dough, add additional flour as needed. We typically add about 2 cups of additional flour to help knead the dough until soft and sticky. However, keep in mind that the amount of flour required in baking can be affected by the humidity level in your particular climate. Don’t be afraid to adjust the flour measurement until your dough is no longer sticky.
Check for doneness. This giant cinnamon roll will typically take longer to bake than regular cinnamon rolls. To check the doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. The toothpick should come out clean, or with a few moist cake crumbs. If it is still doughy in the center, it needs more time.
Roll tightly. This will help create that beautiful swirl mixture and prevent the cinnamon roll filling from spilling out of the cake.

More Cinnamon Roll Recipes You May Enjoy:

Dessert