Cereal cake is the answer when you want something a little unexpected and whimsical. It’s a simple, one layer snack cake packed with nostalgic cereal flavor. Soaked cereal milk is used in both the homemade cake batter and the cereal milk icing glaze. The cake comes together with about 15 minutes of prep time and bakes in under 30 minutes in an 8x8 pan. No fancy techniques, no complicated decoration, just a really soft, tender and flavorful cake!!
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The idea of a cereal cake popped up when I surveyed my email subscribers for nostalgic cake flavors. Peanut butter jelly cake, anyone? This cereal milk cake tastes like your favorite childhood breakfast in cake form. It’s sweet and soft and will make people ask, “wait, what IS this?” before going back for a second piece. And since I am grown up now, I can tell you it pairs perfectly with a cup of coffee!
You will need to plan ahead to soak the cereal in milk to create the cereal milk. And you will want to bring the cold ingredients to room temperature, but everything about this cake is quick and easy to prepare. If you like low effort, easy one layer cakes, my chocolate chip snack cake is another favorite with cozy, nostalgic vibes.
💗 why make this cereal cake?
- It tastes like that best sip of milk at the bottom of your cereal bowl!
- One layer, simple decoration that anyone can do.
- Use any breakfast cereal you love. Froot Loops, Cocoa Puffs, Corn Flakes, the options are endless.
🍰 ingredient notes
I tested this recipe a few times, tweaking the amount of cereal crumbs and cereal milk to get the right cake texture and sweet cereal milk flavor. The incredibly moist crumb with a thin layer of icing is a perfect pair.
Please scroll to the printable recipe card at the end of this post for the full list of ingredients and baking directions.
Cereal ~ My family voted for Froot Loops, which gave the cake a sweet, nostalgic flavor that everyone loved. Plus, the crushed cereal in the batter creates some pretty colored specks in baked cake. Any sweetened/frosted cereal should work here. Cocoa Puffs would give you a chocolate version and Frosted Flakes would have more of a classic vanilla vibe. Cinnamon Toast Crunch would be incredible with the warm cinnamon. You’ll use the cereal in three ways; soaked in milk to make the cereal milk, crushed into fine crumbs for the cake batter and a little extra for decoration on top.
Milk ~ I used 2%, but whole milk will give you a slightly richer cereal milk
Butter and oil ~ the butter brings flavor and the oil keeps the crumb moist and soft. You will want the butter at room temperature. Either canola or vegetable oil will work.
Sour cream ~ full fat will give the best results. It keeps the cake tender and adds some richness. Full fat Greek yogurt can be substituted.
Pro tip ~ to quickly bring eggs to room temperature, place them in a bowl of warm tap water for 5-10 minutes.
🥛 how to make cereal milk
This step happens first and is super easy! Combine the milk and cereal in a bowl and let it sit for one hour. The milk soaks up all the sweet cereal flavored goodness! You can do this up to a day ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator.
Once it has soaked, strain the milk through a fine mesh strainer and discard the soggy cereal. You now have cereal milk. ⅓ cup will be used in the cake batter and save the rest for icing.
🥣 how to make in photos
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a food processor (I use my mini-prep), crush the cereal to fine crumbs.
With a hand-mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, kosher salt, granulated sugar and oil until combined.
Add in the eggs and vanilla and mix on medium for until combined. Scrape up and down the bowl.
Now add the sour cream and baking powder and mix until combined.
Then add half of the flour and mix on low until some large streaks of flour remain. Scrape up and down the bowl and add the cereal milk mixing on low until just combined.
Now add the remaining flour and the cereal crumbs and mix with a spatula until combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place in the preheated oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
🎉 quick and easy decoration idea
Once the cake is cool, make the icing. Stir together the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and cereal milk in a bowl. You want a thick, spreadable glaze. Start with 1 tablespoon of milk and add more slowly. The icing should be thick enough to spread without running over the edges.
Spread the icing immediately over the top of the cake (an offset spatula is helpful here). Then scatter some crushed cereal pieces over the top. I like to use my fingers to break the cereal into irregular sized pieces so you get a little color and crunch in every bite.
The icing will set at room temperature in about 30 minutes. If you can’t wait that long, you can absolutely slice into the cake while the icing is still soft!
If you love a good simple glaze situation, my lemon snack cake has a similar easy topping and that bright citrusy flavor is a nice contrast if you want to make another cake along side this one.
👩🏻🍳 tips for the best snack cake
Make the cereal milk first. It needs at least one hour to soak, so plan accordingly. It’s hands off time, but needs to happen first.
Use a kitchen scale. I know I say this every recipe, but it’s the most reliable way to measure. Too much flour will affect the texture of the final cake. This is the kitchen scale I use, but this Escali scale is a great option as well.
Room temperature ingredients. The butter, eggs and sour cream should all be room temperature before you start mixing. Cold ingredients don’t combine as well and will affect how the cake bakes.
Don’t over bake. The cake is done when a toothpick in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
Crush the cereal garnish with your fingers. You don’t want it powdery on top, just gently broken into smaller pieces for color and crunch. Add it right after you spread the icing, so it sticks.
🫙 a note on storage
An airtight container can make the icing a bit sticky. If you want to avoid that, leave the top of the cereal cake uncovered. Then press parchment paper or plastic wrap against the sides of any cake to keep it from drying out.
Remember to snap a picture and tag me on Instagram if you make this Simple One Layer Cereal Cake. It warms my heart to see you bring these recipes to life! Thank you for being here and happy baking!
If you make this recipe {or any recipe!} from two sugar bugs please come back and leave a review and a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating. I read every comment, and I LOVE hearing from you!
📖 recipe
Simple One Layer Cereal Cake
recipe created and tested by:
I highly recommend using weight (metric) measurements when available for more accuracy and the best results.
Please note
When using 2x or 3x ingredients, the grams DO NOT adjust, you will have to manually do that.
Ingredients
cereal milk
- ¾ cup cereal 27g*, I used Froot Loops
- ¾ cup milk 177mL, I use 2%
cereal cake
- ½ cup cereal crushed to fine crumbs 18g*
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature 28g
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ cup granulated sugar 150g
- ¼ cup vegetable oil** 56g
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 5 tablespoons sour cream 75g
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 156g
- ⅓ cup cereal milk 80mL
cereal milk icing
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar 120g
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 - 2 tablespoons cereal milk 15-30mL
- Additional crushed cereal for garnish
Instructions
for the cereal milk
- Start by placing ¾ cup/27g cereal and ¾ cup/177mL milk in a bowl and let sit for at least one hour. Can be placed in a covered bowl in the refrigerator for up to one day ahead. (you will have a few tablespoons of cereal milk left over)
for the cake
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C and line an 8x8 baking pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a food processor, crush the cereal (½ cup/18g) to fine crumbs. You can also place the cereal in a zip-top bag and use a rolling pin to crush the cereal. Set aside.
- With a hand-mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter (2 tablespoons/28g), kosher salt (½ teaspoon), granulated sugar (¾ cup/150g) and oil (¼ cup/56g) for 2-3 minutes on medium until combined.
- Add in the eggs (2 large) and vanilla (2 teaspoons) and mix on medium for 30-60 seconds, until combined. Scrape up and down the bowl.
- Now add the sour cream (⅓ cup/75g) and baking powder (1 ½ teaspoons) and mix until combined, about 30 seconds.
- Then add half of the flour (total flour amount is 1 ¼ cups/156g, so half is 78g) and mix on low until some large streaks of flour remain. Scrape up and down the bowl and add the cereal milk (⅓ cup/80mL), mixing on low until just combined. Now add the remaining flour (78g) and the cereal crumbs and mix with a spatula until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place in the preheated oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs.
- The cereal cake can cool in the pan, set on a wire rack. This will take about 1 hour at room temperature.
For the cereal milk icing
- Once the cake is cool, in a bowl mix together the confectioners’ sugar (1 cup/120g), vanilla (½ teaspoon) and 1 -2 tablespoons of the remaining cereal milk until a thick, spreadable glaze is formed. (my icing consistently took 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons cereal milk)
- Spread the icing over the cake and garnish with more crushed cereal pieces (I use my fingers to crush the pieces) The icing will set in about 30 minutes at room temperature. The cake can be served immediately, if you don’t mind the icing being soft.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information is based on third-party calculations, is an estimate only and may not be entirely accurate. Actual nutritional values will vary based on brands used and portion sizes.
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