Banana Pudding Poke Cake
Banana Pudding Poke Cake is an easy dessert recipe made with cake mix poked with banana pudding, topped with Cool Whip and crushed Nilla Wafers!
An Easy Banana Pudding Inspired Cake
The inspiration for this Banana Pudding Poke Cake actually started out at work. My co-worker, Heather, loves Banana Pudding. But my other co-worker, Amanda does not like bananas – at all. She likes the flavor of bananas but not the texture. But everyone loves cake! So the idea of the banana poke cake was born. All the banana pudding flavors you love – in cake form. This cake is on a different level of delicious! It is so good and will not disappoint!
This cake is my family’s favorite. I make it for most holidays…and always for my grandsons birthday, at his request. I often make it if I need to bring a dish to an event. I get so many compliments and requests for the recipe. Love it! My go to!
– Linda
Frequently Asked Questions:
Yes but they will turn brown as soon as you slice into the cake; so if you plan on serving this over the course of a couple of days, just keep in mind those bananas will turn brown and this cake won’t be as pretty. If you are serving it all the on the same day then you can do that. It all depends on your preference.
Yes! The sky is the limit with poke cakes! Since creating this specific banana poke cake recipe in 2012, I have added about thirty five poke cake combinations. Some of the most popular ones are: Boston Cream Poke Cake, Red Velvet Poke Cake, Oreo Pudding Poke Cake and Lemon Blueberry Poke Cake. I have list of all my poke cake recipes here.
Yes. As long as it is covered well to protect against freezer burn. You can freeze it for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator and not on the counter.
Yes. When I first shared this recipe in 2012, cake mix sizes were 18.5 ounces, then went down to 15.25 ounces and some are now down to 13.25 ounces. I have tried it with every size and it all still works. Duncan Hines (as of writing this post) is still at 15.25 ounces. Betty Crock and others have gone down to the 13.25 ounces. Duncan Hines is my personal favorite brand but they all work.
Leftovers should be stored covered, in the refrigerator, for up to 3 days.
Ingredients Needed: (See Recipe Card Below For The Full Recipe)
- yellow cake mix – you could use any flavor of cake you think would go well with the banana pudding. Since sharing this recipe, Dolly Parton has come out with a line of cake mixes and one is a banana flavor (paid affiliate link) so you could really go all out with all banana by using that cake mix. Or you can make a homemade yellow cake.
- ingredients needed to make cake – you are going to use the amounts of eggs, oil and water that are on the back of the cake mix box.
- instant banana pudding – DO NOT GET COOK & SERVE PUDDING OR IT WON’T SET UP. Cook and serve requires heat before it will set up. I’ve had this recipe on my site for over 12 years and this issue still comes up so I am trying to make it as obvious as possible. You have to be very careful when looking at the packaging because the word “Instant” can be small on the box. If it is not instant, it will not set up and you’ll end up with a wet mess. Or, you can make my homemade vanilla pudding recipe and instead of adding the vanilla extract, use banana extract.
- milk – I prefer to use a while milk. I definitely would not use a skim milk. I have never made pudding with milk alternatives so I am not familiar with how those set up.
- whipped topping (Cool Whip) – if you want to make your own homemade whipped cream, you can. Just remember that homemade whipped cream is not as stable as whipped topping so if you aren’t planning to eat it the same day you make it, the homemade whipped cream will start to break down and lose it’s stability.
- Nilla wafers – normally I am totally fine with the store brand of things but not with the wafers. I have never found a store brand or other brand of wafers that taste as good as the name brand (and I try a lot pretty often) so I think this should be name brand if you can afford it.
How To Make Banana Pudding Poke Cake
Prepare cake mix according to package directions for a 9×13-inch cake. Once cake comes out of the oven, allow it to cool for just a couple of minutes. Then, with a wooden spoon handle or some other similarly-sized object, begin poking holes in the cake. You want the holes to be fairly big so that the pudding has plenty of room to get down in there. Be sure to poke right down to the bottom of the cake.
In a bowl, whisk together instant pudding with 4 cups milk. Stir until all the lumps are gone. Let pudding sit for about 1-2 minutes so it has just slightly begun to thicken but not fully set, it should still be easily pourable.
Pour pudding over cake. Taking care to get it into the holes as much as possible. Spread it all out and using the back of the spoon gently push pudding down into the holes.
Put the pudding into the fridge to set and cool. Once your cake has completely cooled, spread on whipped topping. Sprinkle crushed wafers onto the top of the cake. You can do this part immediately before serving the cake if you like. This will ensure the wafers are crunchy when you serve it.
I think this cake gets more delicious over time. To me, it’s even better the next day so it’s a great dessert to make ahead of time. Serve with freshly sliced bananas. Keep refrigerated.
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Originally published: June 2012
Updated photos and republished: March 2024
Banana Pudding Poke Cake
Ingredients
- 15.25 ounce box yellow cake mix
- ingredients needed to make cake: eggs, oil and water (use the amounts given on the back of the box)
- 2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant banana pudding
- 4 cups cold milk (I prefer whole or 2% milk – do not use skim)
- 8 ounce tub frozen whipped topping, thawed (Cool Whip)
- 20 vanilla wafers, crushed
Instructions
- Prepare 15.25 ounce box yellow cake mix with ingredients needed to make cake: eggs, oil and water according to package directions for a 9×13-inch cake.
- Once cake comes out of the oven, allow it to cool for just a couple of minutes.
- Then, with a wooden spoon handle, begin poking holes in the cake. You want the holes to be big enough so that the pudding has plenty of room to get down in there. Be sure to poke right down to the bottom of the cake.
- In a bowl, whisk together 2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant banana pudding with 4 cups cold milk. Stir quickly until all the lumps are gone but before the mixture starts getting too thick to pour.
- Pour pudding over cake. Taking care to pour it right into the holes as much as possible.
- Spread it all out and using the back of the spoon, gently push pudding down into the holes.
- Put the cake into the refrigerator to set and cool (about 2 hours.)
- Once the cake has completely cooled, spread on 8 ounce tub frozen whipped topping, thawed.
- Sprinkle 20 vanilla wafers, crushed onto the top of the cake before serving. Keep refrigerated.
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
- You can spread the crushed wafers immediately before serving each slice if you like. This will ensure the wafers are crunchy when you serve it.
- A layer of freshly sliced bananas can be put on in between the pudding and the whipped topping layers. Note: when you slice the cake, the bananas will start turning brown so try to serve it all the same day it is made.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Jeez I'm so loving this poke cake thing. Is their such a thing as "poke cupcakes"? I'm so making these soon.
This is a lovely cake. I enjoyed it and so did everyone else. Thank you! Love your recipes!!!
Try this….chocolate cake,pistachio pudding and the Cool Whip…garnish with chocolate slivers!
I'm going to experiment with maybe a pineapple cake or strawberry, or maybe add strawberry and drained crushed pineapple and chocolate syrup on top to make this a banana split poke cake. Any other suggestions?
I have a weird question. I have a family member who doesn't like whipped topping, but loves banana pudding. This sounds like an awesome cake to make for his birthday. What kind of modifications could I make to this… anything besides just leaving off the whipped topping and putting the nilla wafers on top of the pudding layer? And I wonder how that would taste anyway?
I use the cooked pudding as it's easier to pour into the holes. Sliced my bananas and put them on top of the pudding then topped with the cool whip and crushed vanilla wafers. It was a big hit at work.
As I'm typing this , I'm making a sugar free strawberry cheesecake version with cheesecake pudding & a cream cheese topping. My first time making this version, so hoping it turns out as yummy as I think it will.
I have used a can of crème de coconut.. and did the same with the poke cake.. Left in the frig all night. Put the whipped cream on top before serving and sprinkle with coconut.. TO DIE FOR!!!
*cries out in desperation*
WHY oh WHY don't they sell all those great cake mixes in our supermarkets????!!!!
Linda – Holland
The pumpkin spice poke cake with caramel and hot fudge is delicious too. I love poke cakes
I'm making this recipe BUT with a SPICE cake and the new Pumpkin Jello Pudding! I adore all things pumpkin! Putting crushed graham crackers on top. I'm shivering with excitement!
Thanks for the inspiration,
Dawn in Chicagoland
love this
You can make a lemon poke cake the same way. Use lemon jello instant pudding instead of banana. It is delicious.
This reminds me of my Mom's Lemon Lime Refrigerator sheet cake in the 70's. Poke holes in lemon cake and add lime jello. Everyone always loved it!
This cake is also good with nuts and caramel topping (instead of Graham Crackers)!!!!
I made this for my family and my 14 year old nephew ate his before his mom could even get hers' out of the pan, and he sais OMG this is the best think I ever ate and hit the counter with his fist and said "Hit me again". Needless to say the whole family was laughing till it hurt.
I have vanilla and banana cream could I mix those two?
I saved this for my mom who is a banana pudding fiend. She makes a poke cake that is out of this world. It's a Butterfinger cake. It's white cake mix with caramel syrup mixed with sweetened condensed milk poured through it and the topping is a mix of cream cheese and whipped cream with five king sized Butterfingers crushed up over the top. This has been my expected birthday cake every year since the one she made. I can get the official recipe if anyone is interested. I'll try to remember to check back.
I found this site just the other day. I was looking for a recipe for a cake for a church fellowship. I found so much more than just a cake recipe. Everything on this site looks so yummy and I am just making plans for how to fit in every recipe that I have looked at so far. Last night I made the banana pudding poke cake and this morning when I woke up, its almost gone! Thanks so much for having such a wonderful site.
Okay I am commenting on this after I have made this cake numerous times. It is now requested for every family birthday and special occasion! I asked my niece what she wanted for her birthday and she requested this cake! I do a couple of things different. I use 2 large boxes of banana pudding and add 1 cup more milk than it calls for otherwise the pudding is too thick for my tast. I use almost all of the pudding and have extra to eat while making the cake…yum! We like our cake with extra pudding! It's so good and you don't even need ice cream. After the pudding is poured in the holes I put the cake in the fridge over night and then right before the party I layer sliced bananas on top of the pudding and then layer with extra cool whip (don't go generic on the cool whip; it gets runny and don't forget to defrost the cool whip the night before) and then I add the crunched up nilla wafers (I have used generic wafers from the dollar store and it turned out fine) I never leave reviews but I felt so compelled because of how much I love this cake!!!! Mmmmm
cant wait to try this with a gluten free cake mix. My husband loves banana pudding but ever since I was diagnosed with Celiac, he only get it if we go out to eat. I make a gf cookie that is very similar to nilla wafers, going to go get the ingredients for this and surprise the hubby
I accidentally bought cook n' serve instead of instant… Can I use it or no?
You really need the instant for this. The problem with the cook n'serve is you would have to pour it in while warm (because it gets too thick as it cools) and it would just really break down the cake. So with the instant, you can still pour it and it is cool so it won't break down the cake at all. Sorry!
If you haven't tried yet, I have, & it turned out great!!! Once your custard is ready let it cool some so that it thickens up a little, & make sure that your cake is COMPLETELY COOLED before you start pouring the pudding. Happy cooking!
Don’t let your cake cool as it won’t absorb the pudding and it will just sit on top.
NO.
Thank you for wonderful blog
This sounds like it would be great with Lemon Pudding and lemon sugar cookies as the crunch topping. You know those ones that are sold near the vanilla wafers with the frosting on them.
Absolutely! So many combinations!!
OMG, that sounds AWESOME. I'm a lemon fanatic, so I'm totally gonna try it. Going to buy some lemon pudding, cookies, & cake mix right after work!
I love this cake!
I follow the directions EXCEPT I don't put the whipped cream on it until I'm ready to serve it. I don't like 'runny' whipped cream. (Of course the first time I made this it didn't last long enough to get runny!
I'm thinking about trying stabilized whipped cream on the one I'm going to make today and see how that works out for me.
This was very good. I made this cake Friday and there's only about three slices left. And nobody has eaten with the banana slices.. Will definitely make again…. Thanks!
This was so yummy! My family is from the dad's side of the family is from the south and we all grew up on Banana pudding. I made this for a family dinner and it was a huge hit! The only think I did wrong was I let the pudding set a little too long so it didn't get all the way down the cake (toddler distracted me), but it was still sooooo good!
I made this last night to follow the act that is the Meatball Sub Casserole. The casserole was so great, we ate too much of it so I haven't actually tasted the cake yet. Don't worry… I'll be tearing into it in just a few minutes. (All of this stuff is extremely detrimental to my quest of getting into my wedding dress, by the way! But everything is just so doggone GOOD!)
Now, I made a couple of changes, & I hope that it still turned out ok. I love banana pudding just as much as the next Alabama girl, but I absolutely DETEST banana-flavored stuff (love bananas, but hate banana-flavored stuff — it never tastes like banana to me — go figure). I used vanilla pudding instead, & I actually poured it into each hole before covering the entire cake. After the pudding was set, I put a layer of vanilla wafers, & then a layer of bananas on top of that, & then covered w/the Cool Whip. We'll see pretty soon if it's still yummy, & I'll post a reply later.
Yummy is sooooo NOT the word for how this turned out… I don't think the right word exists for it. It was totally scrumptious!!! And it really tasted like banana pudding! So, when I cut the first piece, it completely fell apart when I tried to lift it out of the pan. It didn't matter. The second piece came out just fine. My hubby-to-be was a little skeptical about it at first, but I let him taste some of that crumbled up piece & he loved it. I cut him a piece (completely intact), & when he got it he smashed it up before eating it! WONDERFUL recipe!!!
* I could give your friend Heather a good fight for the title of "number one banana pudding (anything banana) lover"……just saying!
Can't wait to try my version! I just used Key Lime cake mix, vanilla pudding and the cool whip and wafer topping. I'm having a hard time waiting for it to cool, lol! Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
Do you think it could be made in two square pans and frozen? Sweet Tooth but there are only two of us.
I came across this recipe and knew I had to make it for the 4th of July party I go to. So I will let you know how it comes out and the response I recieve. Looks so tasty!
I just baked this yesterday for dessert and it is so easy and so good. My husband isn't much of a cake person but he had two plates of this one!
I'm in the process of making this cake right now. I love the idea of it, but I'm changing a few things! I love the real bananas, so to make it like taste like the banana pudding I'm used to I'm using yellow cake, vanilla pudding, a layer of sliced bananas and then the cool whip layer and then the vanilla wafer layer. Thank you so much for the idea! I really hope this turns out as well as it looks.
Followed the recipe the cake wasn't perfect but, it tasted GREaTTT!!! My family loved it. Great recipe, very easy.
im going to try this cake and see how my co-workers like it. Thanks for this recipe 🙂
I am adding Sweet milk to my pudding mix, guna be sooo yummi
Making this for fathers day! There is also a butterfinger poke cake! mmmm
I tried making this 2 hours before I left the house. Silly me didn't realize cool whip has to thaw for 5 hours! Against all warnings, I stirred the cool whip to make it smooth and immediately put it on the cake. I also did 2 9in round pans because I needed desserts for two different places today. It kind of mixed with the pudding, so I'm hoping it will settle in the fridge before we eat it. It looks not so great, but its the taste that counts, right?
How long should I leave it in the fridge before adding the cool whip?
Thanks for the recipe. It is in my frig setting up for tomorrow's fathers day BBQ. I don't think I can wait though, I will have try a piece tonight 😉
I Love this recipe idea! My husband loves banana pudding but I can't stand it, something about mushy brown bananas & soggy cookies just turns my stomach! But this recipe will be a perfect mix for us because I love cake & whip cream! Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe, I made it last night & its currently sitting in the refrigerator waiting to be dessert tonight!! Can't Wait!!
Wow, I cannot wait to try this! This looks like something my Dad would love, probably going to make this for father's day.
Have to say – this was made last night for work today. AMAZING! Everyone loved it. I'm in the low desert in CA and it gets HOT, so this is a refreshing cake, just like the pina colada cake (which as also a hit!)
Thanks so much!
I just made this and almost slapped my momma!!! It was that doggone good!!
Oh my behalf how ever small it may be. Your blog and recipes are one of the best around and recipes even for a beginner cook such as myself is easy to follow and i am greatful you share them. So thank you
I just made this recipe for my family tonight. DELISH!!! We all loved it. Can't wait to enjoy more tomorrow. Your website is awesome! I am definitely incorporating some of your recipes into our monthly menu. Thank you so much!! 🙂
Thank you for this great idea!!! I tried it today and while it was good I think that the pudding didn't REALLY get into the cake. I think the next time I make this I might add a bit more milk so it is just a bit more liquidy……wait is liquidy a word??? Well you know what I mean! 😉 thanks for the nummy treat!
I made this last night with my three year old. It was simple enough for us to do together and turned out amazing! I even took a plate of it so my parents this morning after refrigerating overnight and they said it was amazing as well! This is my new go to recipe! There is none left!
I like experimenting with these "poke" cakes. They are a good way to offer variety in desert without a lot of work. A suggestion I might make would be to substitute milk for the water and melted butter for the oil in the cake mix. This makes a very rich and moist cake. Also, mixing another box of pudding with 1/2 the stated milk and folding in a tub of whipped cream after it has begun to set will carry the flavor theme to the top.