High Altitude Mini Cinnamon Sugar Cake
Naked layers of soft, fluffy brown sugar cinnamon cake, coated in cinnamon sugar and filled with coffee buttercream, in a small size that's just enough for 2-4 people.
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- 4-inch Round Cake Pans (x2)
- Electric Mixer (Stand or Hand-Held)
Ingredients
Cake
- ¾ cup cake flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ¼ cup whole milk, room temperature
- ¼ tsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp light brown sugar
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled for 10 minutes
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Cinnamon Sugar
- ½ tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp light brown sugar
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
Buttercream
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp meringue powder, optional
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- pinch coarse Kosher salt
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp instant espresso powder
- 2 tsp cream
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Spray the bottoms of two 4-inch cake pans with non-stick baking spray.
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon, then whisk until evenly distributed.
- Separately, whisk together the egg, milk, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, melted butter, oil and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and whisk just until moistened and combined.
- Divide the batter between the pans, and bang the pans on the counter a few times to pop the air bubbles.
- Bake the cakes for about 20 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Set the pans on a cooling rack, cool for 15 minutes, then turn the cakes out of the pans to cool completely before assembling and frosting.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Use a pastry brush to very lightly brush the sides of the cakes with the melted butter - this will give the cinnamon sugar something to stick to.
- In a shallow bowl, combine the sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon. Gently dip the sides of the cakes in the cinnamon sugar to coat the edges.
Buttercream
- With an electric mixer, beat the butter for 1 minute until smooth.
- With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar, meringue powder, salt and cinnamon, mixing until combined. In a small bowl, combine the vanilla, espresso powder and cream, stirring until the espresso powder is dissolved. Add the mixture to the buttercream.
- Increase the speed to medium (#6 on a Kitchen Aid mixer). Whip for several minutes, until light and fluffy, scraping the bowl down several times.
- Fit a piping bag with tip 1M, and fill with the buttercream.
- Place one of the cakes on a small plate. Pipe the buttercream on the cake, starting at the center of the cake and swirling around towards the edge. Place the second cake layer on top, and finish piping the buttercream on top of the cake.
Notes
Store the leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2-3 days.
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