25 Irresistible Poke Cakes You Need to Try

If you’re new to baking but want guaranteed success, these poke cakes are exactly what you’ll need.

They’re super simple and insanely moist – even if you accidentally overbake the sponge.

Poke cakes are just as they sound – cakes with holes poked all over the top.

Sounds odd, I know. But it’s what fills those holes that makes these cakes so popular.

I’m talking pudding, chocolate sauce, sweet syrup, and more!

It seeps into the crevices and soaks into the sponge, adding a ton of flavor and moisture.

Seriously, these poke cakes are so insanely tender, you don’t even need frosting on top. Try them and see for yourself!

25 Ridiculously Easy Poke Cake Recipes

1. Banana Pudding Poke Cake

Your favorite nostalgic dessert has just become a delectable cake!

Complete with vanilla wafers, pudding, and optional sliced bananas on top, this tastes just like your grandma’s banana pudding.

Only, of course, it’s also got a thick layer of sponge cake!

I like to add caramel or butterscotch sauce too so it’s like a cross between banana pudding and banoffee cake!

2. Do Nothing Cake

This cake may be made from scratch, but it couldn’t be easier.

If you look at the ingredients, it might surprise you to find there’s no oil or butter in the batter. Yet, it manages to be unbelievably moist!

That’s the power of poke cakes. Drizzled with a milk and butter sauce, not only does it taste magnificent, but the texture is on point, too.

3. Champagne Poke Cake with Champagne Glitter Glaze

Need something fancy for Mother’s Day? Try this Champagne cake!

It’s so pretty and glittery. But more importantly, it’ll blow your tastebuds away.

The sponge is super soft and fluffy, and the glaze on top is to die for.

A mix of melted butter, sugar, Champagne, and edible glitter, it’s ideal for special occasions!

Add some chococlate-covered strawberries to the top, and it’s as elegant as can be!

4. Halloween Poke Cake

If you’re reading this article sometime around October, you’re in luck! This poke cake is the ULTIMATE Halloween dessert.

I mean, just look at it! Its creepy-looking frosting will fit in at any Halloween party. 

The cake is flavored with orange Jell-O and topped with a decadent cream cheese frosting with a black and orange tinge.

It’s a sweet treat no ghost or ghoul can resist.

5. Lemon Poke Cake

Here’s another terrific dessert for Mother’s Day or special occasions. It’s even great as a zippy Easter treat.

This lemon poke cake is wonderfully light, airy, and refreshing. One slice isn’t enough.

It has just the perfect balance of tart, zesty, and sweet. Topped with whipped cream and fresh berries, it’s a wonderful explosion of tastes and textures. 

It’s the epitome of summer desserts!

6. Tres Leches Poke Cake (3 Milk Poke Cake)

Tres leches is one of those classic Spanish dessert recipes you’ll turn to again and again.

With layers of evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream, the vanilla cake is impossibly rich and creamy.

And oh my gosh, it’s so delicious. It’s moist but not soggy, and just packed with milky goodness.

It’s impossible to mess up, so if you’re new to baking, this recipe is a great place to start.

7. Better Than Sex Cake

Tender chocolate cake infused with caramel and sweetened condensed milk sounds pretty heavenly, huh?

And it is!

Also known as “Better than Anything Cake” this is not one to be missed. And it all starts with a box of chocolate cake mix!

Finished with whipped cream or Cool Whip and chocolate-covered toffee bits, it’s every chocolate lovers dream come true!

8. Triple Coconut Poke Cake 

If refreshing, tropical flavors are what you’re craving, this cake perfectly fits the bill.

You’ll poke holes in the most light and airy coconut cake infused with coconut cream. Then top it off with coconut whipped cream and toasted coconut. 

There’s coconut in each bite, and it’s amazing! This is what I call tropical paradise.

9. Skinny Funfetti Poke Cake

This Funfetti cake is perfect if you’re on a diet, but just need to satisfy a craving.

Your sweet tooth will definitely be impressed by how delectable this cake is. The cake itself is super moist and packed with flavor. 

Meanwhile, the whipped cream topping and sprinkles on top provide a lovely flavor and textural contrast.

It’s so good, it’s so surprising it’s not too high in calories.

10. Pina Colada Poke Cake

If you like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain, well, this poke cake is a must-try.

Every time I hear that song, it takes at least a day to get it out of my head!

It’s exactly what this cake does to me, as well. Bursting with flavors from coconut and pineapple, it’s wildly refreshing and decadent at the same time.

11. Boston Cream Poke Cake 

There really is something special about the combination of custard and chocolate. This cake is proof.

A combo of yellow cake, vanilla pudding, and chocolate glaze, this cake tastes just like my favorite Boston cream pie!

It’s so good it’s hard to limit yourself to one slice. Good thing one batch of this recipe can feed a crowd.

12. Peppermint Poke Cake

Have you tried combining red velvet and peppermint? It’s an unlikely mash-up, but it works like a charm.

First of all, the color combination is just delicious. That pink frosting on top of the red cake is just way too pretty.

The flavor is also very much on point. It’s sweet and chocolatey, with hints of mint goodness.

13. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Poke Cake

Peanut butter and chocolate are a match made in heaven. To me, these two ingredients should stay together, forever!

This cake, for instance, is just over-the-top delicious.

It has a chocolate cake layer at the bottom, which is drizzled with a vanilla and peanut butter pudding mixture for extra flavor and moisture.

Then, it’s topped with a light and airy peanut butter whipped cream and crushed peanut butter cups. 

Are you drooling? I definitely am.

14. S’mores Poke Cake

Love camping but too busy to go? Let this s’mores cake remind you of good-old campfire memories at home.

A moist chocolate cake is bathed in marshmallow crema and topped with crushed graham crackers, hot fudge, and toasted marshmallows.

This cake is both incredibly nostalgic and delicious.

15. Black Forest Poke Cake

A black forest combines the goodness of fudgy chocolate cake, cherry pie filling, whipped cream, and chocolate shavings.

Traditionally, the dessert calls for several components and a little bit of effort.

This simplified poke cake is so much easier but still has all the same flavors and textures.

16. Raspberry Lemon Jell-O Poke Cake

Raspberries and lemon create such a bright and refreshing explosion of flavors!

This cake is as delicious as it is pretty. The cake is soaked with raspberry flavor for flavor and moisture.

It’s then covered with a thick layer of lemon pudding and garnished with fresh raspberries on top.

This is what summer dessert dreams are made of.

17. Strawberry Shortcake Poke Cake

There’s nothing quite like a strawberry poke cake. The strawberry jello adds a ton of flavor to the vanilla cake, along with plenty of color.

But this a strawberry shortcake poke cake – so it’s even more special.

Feel free to top the strawberry jello cake with Cool Whip and call it a day. But the Golden Oreo crunch topping is too good to skip!

18. Grasshopper Poke Cake

Here’s the cake version of the popular mint cocktail – and it is fantastic.

It’s a chocolate mint cake poked and soaked in a rich chocolate pudding.

So that’s already flavor-packed. But you can still take it to the next level with hot fudge, mint-flavored whipped cream, and chocolate chips. 

Add a few drops of green food coloring, and it would work well as a St. Patrick’s Day dessert!

19. Pumpkin Spice Poke Cake

This is a scrumptious pumpkin and spice-flavored cake with cream cheese frosting on top.

What makes this cake stand out from other pumpkin cakes is that it’s poked and drizzled with sweetened condensed milk.

Aside from making the cake extra sweet, the milk also helps keep it outrageously moist for days.

20. Unicorn Poke Cake

This unicorn poke cake is the most charming cake any kid would love to have on their birthday!

Just look at how wonderful that color combination is. You won’t need to be an artist to pull this off, as it’s just a simple blend of food colorings.

You could even make this a fun 4th of July dessert with red, white, and blue colors!

21. Eggnog Poke Cake

Christmas is always just around the corner. And this eggnog poke cake is ideal for the holidays.

A simple boxed cake mix is given a festive makeover with eggnog pudding and pumpkin pie spice.

Dolled up with whipped cream and Nilla Wafers, this cake is a must-have at holiday parties.

22. Tiramisu Poke Cake

As delicious as traditional tiramisu is, it’s also a bit complicated to make. Enter, this chocolate poke cake recipe.

It’s loaded with coffee flavor, though it’s still plenty sweet and creamy.

23. Margarita Poke Cake

If a margarita is your cocktail of choice, this poke cake will be your newest favorite.

Flavored with lemon, lime, and just a little bit of booze, this cake is wonderfully light and refreshing with a kick. 

Top it with fresh fruit, grab a fork, and dig in!

24. Blueberry Cheesecake Poke Cake

What’s better than vanilla cake with blueberries? How about this blueberry and cheesecake poke cake extravaganza?!

You’ll make the cake from scratch, and use instant cheesecake pudding mix for the filling.

Poke holes over the baked cake, spread the cheesecake over the top, then pop it in the fridge to chill.

Finally, finish it with a tangy cream cheese topping and a vibrant blueberry sauce. Yum!

25. Oreo Cookie Pudding Poke Cake

If you’re a fan of all things cookie and cream, you need to make this stunning Oreo poke cake.

As you might’ve guessed, there’s a ton of Oreos in this one.

They’re crushed in the Cool Whip topping, and then there’s even more chopped cookies over the top.

Seriously, I can’t get enough of this cake. It’s just so darn good!