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Red White and Blue Poke Cake with pudding

Red White and Blue Patriotic Poke Cake

This Patriotic Poke Cake is the ultimate easy dessert for Memorial Day or the Fourth of July. Every bite is incredibly moist and filled with creamy cheesecake pudding, making it a guaranteed hit at any summer cookout. Top it with festive red, white, and blue sprinkles just before serving for a vibrant look. This is the perfect make-ahead recipe to save you time on the big day!
4.39 from 18 votes
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Course: Cakes
Cuisine: American
Servings: 12
Calories: 265kcal
Author: Jennifer Smith
Prep Time 12 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 37 minutes

Ingredients
 

Directions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish. Set aside.
  • Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Divide the cake mix evenly into three separate bowls. Use gel food coloring in red and blue to tint two of the bowls of cake batter. Stir until each color is consistently distributed. Leave the other bowl of batter white. *See Note about the blue batter
  • Working quickly, spoon each color of cake batter into the greased baking dish. Try to keep the red and blue batter separated by only spooning the colored batter onto the white batter. Continue spooning the batter into the dish until all batter has been added. Bake for 25 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes then use the handle end of a wooden spoon to poke holes about 1 1/2 inches apart all across the cake, poking about 3/4 of the way through the cake. Cool completely.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and both boxes of pudding mix until the mixture is just slightly thickened. Pour pudding over the cool cake. Spread the remaining pudding over the top of the cake.
  • Refrigerate for 20 minutes until the pudding sets completely. Top with Cool Whip. Garnish with Patriotic red white and blue sprinkles or candies.

Notes

To make navy blue batter, use three drops of Americolor Royal Blue plus two drops of the Fuchsia Pink and one drop of black.
This cake can be made in advance. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
If using hard confetti sprinkles or hard candies, the candies will soften if you refrigerate the cake overnight before serving. Some sprinkles may melt into the Cool Whip so consider adding the sprinkles when you're ready to serve.

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 46 g | Calories: 265 kcal | Carbohydrates: 55 g | Protein: 4 g | Fat: 3 g | Saturated Fat: 2 g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g | Cholesterol: 6 mg | Sodium: 589 mg | Fiber: 1 g | Sugar: 38 g
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