Recipe: Snickerdoodle Cake for Cinnamon Lovers

My son turned 8 last week, and in our family when it’s your birthday you get to pick the type of cake and the birthday dinner. He chose crab legs and artichokes for dinner, which basically translates to things he can dip into butter, and Snickerdoodle for his cake flavor.
Never having heard of Snickerdoodle Cake, I scoured the internet for recipes, finally settling on one that used a cake mix (thank you, Betty Crocker!) and called for cinnamon in both the cake batter and the frosting.

I substituted applesauce for half the butter in the cake, and sprinkled cinnamon sugar on top once it was frosted. And it was delicious, if I do say so myself! We were all amazed at how much it really tasted like a Snickerdoodle cookie, and how enjoyable that flavor sensation is in a moist cake with buttery topping. Ah, there’s that butter theme again. He’s obviously wise beyond his eight years…

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Snickerdoodle Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting
[adapted from Henrie’s recipe]
Cake Ingredients

• 1 pkg. yellow or white cake mix
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 stick butter, melted
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Frosting Ingredients

• 1 stick of butter, room temperature
• 3-3/4 cup powdered sugar
• 3 T milk (or a bit more to thin the frosting)
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Fancy sugar sprinkles and more ground cinnamon on top for the finishing flourish.

Note to Readers: There was no double-dipping in this shot. He did NOT touch the cake with the spatula again, I swear.
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour two 9″ round cake pans.
2. Place cake mix, milk, melted butter, applesauce, eggs, vanilla, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Mix for 3 minutes until well blended.
3. Divide batter between the pans and place them in the oven side by side. Bake until they are golden brown, about 27-29 minutes.
4. Remove cakes from oven and cool for 10 minutes, then invert them on a rack and cool completely.
5. While the cakes cool, prepare the frosting (directions below).
6. Frost the cake and put it in the fridge until the frosting sets if needed, probably for about 20 minutes.
7. Sprinkle fancy sugar and a pinch of cinnamon on the top if you like, or make a simple cinnamon sugar mixture and sprinkle liberally.
8. If you have leftovers (after breakfast the next morning we had nothing left), keep refrigerated.

Make the Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

1. Place butter in large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low until fluffy, about 30 seconds.
2. Add powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Blend on low until sugar is incorporated, about 1 minute.
3. Add the cinnamon, and Increase the speed to medium. Beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute more.
4. Blend in up to 1 tablespoon milk if the frosting seems too stiff.