Cinnamon Swirl Quick Bread Recipe

Published: by Brigette on October 14, 2026 | This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy here.

This is an easy quick bread recipe that looks fancier than it actually is! I love it because it uses simple ingredients that I always keep on hand in my pantry. It’s especially wonderful warmed up or toasted with butter for breakfast or an after-school snack (my boys actually cheer when they walk in the door and smell this, haha).

A freshly baked loaf of cinnamon swirl bread with promo text Cinnamon Swirl Quick Bread and MoneySavingMom.com.

I make this bread all throughout the year, but I especially love making it in the fall because I love the way it makes my house smell like “autumn” while it’s baking! My entire family shamelessly begs me to make this bread. I hope you will love it as much as we do at my house!

Ingredients for homemade cinnamon bread arranged on a wooden table including flour in a glass mixing bowl, milk, sugar, baking soda, salt, powdered sugar, an egg and measured ingredients in cups and spoons.

Cinnamon Swirl Quick Bread Ingredients

1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk (I substitute 1 cup milk + 1 Tablespoon vinegar and let it sit for 5 minutes)
1/4 cup oil

Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar
a few teaspoons milk — enough to get to a glaze consistency

Close up of a sliced cinnamon swirl quick bread loaf with white icing drizzled across its crunchy cinnamon sugar crust.

How to Make Cinnamon Swirl Quick Bread

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1 Tablespoon cinnamon. Set aside.

2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and remaining sugar.

3. In a third bowl, combine buttermilk, egg, and oil.

Three bowls containing ingredients for homemade cinnamon swirl quick bread arranged on a dark wooden table.

4. Stir the buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened.

5. Pour half of the batter into a greased 9x5x3-inch pan. Sprinkle with half of the cinnamon-sugar. Spread the remaining batter on top and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon-sugar.

A metal loaf pan filled with a layer of cinnamon sugar beside a large mixing bowl containing pale quick bread batter.

A rectangular metal loaf pan filled with pale quick bread batter covered in an even layer of cinnamon sugar.

6. Swirl knife through batter.

Unbaked cinnamon bread batter in a rectangular metal loaf pan with large swirls of cinnamon sugar running across the surface.

7. Bake 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan and cooling on wire rack.

8. Combine glaze ingredients and drizzle over bread when it has completely cooled off. Slice and enjoy.

Side view of a homemade cinnamon bread loaf resting on a black wire cooling rack with drizzled glaze.

Sliced cinnamon swirl quick bread on a black cooling rack with a thick layer of cinnamon sugar topping and white icing. Two slices in front reveal the dark cinnamon swirls.

Makes 1 loaf

Recipe