Banana Pudding Poke Cake (+Video)
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!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ’S)
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.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
Originally published: June 2012
Updated photos and republished: March 2024
Banana Pudding Poke Cake (+Video)
Ingredients
- 1 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 1 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.
HI…We don't have Cool Whip where I am..Is whipped cream the same?? Look forward to hearing back from you. I really would like to try this recipe.
This recipe looks yummy. I would do a little something different, though. I don't like anything banana flavored. So I would use vanilla pudding & place sliced bananas directly on top of the pudding. Then I would finish using the rest of the directions. I'm anxious to try this.
made this cake last night – very easy and a sweet treat indeed. Thanks for sharing.
Wow! I never thought about wafers and banana! Will be trying this today as our dessert for Sunday dinner.
This sounds like a great recipe and could easily be made diabetic by using sugar free cake mix, pudding and wafers.
My husband and I will be married 50 years in July and you and your recipes are the one woman he would leave me for. As long as he takes me too, I am OK with that . We both are enjoying the results of your recipes. Thanks
I made this last week for my husband before I went out of town. I froze it in individual slices so he could have a piece each day. It worked beautifully. I didn't have instant pudding (our store didn't have it)So I used 3.5 cups of milk with 2 boxes of mix. I let it cool slightly before spooning it over the cooled cake. Worked fine. I put on the whipped topping and let it chill in the fridge for awhile then sliced it up for the freezer. Yummy– every single slice!
I have a quick question..can I use the canned land o lakes whipped topping instead of the cool whip? You know the one that we spray onto desserts.
Not sure if that would work the same. I'm excited to try this recipe!
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this cake. I made it for the first time on Thanksgiving and have made 6 since then. I substitute 1/2c half and half and 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream for one of the cups a milk OMGOODNESS!! My son loves this cake It's a staple for my family now. Thanks for sharing
This sure was a big hit at our house,truely enjoy your recipes.Made this for my son-in-laws birthday,i'm sure l scored brownie points
My aunt passed away a year ago and she was always the one to make banana pudding at family functions. I saw your recipe and took it last Thanksgiving and now that is my thing to bring because my family said it was really close and they loved it
Just wanted to add something. That I do I use banana caked mik. It is delicious. I have kept my cakes for at least
Two weeks in the fridge and it is even better the longer you keep it.
My girlfriend found this recipe a couple days ago. I am making it right now only instead of using cool whip, I like to use dream whip. The texture and flavor to me is just all around better. I can't wait to sink my teeth into this amazing creation. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Girlfriends from high school (36yrs ago) coming for dinner this will be our dessert. Will like I did a lot of work but actually pretty easy. Love your recipes.
9/8/14 Made this tonight .Omg! My 5 year old niece wouldn't stop wanting more.Definitely better after sitting in the fridge for awhile. So easy cheap & so good.I also made your chili tonight.Which my husband & son swears it's better than Wendy's 🙂 lol I agree.Thank you for the wonderful affordable recipes.Keep them coming!
Great recipe. I tried it out and turned out great. Thanks for sharing. I shared it on my blog and posted your pin
love tis cake. I added sliced bananas on top of the pudding then the whip cream. SOOOO good.
I made this today. HOLY COW!! Everyone raved. It was absolutely delicious. I made the following modifications: used banana cream pudding, waited to add the whipped topping until right before serving, and added fresh slices of banana on top. I cannot wait to make this again!
I just made this and it turned out awesome! However, when I poked the holes in the cake it mine didn't come out pretty like the picture, the cake got crumbly. It turned out fine after I covered in in pudding and cool whip but do you have any advice on this? I'm thinking I may have over baked the cake by a few minutes. Thanks 🙂
Use a MCDonalds straw they are the best for poke cakes. I would added crushed walnuts to this and it made it even better!
Add mini choco chips to the top! Yum!!!
I use McDonald straws,Just want to let you know McDonalds has the best straws for this.I used to make poke cakes all the time. I going to give this one a try. thanks
I am going to try this but I am going to use a couple of real ripe bananas and mash with my potato masher and blend in with the cake mix as tho I was making a cake from scratch I think this will really give it that bananas flavor and the they wont turn brown, What do you think ?
This looks so easy to make!gonna try it for my co-workers!i remember my elderly neighbor making home scratch banana pudding for my husband when he would cut her lawn,trim her bushes,plumbing.Whatever she needed,he did and she always baked him something good..since my husband would not take her money,she paid him with desserts.
I tried this recipe for Easter. I used a white cake mix instead of a yellow one. However, I kinda messed it up. I let the cake cool almost completely before I poured the pudding onto the cake. When you mess up this bad, you don't need 2 boxes of instant pudding, 1 would be just fine. I wiped off what didn't soak into the cake after about 15 minutes. I added the whipped cream and the Nilla Wafers. Everyone said it was absolutely delicious. They want me to make it for all future family events. It was the biggest hit. Everyone including myself thought it tasted just like banana pudding. Yum, Yum, Yum. I will try even more of your recipes. Thank you for sharing