Cinnamon Flop Cake Recipe

If you have a soft spot for a recipe made with cinnamon, then we have the perfect cake for you to try! The great part about this treat is that you can serve it for breakfast or for dessert, making it so versatile. (Let's be honest: It's never too early for cake!) This yummy delight boasts a smooth and sweet interior base with a brown sugar topping, making it taste every bit as good as it sounds.

Recipe developer Jessica Morone is one of the best when it comes to whipping up incredible sweets, and we must applaud her for this cake! "Traditionally, this is a breakfast recipe. And eating it warm with a cup of coffee for breakfast is absolutely delightful," Morone shares. "But there's nothing stopping you from eating it as a dessert — and I definitely have!"

As for the story behind the name? "I have read that a cinnamon flop cake is a sort of variation on a Swedish flop cake, which is a coffee cake with a creamy filling, but I'm not totally sure why it is called a flop cake," Morone notes. Keep reading to find out how to make this decadent recipe.

Once you are ready to start this recipe, you will need to take a little trip to the grocery store to get all of the necessary ingredients. This recipe includes pretty common ingredients used for baking, so check for what you have at home before you load up your cart. 

Start with a few cups of sugar and some butter. You will also need egg and vanilla extract. Next, pop by the baking aisle and pick out all-purpose flour and baking powder. In addition, you will need to get milk, brown sugar, and cinnamon.

When you have all of your ingredients ready to go, it's time to start baking. Start by turning the knob of your oven to 375 F. Then, grab your favorite 9x9-inch pan, and grease the bottom and sides.

Next, take out a large bowl, and toss in your granulated sugar and four tablespoons of butter. Remember, the butter should be at room temperature so it mixes easier. Cream the butter and sugar together until it resembles snow. "Creaming the butter and sugar together until it looks like snow is more of a texture thing," Morone shares. "Because there's a lot more sugar than butter in this step, combining them will lead to it being flaky and fluffy rather than a cookie recipe where you usually cream butter and sugar until it would be more creamy."

Once you finish creaming the butter and sugar together, add the egg to the mix. Just crack it over the side, and put the whites and the yolk into the mixture. After that, you can toss in the vanilla extract, and continue mixing until everything is well combined.

Then, grab a small bowl, and begin mixing your dry ingredients. Start with the flour, followed by baking powder, and be sure to use a whisk to mix. Then, alternate adding the flour mixture to the batter with milk, stirring well after each addition.

When you finish the first mixture, go ahead and set it to the side, because you will need it in a few moments. In the meantime, take out a medium-sized bowl, and toss in the brown sugar and the cinnamon first. Then, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, which is the last thing you will need to add the brown sugar. The butter kind of serves as a glue to hold the brown sugar and cinnamon together. Continue mixing the three items until they're well combined.

Go ahead and grab the bowl that you set aside earlier, and add the flour mixture to the prepared pan. Smooth it out if needed. Then, sprinkle in the brown sugar mixture on the top. Double check to be sure your oven has finished preheating. As long as you have the green light, pop the cake into the oven for 30 to 35 minutes. Bake until you can insert a toothpick into the center of the cake, and it only comes out with a few crumbs. The topping will not come out clean, but that's totally fine.

Once you take the cake out of the oven, set it on the counter, and let it cool for 15 minutes. Then, serve it warm.

"Since this is kind of like a coffee cake, I would serve it with coffee, or any other hot beverage," Morone shares. "If you keep it covered at room temperature, it should last up to three days, and stored in the fridge, it can keep for up to a week. I would definitely reheat pieces of it in the microwave for about 20 seconds before eating the leftovers." We hope you love this cake as much as we do!