Festive Cranberry Poke Cake with sweet and tart cranberry sauce, fluffy cream cheese topping, and bright, fun, holiday flavor in every slice!
A FESTIVE WINTER DESSERT RECIPE
This Cranberry Poke Cake is the perfect holiday dessert to brighten your table. It’s a soft, white cake that is filled with homemade (but simple) cranberry sauce which adds a sweet yet tart pop of flavor, then it gets topped with a fluffy cream cheese whipped topping that’s smooth and sooo tasty. If you haven’t figured it out already, Poke Cakes are my favorite to make! I have one for every flavor and season!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
If you want to make this dessert a little quicker to make, you can top with Cool Whip or purchase a store-bought cream cheese frosting.
This cake can be made a few days in advance. Make sure to not top the cake with the topping until the cake is cold or the warmth of the cake and cranberry sauce will melt the topping.
If you want to make this easier, you can use cranberry Jell-O instead of making a homemade cranberry sauce. Add the cranberry Jell-O and boiling water to a large, heatproof bowl and whisk until the gelatin is dissolved. Add the cold water to the bowl and whisk to combine. Pour the Jell-O all over the cake, focusing on the holes the most. Place the cake into the fridge for 2 hours. Then continue with the frosting or just top with Cool Whip.
I prefer to use the end of a wooden spoon and I can space them out a bit better. You want something that makes large enough holes for that cranberry sauce to get down into.
Store leftover cake in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Technically you can’t but sometimes it doesn’t always defrost well and maintain the texture.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- white cake mix– made with package ingredients in a 9×13-inch baking dish. I wanted the cake to be white so I only used egg whites in making the cake mix. Additionally, I think a French Vanilla cake mix would be fine, but obviously, the red from the cranberries will be brighter with the white cake.
- fresh cranberries – or frozen cranberries
- granulated sugar
- orange zest – this can be optional but it really just makes this cranberries sing!
- salted butter
- vanilla extract
- block cream cheese– softened to room temperature. Use these Tips to Soften Cream Cheese if you need them.
- powdered sugar
- heavy cream – heavy cream is going to give you the absolute best frosting so please try not to substitute with milk. You could maybe do half and alf.
- craisins – Craisins are just dried cranberries. This is an optional ingredient that I used for a topping.
HOW TO MAKE CRANBERRY POKE CAKE
Prepare the cake according to the box directions. While the cake bakes make the cranberry sauce. In a medium sauce pan combine the cranberries, sugar, water, and orange zest. Turn the heat on medium and stir until the sugar dissolves and the mixture starts to boil. The cranberries will start to pop and get soft. Once the mixture boils, boil and stir, squishing the cranberries as you do for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla extract. Let cool while the cake finishes baking.
Once the cake is out of the oven, let it cool for 10 minutes before poking holes in the top with a wooden skewer or wooden handle of a spoon. Spread the cranberry mixture over the top of the cake evenly, cover, and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to overnight.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract together until light and fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Pour in the heavy cream and beat on low until mixed together and gradually increase the speed. Whip until the topping is light and creamy and has stiff peaks.
Spread the topping evenly over the top of the cake. Refrigerate up to a day before serving. Top garnished with craisins, or sugared cranberries, if desired.
Slice, serve, and enjoy.
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Topping:
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In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or using an electric hand mixer), whip 8 ounce block cream cheese, softened, 1 ½ cups powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract together until somewhat fluffy. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Pour in 1 ½ cups heavy cream and beat on low until mixed together and gradually increase the speed. Whip until light and creamy.
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Spread the topping evenly over the top of the cake. Refrigerate up to a day before serving. Top garnished with craisins, or sugared cranberries, if desired.
- 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.
Calories: 316kcal | Carbohydrates: 48g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 13g | Sodium: 335mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 37g
“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.
