Butter Pecan Poke Cake
Every bite of this easy Butter Pecan Poke Cake is heavenly! A moist butter pecan cake with a luscious frosting and wonderful textures, it’s truly incredible!
AN EASY BUT IMPRESSIVE POKE CAKE
This Butter Pecan Poke Cake is decadent, moist, and a richly flavored cake that is packed full of buttery goodness with an irresistible nutty crunch from chopped pecans. Prepare for this cake to knock your socks off! It is so surprisingly easy but crazy good! So preheat your ovens, gather up some ingredients, and get ready to make a heavenly Butter Pecan Poke Cake that’s sure to be a huge hit with friends and family!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Originally I wanted to go with a caramel pudding, but I found that it was really difficult to find. So, I went with butterscotch as that seemed much more readily available and that was a bomb decision because it’s pure perfection. If you can find the instant caramel pudding that would be incredible too. Or, if you don’t like butterscotch and don’t want to use a replacement, you can just ditch the pudding mix altogether.
Sure! Since the frosting is one of the big stars of this cake, I’d suggest finding one that goes well with that frosting. I’d maybe try a German Chocolate cake mix instead of the Butter Pecan Cake mix and see how that poke cake turns out with the frosting mixture.
This is your cake so do what you want. If you like the frosting, but want a little less texture, I suggest just using 1 cup of pecans and 1 cup of coconut. It’ll still have a yummy flavor but not as much texture.
This cake uses Cool Whip so it needs to be kept cold in the fridge. I actually preferred eating this cold but you may prefer it at room temperature. Just make sure to keep it in the fridge when not serving.
I have found that it is more popular in the South. It’s commonly found in grocery stores here and I don’t know why it’s not as common in Northern states. But, if you can’t seem to find it at your local grocery store, check online retailers (paid link) like Amazon.
No, it’s your kitchen, your rules. If pecans and coconut aren’t your thing, omit them and enjoy the cake as-is. And because I know someone will ask, no I don’t have any ideas for a substitute for the coconut. Sorry.
Certainly. I’ve topped this with a Coconut Pecan Frosting (like you use for German Chocolate Cake) and it was SO good! If you like that idea, be sure to check out my Southern Pecan Praline Cake with Butter Sauce – it is absolutely heavenly!
Due to the nature of the ingredients, this cake needs to be refrigerated. You can keep leftovers for up to a week. Additionally, you can freeze leftovers for up to 3 months if stored properly in the freezer.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- butter pecan cake mix
- ingredients needed to make cake: eggs, oil and water
- sweetened condensed milk
- instant butterscotch pudding mix
- cold whole milk
- whipped topping
- sweetened shredded coconut
- chopped pecans
HOW TO MAKE BUTTER PECAN POKE CAKE
Prepare the cake per the directions on the back of the box. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, take a fork and poke it all over.
Pour the sweetened condensed milk over the cake evenly, focusing on the holes. Let sit for 15 minutes.
Place the cake into the fridge for 2 hours.Place the pudding mix and milk into a large bowl. Whip with an electric mixer or by hand for 1 minute.
Add the whipped topping and mix it in.
Fold in the coconut and pecans. Spread the frosting on top of the cake.
Place in the fridge for another 2 hours to set up. Add more coconut and pecans as a garnish if desired, and serve.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
Butter Pecan Poke Cake
Ingredients
- 15.25 ounce box Butter Pecan Cake Mix
- ingredients needed to make cake: eggs, oil and water
- 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
For the frosting:
- 3.4 ounce box instant butterscotch pudding mix
- 1 cup cold whole milk
- 8 ounce tub whipped topping (Cool Whip)
- 1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut
- 1 ½ cups chopped pecans
Instructions
- Prepare the 15.25 ounce box Butter Pecan Cake Mix along with the ingredients needed to make cake: eggs, oil and water per the directions on the back of the box for a 9×13-inch cake
- As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, take a fork and poke it all over.
- Pour the 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk over the cake evenly, focusing on the holes. Let sit for 15 minutes.
- Place the cake into the fridge for 2 hours.
- Place the 3.4 ounce box instant butterscotch pudding mix and 1 cup cold whole milk into a large bowl. Whip with an electric mixer or by hand for 1 minute.
- Add the 8 ounce tub whipped topping and mix it in.
- Fold in 1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut and 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans. Spread the frosting on top of the cake.
- Place in the fridge for another 2 hours to set up. Add more coconut and pecans as a garnish if desired, and serve.
Notes
- You can use a different pudding mix or leave it out altogether.
- Since this uses Cool Whip, it needs to be refrigerated. I think it is best eaten cold anyway, but you can eat it room temperature as well.
- Keep in the fridge for up to 1 week. Freeze for up to 3 months.
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.
This was a hit! Everyone loved it & asked for the recipe!
Can I use walnuts instead of pecans because that’s what I have on hand?
I guess but to me walnuts have a much stronger flavor than pecans. Just not my personal favorite for something like this.
I answer that in the FAQ section 🙂
Where do you buy Butter Pecan Cake mix???
With all the other cake mixes 🙂 I mention other options in the FAQ above 🙂
Betty Crocker makes a butter pecan cake mix (as you can see on her ingredient photo above). Check your local grocery store.