So let me preface this post with the fact that I am NOT a baker. Yes, I dabble with the occasional batch of cookies or a pie, but I keep it simple. Our family does enjoy sweets from time to time though, so I take these opportunities to come up with something fun, tasty, and easy. For the Fourth of July this year I wanted to make something special. We often just make sandwiches before we go to watch fireworks, but since everything is shut down this year, we laid low at home. I wanted to make BBQ for our dinner, so I thought a nice cake would be a delicious accompaniment.
I Pinterested and mulled over my options for possible desserts, but nothing really jumped out at me. Especially something that wasn't complicated and time-consuming. I did not want to battle my sanity while making dinner AND dessert with the family and I stuck inside, because of the 100+ degree temps on a day we should be celebrating. First thing I did was take stock of my pantry. I didn't feel like running to the store yet again after the many visits we had already done for our BBQ meal. I had the regular things, some chocolate chips, flour, some pumpkin bread mix from three years ago. I also had a box of cake mix and some vanilla pudding. LIGHTBULB! I'd make a pudding poke cake. As it turns out I did indeed need to go to the store, but it was just for three things so I didn't mind. I didn't mind sending my husband actually.
Like I said previously, I am not a baker, so this recipe is perfectly simple for the non-baker in me. It's also perfectly fast for the busy mom in me. So let's get started on the details.
What you will need:
- 1 Box of Cake Mix. I chose a plain vanilla cake, but you could use any. A red velvet cake would actually be quite fitting, but I'm trying to keep dyes out of our diet so I opted for a white cake.
- 1 Box of Instant Pudding. Again, this can be any flavor of your choosing. I chose plain vanilla, because I felt it would set off the flavors of the fruit topping best.
- 16 oz. carton of heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/3 cup of powdered sugar
- 1 tbs. vanilla
- fresh fruit: blueberries and strawberries or raspberries
Putting it together:
Make the cake according to the box, or whatever recipe you choose to use.
2. When it's ready and while it's still warm, poke holes at regular intervals all over the cake. I used the handle of a utensil that's about 1/4 of an inch in diameter.
3. Next, prepare your instant pudding.
4. When the pudding is ready, start spooning it onto your cake, concentrating on filling the holes. (Tip: don't mix until the pudding is super thick, because it's harder to fill the holes. The good thing about doing this to a warm cake, however, is that the pudding eventually oozes into the holes. It just might take a little longer.)
5. Let the cake sit with the pudding on it for 10-15 minutes so you can make sure the holes and cake are completely covered with pudding as it begins to melt into the holes. The photo below shows how the pudding is sinking into the holes as the pudding heats up.
6. As you're waiting for the cake holes to fill, you can start preparing your whipped cream. For this you will need your whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Simply pour the whipping cream into a bowl with tall sides. Add the vanilla and 1/3 cup of powdered sugar. Next, start whipping. I have a Cuisinart hand mixer that I've had for years, and love it. It makes a mess, but whips so well. Whip the cream, adding 1/3 of a cup in increments, until the whipped cream is thick and fluffy.
7. Next, ensure all the holes in your cake are filled with pudding and start spreading your whipped cream to the top of your cake. Once you have a nice thick layer of whipped cream on your cake, put it in the fridge for 2 hours.
8. Once fully chilled, prepare your fruit and remove your cake from the refrigerator.
9. Finally, lay your fruit out on your cake. We started in the upper left corner with the blueberries, eyeballing how big the blue portion of the American flag is. Then I started laying the strawberries. I sadly don't have a photo of this process, because I wasn't having to fend of my kids from eating the fruit off the top of the cake. So here's a pretty picture of the fruit I topped my cake with.
Next, take a bunch of Instagram worthy photos and share them on social media to make your friends drool and think you're an amazing baker. Just kidding, partially. I love this cake recipe, because it's simple, delicious, and can be decorated in so many wonderful ways with fruit, flowers, fun decorations for your kids, and so much more. The pudding makes the cake decadently moist, and the whipped cream is so light and fluffy, without being overly sweet against the heavier taste and textures of the pudding and cake. This cake was heavenly to eat! It was gone in a few days between the four of us.
Mom Tip: Buy extra fruit and pile it on the side of the cake. My kids love fruit so extra fruit wasn't a hard sell, but if there are kids like me, a bit of cake helps the fruit go down...in the most delightful way.
