Poke cake is a gloriously retro American confection, where cake, still warm from the oven, gets poked all over with the handle end of a wooden spoon, Jel-lo or custard is poured over and the cake is then crowned with a layer of whipped topping. The cake then chills in the ‘fridge to let the flavors develop.
The first time I ever had a poke cake, it was at my brother David’s girlfriend’s house. I was probably 6, my brother 17 and undoubtedly stuck with babysitting me, and they sat me in the kitchen with a book, a large slab of cake and went off somewhere in the house to I dunno, read books too?
Most poke cakes are made with all sorts of short cuts, usually boxed cake mix, instant pudding and my grandmother’s favorite non-dairy frozen whipped topping, Cool Whip.
My goal was to create a poke cake that was all homemade: cake, custard and whipped cream. I wanted it to be as easy as the boxed mixes promise. Puckery with lime juice and zest, served cold from the refrigerator, it is a very happy summer dessert.
(My 20-year-old son pronounced this dessert “perfect.” Anyone with knowledge of the opinions of 20-year-olds understands the gravitas of such a pronouncement. He has yet to ask for the car keys or cash, so maybe he means it?)
This is a three-step dessert, so may look a little daunting. Each step is simple, with maybe the number of dirty bowls you have to clean the only vaguely tedious part.
I used Nellie & Joe’s Key West lime juice from the grocery, but you can obviously use fresh key lime juice if you are so blessed, or just ordinary fresh-squeezed lime juice.
Serving suggestion: Cut yourself a slice of cake and a good book (may I recommend Daniel Mason’s new Country People?) and make that the reality you focus on for a while.
The recipe technically makes a cake large enough to serve 8 to 10 people, but as it keeps nicely in the fridge, a small family, say, can demolish the cake over a few days. That said, the recipe can be halved and baked in a 8 x 8” pan (NB: The cake will take less time to bake by about 10 minutes.)
For the cake:
1 cup (8 ounces/226 grams) room-temperature butter, cut into 16 pieces
1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
1 2/3 cups (200 grams) all-purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt (¼ teaspoon table salt)
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons milk (or alternative milk)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the lime custard layer:
14 ounces (1 can/397 grams) sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup (170 grams) heavy or whipping cream
1/2 cup (113 grams) key lime juice
2 tablespoons fresh lime zest
For the cream topping:
1 cup (227 grams) heavy or whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar
Lime zest for decorating.
Make the cake:
Heat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Grease and flour (or spray with Baker’s Joy or similar) a 13 x 9” baking pan.
In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
With a hand- or stand-mixer, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the flour mixture, eggs, vanilla and milk and mix on low speed until just blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on medium-high speed for about 30 seconds until smooth. Spread the batter evenly in the pan and bake for 23 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the cake cool for 5 minutes, then use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke holes all over the cake. The holes should go about three-quarters of the way to the bottom.
While the cake is baking, make the lime custard.
If using a stand mixer, use the whisk attachment (or use a hand mixer, or whisk by hand if you’re that kind of person.), beat the sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, lime juice and zest on low speed for 30 seconds to combine the ingredients. Raise the speed to high and whip until the mixture has thickened. It will never whip up fluffy like whipped cream, but it will hold its shape and appear custard-like.
Pour the mixture over the cake and smooth it evenly to ensure it makes it into the holes. Cover and refrigerate while you whip the cream.
Make the whipped cream
Whisk together heavy cream, vanilla extract and confectioner’s sugar at high speed until the cream holds soft peaks. Spread the cream over the top of the custard. Decorate with lime zest if you’re feeling fancy. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. If you can hold off for 8 hours or so, you will be rewarded with a more flavorful dessert.
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