Strawberry Lemonade Poke Cake Recipe

Recipe developer Patterson Watkins is no fan of that old cliché about a recipe being handed down between generations, but when it comes to this poke cake, she says she needs to give credit where credit is due. "My grandma actually inspired this recipe," she says. "She would make these kick-ass lemon cakes using boxed lemon cake mix and pudding mix, creating semi-homemade deliciousness."

Old-fashioned Jell-O poke cakes have been around since the 1970s when they featured prominently in Jell-O's advertising, but Watkins adds a contemporary twist to this delightfully retro recipe. She was also inspired by a social media hack that involved adding Kool-Aid to lemonade to give it some extra flavor and felt that a similar idea could work with a cake, as well. Instead of using Kool-Aid, she went with Jell-O, since poke cakes allow for great flavor distribution, the jelly ribbons provide a little textural contrast, and the two-tone look makes them extra-photogenic.

The cake batter starts with a box of lemon cake mix, to which you'll be adding vanilla instant pudding, lemonade, vegetable oil, and eggs. The filling is made with a box of strawberry Jell-O and more lemonade, while you'll need buttercream frosting, fresh strawberries, and a lemon for the topping.

Preheat the oven to 325 F.

Line a 13x9-inch baking pan with parchment paper and lightly spritz with cooking spray.

To make the cake batter, place the cake mix and vanilla pudding mix in a large bowl and whisk to combine.

Add the lemonade, oil, and eggs to the bowl and whisk to combine the batter.

Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan and spread it out in an even layer.

Place the baking pan in the oven and bake for 45 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside to completely cool on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the strawberry filling: Place the lemonade in a small saucepan and bring to a low simmer over medium heat.

Once simmering, remove from the heat and add the Jell-O. Stir until the Jell-O has dissolved, about 3 minutes. Set aside until the mixture has reached room temperature, about 10 minutes.

Once the cake has cooled, use the rounded handle of a wooden spoon to poke approximately 24 holes into the cake.

Spoon the Jell-O mixture into the holes.

Place the baking pan in the refrigerator and chill for at least 6 hours and preferably overnight for the best results.

Once chilled, remove the cake from the refrigerator. Gently remove the cake from the pan and set it on a wire rack or large platter.

Spoon the buttercream frosting onto the cake and spread it out evenly over the surface.

Garnish the cake with the strawberries and lemon slices before serving.

Strawberries and lemonade are a classic combo, but feel free to swap out the cake mix for a different flavor. Use vanilla cake batter to make a strawberries and cream poke cake, or chocolate for a chocolate-covered strawberry cake. Strawberries and funfetti would certainly be festive, and you could double down on the pink by opting for strawberry-flavored cake mix.

You can change up the Jell-O flavor, too. Lemon cake works well with other berry flavors like raspberry or blueberry (or the Jell-O flavor "berry blue," which combines the two). Or, you could go with lemon Jell-O or a different citrus flavor, such as orange or lime. Consider a coconut cake with pineapple pokes or chocolate cake with black cherry, orange, or apricot. If you're in a holiday mood, you could even make a pumpkin poke cake with cranberry Jell-O and serve it as a fun alternative to Thanksgiving pie.

If you want to turn this sheet cake recipe into poke cupcakes, this is absolutely doable and won't take too much more work. You make the batter the exact same way but pour it into a muffin pan instead of a cake pan (don't forget the paper cupcake liners!). Check the cake mix box for the baking time, but be aware that you might need to tack on an extra five or 10 minutes due to the pudding and extra eggs in the mix. Once the cupcakes are baked, let them cool completely.

When the cupcakes are ready, poke two or three holes in each one, then fill them up with Jell-O. The cupcakes, too, will need to be refrigerated until the Jell-O sets, but since they're smaller than a cake, five or six hours should work. Once they're chilled, frost and decorate them any way you like. You could use a small lemon slice and half a berry per cupcake, or you might do something simpler, such as sprinkling them with yellow and pink sprinkles or sugar.