Christmas Jello Poke Cake uses a cake mix and red and green Jello to make a simple and delicious holiday dessert! This Christmas cake recipe is easy to make and absolutely beautiful to serve!
Making this jello poke cake is so easy to do, but looks so fancy that no one will ever guess how simple it is to make. Red and green jello make this cake perfect for Christmas, but you can use any colors you want and make this cake for any occasion!
WHAT IS A JELLO POKE CAKE?
A poke cake is a cake that is poked with the back end of a wooden spoon or tines of a fork before having jello or pudding poured and spread over the top. Topped off with whipped topping and other ingredients a poke cake is easy to assemble, moist, flavorful, and fun to both make and eat. This particular cake uses red and green jello which adds a lot of flavor and makes the cake very festive for Christmas!
Ingredients in Christmas Jello Poke Cake
White cake mix – Add the eggs, oil and water as directed on the box. Divide the batter between 2 round pans and bake according to box directions.
Boiling water – Used to dissolve and mix the Jello.
Red Jello – You will need one small box (4 ounces) of red Jello. You can use any red flavor you want – raspberry, cherry or strawberry.
Green jello – One small (4 ounce) box of lime jello. That’s the only green flavor I can usually find, although sometimes there are unique flavors like green apple that are available as well.
Cool Whip – Non-dairy whipped topping that is light and delicious and makes for the easiest topping ever! If you don’t like Cool Whip or can’t find it, you can make a sweetened whipped cream to use instead. I use a large 16 ounce container of Cool Whip, but if you don’t want the topping to be as thick, you don’t have to use it all!
How to make Christmas Jello Poke Cake
Make sure to use a non-stick baking spray and coat the cake pans well when you make your cakes. Make the cake mix as directed and bake in 2 round pans (8″ or 9″).
Once cakes are cooled, remove them from the pans they were baked in and completely wash and dry the pans before putting the cakes back into the pans. Pierce each cake with a large fork at 1/2 inch intervals.
Place the red and green jello mixes in separate bowls and add 1 cup boiling water to each flavor. Stir each for about 2 minutes or until jello is completely dissolved. Slowly pull the red gelatin over 1 cake layer and pour the green jello over the other cake. Refrigerate the cakes in the pans for at least 3 hours.
Fill a large bowl or your kitchen sink with a few inches of really warm water. Place the bottom of the cake pan in the warm water for about 10-20 seconds to loosen the cake from the pan and invert the cake onto a plate. Spread about 1 cup of the Cool Whip on top of one of the layers and then place the other one on top. Spread the remaining Cool Whip all over the top and sides of the layered cake.
Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. (Can add some sprinkles or any type of decoration to the top).
Christmas Jello Poke Cake
Christmas Jello Poke Cake uses a cake mix and red and green Jello to make a simple and delicious holiday dessert! This Christmas cake recipe is easy to make and absolutely beautiful to serve!
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Servings: 24
Ingredients
- 1 white cake mix baked according to box directions, divided into 2 round pans
- 2 cups boiling water
- 1 pkg 4 serving size red Jello
- 1 pkg 4 serving size green jello (lime)
- 1 tub 16 ounces Cool Whip, thawed
Instructions
-
Make sure to use a non-stick baking spray and coat the cake pans well when you make your cakes. Make the cake mix as directed and bake in 2 round pans (8″ or 9″).
-
Once cakes are cooled, remove them from the pans they were baked in and completely wash and dry the pans before putting the cakes back into the pans. Pierce each cake with a large fork at 1/2 inch intervals.
-
Place the red and green jello mixes in separate bowls and add 1 cup boiling water to each flavor. Stir each for about 2 minutes or until jello is completely dissolved. Slowly pull the red gelatin over 1 cake layer and pour the green jello over the other cake. Refrigerate the cakes in the pans for at least 3 hours.
-
Fill a large bowl or your kitchen sink with a few inches of really warm water. Place the bottom of the cake pan in the warm water for about 10-20 seconds to loosen the cake from the pan and invert the cake onto a plate. Spread about 1 cup of the Cool Whip on top of one of the layers and then place the other one on top. Spread the remaining Cool Whip all over the top and sides of the layered cake.
-
Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. (Can add some sprinkles or any type of decoration to the top).
How to make homemade whipped cream
Beat 2 cups of heavy cream with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. This goes a lot faster if you use a metal bowl that has been placed in the freezer for at least 30-60 minutes before beating the cream. Add 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1 tsp vanilla extract and mix for another minute before using.
HOW LONG IS A POKE CAKE GOOD FOR?
A poke cake lasts about 2 days covered in the fridge. For that reason, I recommend not making this cake more than a day in advance so that it’s still looking and tasting great when you want to serve it.
CAN I FREEZE A POKE CAKE?
Yes, poke cakes are great for freezing for later if you want to prep them in advance. I recommend waiting until after the pudding/jello has set before placing them in the freezer (well wrapped and covered of course). This will help to reduce time later because you just need to thaw and top with some whipped topping. (Don’t cover with topping before freezing the cakes.)
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Christmas Jello Poke Cake uses a cake mix and red and green Jello to make a simple and delicious holiday dessert! This Christmas cake recipe is easy to make and absolutely beautiful to serve!
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