Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease the sides of two 8-inch round cake pans and add parchment rounds to the bottom of the pans.
In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, pudding mix, and salt. Whisk well.
Add all wet ingredients to the mixing bowl and stir in--do not overmix. Fold in pecans.
Divide batter evenly between the prepared cake pans.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
Let the cakes cool in the pans on a rack for 10 minutes before removing from the pans and removing parchment paper. Continue to cool completely.
Even out the cakes if they have mounded and then slice each cake into two layers for four layers total.
Prepare the cream cheese frosting. Double the recipe to frost all layers and the entire cake. Another option is to use plenty between the layers and then frost only the top of the completed cake.
Enjoy!
Notes
If your cakes dome slightly during baking, cool them on the racks with the top side down once you remove them from the tins.