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Turn a boxed cake mix and instant pudding mix into something that tastes homemade with this easy pistachio poke cake recipe. Creamy pistachio pudding covers a tender pistachio sheet cake before topping the whole thing with a layer of whipped topping. This recipe only requires about 15 minutes of hands-on time and is a great make-ahead dessert for any party or gathering.
If you’ve been an MBA reader for a while, you know how much I love making recipes using cake mix. As much as I love baking from scratch, being able to turn a box of cake mix into something that tastes homemade is a super useful skill in the kitchen.
After all, you never know when you’ll need to bring a dessert to a party but won’t have time to spend more than a few minutes in the kitchen!
This pistachio poke cake recipe is the latest in my lineup of easy poke cakes. It starts with a cake mix and instant pistachio pudding mix and adds a few simple ingredients for a super easy, delicious, crowd-pleasing dessert that requires only 15 minutes of hands-on time.
Make this one for St. Patrick’s Day, Easter celebrations, summer cookouts, game-day parties, or simply because you’re craving a pistachio cake.
Jamie’s testing notes and tips
- Pay attention to the size of your cake mix. Make sure you buy a 15.25-ounce yellow cake mix for this recipe. Some brands make smaller mixes, which won’t work here. Duncan Hines is my current preferred brand for this recipe.
- Only poke holes about halfway into the cake. We want the pudding to seep into the holes we make in the warm cake, but we don’t want it to go all the way through to the bottom. Otherwise, we’ll have a big mess when it’s time to serve!
- If you don’t like to use Cool Whip, you have a couple of options. If you want to use regular homemade whipped cream, I would wait to add it just before serving. Whipped cream doesn’t have the same stabilizers as whipped topping, so it won’t hold up as well over time. If you want the topping to hold up over the course of a couple of days, use stabilized whipped cream instead.
Ingredient notes
⬇️ For the full recipe, including ingredient amounts, scroll down to the recipe card below!
- Yellow cake mix: Classic yellow is my go-to for this cake, but you could also use a butter cake mix or French vanilla cake mix as well.
- Instant pistachio pudding mix: Make sure to use instant pudding mix, not cook-and-serve. One box will be used in the cake and the other will be used in the topping
- Water
- Vegetable oil: Any other neutral oil will also work, such as avocado oil.
- Eggs
- Vanilla: Extract or vanilla bean paste
- Milk: Whole milk or reduced-fat milk both work fine here.
- Thawed whipped topping: Use your preferred brand of whipped topping.
- Chopped pistachios: For topping the cake and adding a little extra crunch!
Did you know?
Most instant pistachio pudding brands, including Jell-O brand, are naturally dairy free. Since most brands of yellow cake mix are also dairy free, you can easily make this whole recipe without dairy. Simply use your preferred plant-based milk and a dairy-free whipped topping, such as CocoWhip.
How to make this easy pistachio pudding poke cake
This pistachio poke cake recipe is as easy as:
- Make and bake the pistachio cake base
- Poke holes in it while the cake is still warm
- Spread the pudding over the top
- Finish with Cool Whip and chill in the fridge
Mix together the cake mix, one box of the pudding mix, and the water, eggs, oil, and vanilla with an electric mixer for about 2 minutes. Spread this into a 9×13-inch cake pan and bake just until done. A toothpick inserted in the center should have a few moist crumbs clinging to it.
Let the cake cool for about 10-15 minutes. You don’t want to it to be piping hot, but the cake should still be warm when you add the filling.
I like to use a large straw, such as a bubble-tea straw, or the handle of a wooden spoon to poke the holes in the cake. Space them out every inch or so and only go halfway into the cake.
Whisk the second box of pudding mix with the milk for 2 minutes. It’ll thicken, but not have entirely set. Spread it over the cake—you want to make sure it gets into the holes you just made.
Once the cake has completely cooled, top it with the whipped topping and chill for at least 2 hours, but it’ll taste even better if you let it chill overnight.
Just before serving, top with the chopped pistachios. This will ensure they stay nice and crunchy for a fun texture contrast with the super moist cake!
Storage
Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. I don’t recommend freezing, as this can cause the pudding to split and become grainy.
Pistachio Poke Cake
Ingredients
- 1 (15.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
- 2 (3.4-ounce) boxes instant pistachio pudding mix divided use
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups milk
- 8 ounces frozen whipped topping Cool Whip or Truwhip, thawed
- ¼ cup finely chopped pistachios
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×13-inch cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, beat together the cake mix, 1 box of dry pistachio pudding mix, water, oil, eggs and vanilla with an electric mixer for 2 minutes.1 (15.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix , 1 (3.4-ounce) boxes instant pistachio pudding mix, 1 cup water, ½ cup vegetable oil, 3 large eggs, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake in center of oven for 23-28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool for 10-15 minutes. Using a jumbo straw or the handle of a wooden spoon, poke holes across the cake, spaced every inch or so, halfway into the cake.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining box of pudding mix and milk for 2 minutes. Pour evenly over the cake, making sure the mixture gets into the holes. Allow the cake to cool completely.1 (3.4-ounce) boxes instant pistachio pudding mix, 2 cups milk
- Evenly top with the whipped topping. Cover the cake and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight for the best flavor.8 ounces frozen whipped topping
- Before serving, top with finely chopped pistachios.¼ cup finely chopped pistachios
Notes
Storage
- Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. I do not recommend freezing this cake.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
More delicious pistachio desserts
If you love this pistachio poke cake recipe, you’re in luck—I’ve got several other easy recipes for you!
My St. Patrick’s Day crinkle cookies and pistachio pudding cake are both quick and easy to make with a cake mix and pudding mix.
Layered pistachio pudding dessert is a fun recipe that looks like it took hours, but is deceptively easy to assemble.
If you like a semi-homemade recipe, try my white chocolate pistachio pudding cookies and pistachio muffins. Both use pudding mix to add a burst of pistachio flavor to made-from-scratch recipes.
