Honey Bun Cake
This moist, indulgent, old-fashioned Honey Bun Cake is one of the best sweet treats! It's one of our most popular dessert recipes on the site, and for good reason - the brown sugar and cinnamon cake mix is topped with a sweet glaze for a bite straight from heaven!
Servings: 15 servings
Calories: 406kcal
Ingredients
Cake
- 8 ounce cream cheese softened
- 4 large eggs
- ⅔ cup oil
- 15.25 ounce yellow cake mix box or homemade substitute
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Glaze
- 2 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease a 13x9-inch baking dish.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add eggs, oil and the cake mix. Mix until well combined.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon. If adding pecans, mix in as well.
- Pour half of the cake batter into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the brown sugar cinnamon mixture evenly over the batter.
- Dollop the remaining cake batter over the top of the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture. Spread in an even layer for full cake coverage.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth.
- When the cake is done baking, remove it from the oven and allow it cool for 5 minutes. Poke holes over the entire cake.
- Drizzle the glaze over the top of the warm cake. Let the cake cool completely before slicing and serving.
Video
Notes
Expert Tips and Substitutions
- Swap out the cream cheese. The cream cheese can be substituted with 1 cup of sour cream. You can do this if you prefer a milder flavor.
- Make a homemade yellow cake mix. If you want to substitute the boxed cake mix with a from-scratch version, here are the ingredients: 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon baking powder, 1 tsp salt
- Add nuts for more texture. We love adding ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts to the brown sugar cinnamon mixture layer.
- Ice the cake while it's still warm. This is crucial for that crackly sweet topping. We like to also poke holes into the top before glazing so that the icing seeps into the cake mix too.
Storage
Store leftover honeybun cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. This dessert is great to make in advance before guests arrive at a party. We don't recommend freezing since it will change the texture.Nutrition
Calories: 406kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 66mg | Sodium: 284mg | Potassium: 86mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 47g | Vitamin A: 289IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 108mg | Iron: 1mg
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