Rainbow Poke Cake

Rainbow poke cake is a bright and colourful cake that comes together easily using simple ingredients. Starting with a boxed vanilla cake and instant pudding, this cake is moist and delicious. Perfect for a birthday party or anytime you want an easy, colourful dessert.

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If you are looking for an easy cake with tons of flavour and endless combinations, you can’t go wrong with a poke cake.

This rainbow poke cake is made with a simple boxed cake mix, filled with instant pudding and topped with a fluffy vanilla topping.

The rainbow colour is achieved by dividing the cake batter and colouring each portion with different colours before dropping it in random patterns in the baking pan.

The rainbow colours make this cake fun and colourful, perfect for celebrating a child’s birthday.

Depending on the colours you use you can turn this into a unicorn cake, mermaid cake, Fourth of July cake, or even use it to celebrate your favourite sports team.

You can make this cake as simple or as fancy as you want by either using store-bought ingredients, or making everything from scratch.

And while you can serve this cake just as it is, it’s even better with a scoop of Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream.

Ingredients

For a full list of ingredients and measurements, see the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

• Cake mix (and the ingredients to make it) – You will need one box to make a 9×13 cake. I suggest using a basic white cake mix for this recipe so that the colours are brighter. But funfetti cake mix would work well too. Yellow cake mix will work, but it will alter the colours you add.
• Instant pudding – This will be the filling for the cake. I chose to keep this a vanilla cake and have used vanilla pudding, but you can really use any flavour you like. You will also need one box to mix with the whipped topping for the frosting.
• Frozen whipped topping – Frozen whipped topping is used because it has more stability and will stay fluffy longer than real whipped cream. The whipped topping is lighter that typical frosting and matches well with the light, lemon cake.
• Milk – Milk is needed to make the pudding. You can use whole milk, 2%, or fat-free.
• Food colouring – You will need food colouring to dye the cake. I’ve used 5 different colours, but you can use as many as you like. I prefer gel food colouring as it produces more vivid colour.
• Sprinkles – Rainbow sprinkles make the cake pretty. You can use whatever you like, basic sprinkles, fancy sprinkles, or any combination of textures and colours. If you don’t want to use sprinkles you can use chopped nuts, shaved chocolate, or even fresh berries.

Step by Step Instructions

Prepare the Rainbow Cake Batter

Step 1 – Begin by mixing the cake batter according to the package directions. Then divide the cake batter into 5 bowls. Use food colouring to colour the batter in each bowl your desired colours.

Step 2 – Prepare a 9×13 pan, then drop the coloured batter into the pan by large spoonfuls in random patterns. Avoid swirling the batter to produce more vivid colours.

Bake the cake according to the package directions, or the directions of the recipe you are using.

Fill the Poke Cake

Step 3 – Let the cake cool completely, then poke holes in the cake with the end of a wooden spoon or other rounded tool. You want the holes to be about 1/2 inch wide in order for the pudding to fill them.

Step 4 – Mix 1.5 cups of milk with one box of vanilla pudding in a large bowl until it begins to thicken, but is still runny. Use a small spoon or small tipped piping bag to fill the holes of the cake with the pudding. Pour the rest of the pudding over the cake. Spread it over the cake and gently press to make sure the holes are filled.

Pro-Tip: Because the pudding is fairly thick, using a piping bag to fill the holes will help ensure the pudding fills the holes completely.

Decorate the Cake

Step 5 – Mix 1 cup of milk with the remaining box of vanilla pudding just until it begins to thicken, then fold 4 cups of thawed, frozen whipped topping into the pudding.

Drop the prepared topping onto the cake and gently spread to cover the cake. If you like, you can reserve some topping to add swirls to the served slices of cake.

Add sprinkles or other decorations to the top of the cake.

Step 6 – Let the cake rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to allow the topping and pudding to set, then slice and serve.

Variations and Substitutions

There are several ways you can customize this cake to suit your needs.

• Instead of a boxed cake mix, you can substitue your favourite, homemade white or vanilla cake.
• Instead of pudding, consider using homemade lemon curd for a burst of flavour.
• If you don’t want to use pudding, you can use jello instead. It won’t be creamy, but it will give great flavour, lots of moisture, and there are endless flavours to choose from. Follow the directions in my raspberry poke cake recipe for directions on using jello.
• If you don’t want to use frozen whipped topping, you can top this cake with fresh whipped cream, a tub of store-bought frosting, or your favourite homemade buttercream.

Serving Suggestions for Poke Cake

Because this poke cake is already filled with pudding and topped with a fluffy, creamy topping, and because it is so colourful, it is fantastic on its own.

However, if you do want to serve it with something, you can never go wrong with ice cream. The vanilla flavour of this cake means you can serve it easily with any flavour of ice cream that you like.

This rainbow poke cake would also be pretty served with fresh berries or fruit.

If you like, you can serve this cake with extra pudding, or even serve it with some lemon curd, raspberry sauce, or butterscotch sauce to spoon over top.

Tips for Success and FAQS

• For the most defined colour varitations, drop the coloured batter by large spoonfuls and try not to swirl it. Swirling the batter can create muddy, dark colours.
• Use a drop or two more food colouring than you think you need as the colours will be less bright after baking.
• Let the cake rest for an hour before serving to allow the pudding to set properly.

More Poke Cake Recipes

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