This Orange Poke Cake is flavored with mandarin oranges, soaked with an orange flavored sweetened condensed milk and topped with an orange pudding whipped topping!
A CITRUS POKE CAKE WITH A CREAMY TOPPING
If you’ve been around here for a bit, you know I have made just about every flavor of Poke Cake you can imagine…. But this Orange Poke Cake is a new one that really pops with bright orange flavor. Absolutely perfect for the summertime! Think pool parties, barbecues, holiday gatherings, graduation parties, and more! If you’re feeling the orange cake vibes, check out my Orange Creamsicle Poke Cake!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
For even more orange flavor, since this has subtle, light hints of orange, you could swap the white cake mix for an orange cake mix.
If you don’t want to use the French vanilla or can’t find it, you can use plain vanilla, white chocolate, or even cheesecake pudding mix instead.
It’s normal for the whipping topping mixture to be loose at first. You’ll find that it stiffens up some over time once it has had time to chill. It really does better the longer it chills in the refrigerator.
This is a cake you MUST make ahead of time. The topping needs time to chill and firm up, the cake and filling need time to set and be baked. It is one of those cakes that does better if you make it in the morning to serve in the evening or make it at night to serve in the morning/early afternoon.
I find that using a bigger utensil to poke with is better than using something like a fork that has multiple smaller tines. It pokes too many holes closer together then what I prefer. I like to use the back end of a wooden spoon handle. Over the years I have even used a chopstick or skewer, but I find I like the width of the holes of the wooden spoon the most. You can try and see what you prefer.
With the ingredients being perishable, this cake needs to be refrigerated when it’s not being served. So, keeping that in mind, any leftovers should be covered and refrigerated as well. Leftovers should keep for up to 3 days in the fridge or for up to 3 months in the freezer.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- white cake mix– you can swap cake flavors by using any of the other suggested flavors in the Frequently Asked Questions above.
- ingredients to make the cake– egg whites, oil and water. Some boxed brands can differ on how much of each of these to use, so just use the amounts on the back of your box.
- orange Jell-O
- sweetened condensed milk– I can’t stress this enough, pay close attention to the can that you grab. I don’t know why the grocery store puts canned evaporated milk so close to the sweetened condensed milk. So sometimes people can accidentally pick up the wrong can so just be sure to grab the right can or this will not turn out good.
- mandarin orange juice – just use the juice from the 15 ounce can for the topping. If you don’t want to use this, you could use fresh squeezed orange juice.
- French vanilla instant pudding mix – make sure you grab the Instant and not the cook and serve.
- whole milk
- whipped topping– most people use Cool Whip, but any brand will work.
- mandarin oranges
HOW TO MAKE AN ORANGE POKE CAKE
Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray (I like the kind with flour in it)/ Prepare the cake per the directions on the back of the box making sure to also add in the dry orange Jell-O mix with the other ingredients. Bake the cake according to the directions on the back of the box.
While the cake is baking, make the soak. In a medium bowl, add the sweetened condensed milk and reserved mandarin orange juices and whisk together until combined well. Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes, then poke all over with a chop stick, a skewer or other similar size object.
Pour the condensed milk mixture onto the cake, focusing on the holes, and make sure to use it all. Allow the cake to finish cooling completely at room temperature, the cake will absorb the soak.
Once the cake is cool, whisk together the instant pudding with the milk in a large bowl. Don’t allow it to set up before moving onto the next step. Quickly, stir in the whipped topping until there are no white streaks left.
Add the drained mandarin oranges and stir them in. I like to break them up a little bit but that is up to you on white size pieces you’d like to see in the topping. Spread the topping all over the cake, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 2-4 hours to set, or up to overnight. Poke cakes always get better when they’ve had a longer time to set up.
Slice and serve. Optional: Add slices of mandarin oranges or sliced oranges on each individual slice of cake.
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Spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray (I like the kind with flour in it).
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Prepare the 1 box white cake mix cake per the directions on the back of the box using ingredients to make the cake: egg whites, oil and water along with the dry 3 ounce box orange Jell-O. Pour batter into prepared baking dish.
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Bake the cake according to the directions on the back of the box.
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While the cake is baking, make the soak. In a medium bowl, add 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk and the reserved 3/4 cup mandarin orange juice and whisk together until combined well..
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Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes, then poke all over with a chop stick, a skewer or other similar size object.
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Pour the condensed milk mixture onto the cake, focusing on the holes, and make sure to use it all.
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Allow the cake to finish cooling completely at room temperature, the cake will absorb the soak.
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Once the cake is cool, whisk together the 3.4 ounce box French vanilla instant pudding mix with 1 cup whole milk in a large bowl. Don’t allow it to set up before moving onto the next step.
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Quickly, stir in 8 ounce tub whipped topping until there are no white streaks left.
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Add the drained 15 ounce can mandarin oranges and stir them in. I like to break them up a little bit but that is up to you on white size pieces you’d like to see in the topping.
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Spread the topping all over the cake, cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 2-4 hours to set, or up to overnight. Poke cakes always get better when they’ve had a longer time to set up.
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Slice and serve. Optional: Add slices of mandarin oranges or sliced oranges on each individual slice of cake.
- 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.
“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.
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