• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour three 8 inch pans, adding a circle of parchment or wax paper to the bottom of each pan.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt for 30 seconds and set aside.
• In another bowl, add these wet ingredients: buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract. Set aside.
• In the bowl of your mixer, add the butter and cream cheese and mix at medium speed until smooth.
• Gradually add the sugar and mix at medium speed for 2-3 minutes.
• Add the room temperature eggs one at a time, mixing until the yellow of the yolk disappears.
• With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture (We did 3 additions of the dry mixture, 2 additions of wet)
• Mix the batter just until well combined- be careful not to over-mix. Divide the batter between the three pans.
• Bake at 325 degrees F for 25-28 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Let cool for 5-10 minutes in the pans on a wire rack before turning out.
• This recipe makes 7 ½ cups of batter. Works for cupcakes also (although there will be little to no dome).

For the Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

• Cut the butter into slices and add to the bowl of your mixer. Beat on low to medium speed until the butter is softened and smooth.
• Cut the softened cream cheese into pieces and add to the butter, beating at low to medium speed until incorporated.Add the vanilla. Gradually add the powdered sugar and cinnamon, mixing on low to medium speed until blended.
• If the frosting becomes too soft, just refrigerate a short while to firm it up a bit.This frosting will pipe best if used while still chilled. You can make it in advance, refrigerate and when ready to use let it soften slightly (do not microwave) and remix.

Assembly of Cake

• Place first cake layer on cake plate or pedestal. Spread the top with buttercream and repeat for the next two cake layers.
• Fill in any gaps between the stacked cake layers with buttercream and apply the crumb coat (thin coat) of frosting. At this point, I like to chill my crumb coated cake in the freezer for 10- 15 minutes (or longer in the refrigerator) until the frosting has firmed up. This is optional, but I find it helpful to decorate a chilled cake.
• Apply the second coat of frosting.

  Decorate however you'd like! I made the frosting fairly smooth before going back in and adding texture with a small rounded offset spatula. I finished things off with a bit of piping on top (8B or similar), and a light sprinkling of cinnamon (I tapped it through a fine mesh sifter for this).

Storage

• This cake needs refrigeration because of the cream cheese frosting (in a cake dome, airtight container, or sealed bakery box). However, for the very best flavor and texture, remove from the refrigerator a 2-3 before serving. This will allow plenty of time for the cake to warm and soften.