Making cinnamon roll pancakes is easier than they look. This recipe gives you fluffy pancakes with a gooey cinnamon-sugar swirl and cream cheese glaze, basically everything you love about a cinnamon roll in a stack.
Cinnamon Bun Pancakes
These cinnamon bun pancakes started with my favorite fluffy pancake recipe, but instead of just adding cinnamon to the batter, like with my cinnamon pancakes, I wanted the gooey cinnamon-sugar swirl you get inside an actual cinnamon roll. That swirl cooks right into the pancake, and with cream cheese glaze over the top, these are the pancakes I make when breakfast gets to feel a little more like dessert.
What Makes Them Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
It's the combination of a cinnamon-sugar swirl cooked directly into each pancake and the cream cheese glaze on top. The pancake itself stays soft and fluffy, while the brown sugar, butter, and cinnamon mixture gives you that gooey cinnamon-roll flavor in every bite.
How to Make Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
- Make the pancake batter.
Mix the dry and wet ingredients just until combined. A few lumps are fine. - Make the cinnamon swirl.
Mix the melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon, then transfer it to a piping or zip-top bag. - Cook the pancakes.
Pour the batter onto a hot greased griddle, pipe the cinnamon mixture into a swirl, then cook for about 2 minutes per side. - Add the glaze.
Mix the cream cheese glaze until smooth and drizzle it over the warm pancakes before serving.
Laura’s Tips for Perfect Pancakes with a Cinnamon Swirl
You’ll need a piping bag or a zip bag. If using a zip bag, snip only a very small opening in the corner of the bag. Start in the center of the pancake and pipe the cinnamon mixture outward in a spiral, stopping before you reach the edge. A thinner swirl is easier to control and less likely to spill onto the pan and burn.
Pipe the cinnamon mixture onto the pancake immediately after pouring the batter onto the griddle. This gives the swirl time to sink slightly into the batter as the pancake cooks instead of sitting completely on top.
Some of the brown sugar mixture will be left behind after each batch. Wipe the griddle with a damp cloth, or quickly rinse the pan between batches, so that leftover sugar doesn’t burn onto the next pancakes.
No. You can serve them with maple syrup or cinnamon syrup, but the cream cheese glaze is what really gives them that cinnamon-roll finish. Mine is made with cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla and takes about a minute to make.
More Cinnamon Breakfast Ideas
If cinnamon is the spice that warms your heart, try these coffee cake muffins, these cinnamon roll overnight oats, this cinnamon apple bread, this cinnamon French toast, these cinnamon toast crunch pancakes, and these French toast pancakes.
Cinnamon Roll Pancakes (Easy!)
Watch how it’s made:
Ingredients
Pancake batter:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- Pinch salt
- 1 ¼ cups milk
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Cinnamon Filling:
- ⅓ cup melted butter
- ⅔ cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Cream Cheese Glaze:
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 ounces cream cheese
- 1 ¼ cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the cinnamon filling:
- In a medium bowl, combine the melted butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Transfer the cinnamon mixture into a zip bag and set aside. Thick freezer bags are easiest to use for this.
Make the pancake batter:
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the middle and add the milk, egg, melted butter, and vanilla. Use a fork to whisk the egg into the milk, then combine the other ingredients. Mix the batter from the outside of the bowl in, until it's just combined.
Make the cream cheese glaze:
- In a microwave-safe bowl, place the cream cheese and butter. Microwave for 30 seconds to melt them, adding more time (if needed) in 15-second increments, mixing to combine each time. Once melted, add the powdered sugar and vanilla, and set aside.
Cook the pancakes:
- Heat a non-stick pan or griddle over medium heat. Once hot, grease it and immediately pour ⅓ to ½ cup of batter per pancake, using the back of the scoop to spread it out.
- Snip the tip of the cinnamon filling bag (make a very small hole) and squeeze the cinnamon in a spiral swirl on top of the pancake. Cook the first side for 2 minutes, and when the edges are defined and some bubbles have formed, flip the pancakes over and cook the second side for 1 to 2 more minutes. Remove them from the pan onto a plate.
- Wipe down the griddle with a damp cloth or quickly rinse the pan between batches to remove any leftover cinnamon sugar. If you don’t, the residue will burn the next batch. Repeat the process with the remaining batter and cinnamon roll filling.
Serve and store:
- Stack a couple of pancakes and drizzle some warm cream cheese mixture over the tops.
- Once cooled, refrigerate leftover pancakes in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Cover the glaze with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Reheat the pancakes in the microwave for 30 seconds, until warm. The glaze will soften as it comes to room temperature, or heat it up in the microwave in 10-second intervals on a reduced heat setting (50%), stirring between intervals.
Notes
- Nutrition information is calculated without the glaze.
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joe says
mine came out more like crepes –.super yummy tho
Sharrie says
These were amazing! My son wasn’t excited to try “fancy” pancakes, and then he took a bite and changed his mind. So good! Thank you for the recipe.