You can bet we love a good summer sweet treat around here and this 4th of July poke cake is just perfect for your patriotic festivities. This is one of my favorite 4th of July desserts because it is light, refreshing, SO EASY to make, and it’s full of colorful fun!
Do you typically get together with others to celebrate the 4th of July? Sometimes we do, sometimes it’s just our family, but we always have a backyard barbecue complete with a no fuss dessert like this patriotic poke cake. You’ll probably find us eating chips and salsa verde, some grilled steak, and classic rum mojitos or strawberry sangria!
More Summer Favorites
This 4th of July poke cake is so perfect because it can be baked ahead of time and then it’s easy to top it with the jello and whipped cream! It holds up great if you make it the night before or early in the morning. You can even use an unfrosted sheet cake purchased from the store if you’re opposed to baking.
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🍰 Ingredients:
- 9×13 white sheet cake or the ingredients to make one (I use a boxed white cake mix which requires the mix, egg whites, water, and vegetable oil)
- 3 oz. box of red Jello – any flavor you like – cherry or strawberry work great
- 3 oz. box of blue Jello – blue raspberry or berry blue, any blue colors will work
- 2 cups boiling water
- 2 cups ice water
- 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream, you can also use an 8 oz. tub thawed Cool Whip
- ¼ cup powdered sugar (optional, to sweeten the whipped cream)
- cute patriotic sprinkles (you can find the ones I used through my referral link here)
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Optional Garnish:
If you’re feeling extra festive, this is the perfect 4th of July cake to top with sliced strawberries and blueberries to make a flag cake. You’ll need fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced, as well as fresh blueberries.
Jello Poke Cake Variations:
There are so many variations you could do with a jello poke cake, it’s not just for patriotic holidays! Change up the colors of jello or the cake mix flavor for different seasons or occasions! Here are some ideas to get you started.
- Strawberry jello and white cake topped with fresh strawberry slices Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake
- Lemon jello over white or lemon cake topped with lemon zest or candied lemon peel
- Coconut cream over white cake topped with sweetened coconut
- Cream cheese pudding over a pumpkin or spice cake layer
- Red and green jello over white cake for a Christmas treat
- Lime jello and white cake for St. Patty’s Day
- Caramel over chocolate cake topped with candy bars
For an alternate, but equally as festive, cake – go with our red, white, and blue marble cake!
🔪 Instructions:
Step 1: Combine cake mix, oil, water, and egg whites to mix up the cake batter. Transfer to a 9×13 baking dish and bake according to package directions.
Step 2: When the cake comes out of the oven, set aside to cool for at least 30 minutes.
Step 3: In two separate bowls, combine each package of jello with 1 cup of boiling water. Whisk until the red and blue gelatin powder is completely dissolved.
Step 4: Add ice water to the bowls and stir. Do not proceed until jello is completely cool.
Step 5: Use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke holes all over the entire cake.
Step 6: Use a ladle or squeeze bottle to drizzle the cooled red jello mixture into every other line of holes in the cake. I used only half of each bowl of jello liquid. Too much jello will in the cake will lead to the colors bleeding into each other.
Step 7: Drizzle the blue jello into the alternate rows of holes.
Step 8: Whip heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add ¼ cup powdered sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form.
Step 9: Spread whipped cream or whipped topping over the top of the cake.
Step 10: Use a ladle or squeeze bottle to drizzle the cooled red jello into every other line of holes in the cake.
GARNISH/SLICE/SERVE: To make an American flag pattern on top of the cake with fresh fruit, pile blueberries into the top left corner. Then overlap sliced strawberries in rows to form the red stripes of the flag.
The cake will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Be sure to cover it with plastic wrap or transfer to an airtight container. I did find that the coloring in my sprinkles bled after a little while, though, so if you make it ahead of time, you can frost it, but definitely wait until just before serving to add the sprinkles.
Recipe Tips for 4th of July Poke Cake
- It is simple and quick to bake your own using a boxed cake mix. WHITE CAKE, so that you get your red, white, and blue. This typically means that you use only the egg whites. If you add in the whole eggs, the yolks with give a creamy tint to the cake – it’s not really a big deal and will still be delicious. If you’d like to bake your cake from scratch, use this white cupcake recipe and bake the batter in a 9×13.
- To poke holes in the cake, I like to use the end of a wooden spoon – it’s a nice ¼″ circle in diameter. You can also use a fork, a skewer or really anything you like. I made nice even holes spaced about 1″ apart. If you’re using a smaller poking device, your holes will be closer together.
- Keep some space between your rows of jello color. There is a lot of jello to soak into the cake and if the colors are on top of each other, you’ll end up with a red, blue, and purple cake, instead of a red, white, and blue poke cake.
- One 3.4 oz. box of jello is typically used for one cake. Since we’re using two colors, we have twice as much jello as needed. Use just half of each color so the colors don’t bleed into each other. You can pour the remaining liquid jello into another pan to make jello squares or use it to make red white and blue jello cups or 4th of July jello shots!
- I love using real whipped cream, but I also use Cool Whip if I want to cut down on dishes or prep time. Whip up the cream to soft peaks, then whisk in the powdered sugar. If using the Cool Whip, set it out to warm up for 15 minutes or so before spreading on the cake.
If you tried this 4th of July Poke Cake or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.
4th of July Poke Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box white cake mix plus ingredients listed to make the box of cake
- 3 oz. red jello mix you'll only need ½ the box
- 3 oz. blue jello mix you'll only need ½ the box
- 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- decorative sprinkles (optional)
- 2 cups boiling water
- 2 cups ice cold water
Instructions
- Prepare the white cake according to package instructions. Bake in a 13×9 baking dish.
- Prepare the red and blue jello in separate bowls according to the package instructions.
- Poke holes in the cake ½-1" apart, evenly spaced across the entire baked cake.
- Carefully spoon the red jello mixture across every other row of holes. Continue until you have used ½ of the red jello mixture. The other half is extra.
- Carefully spoon the blue jello mixture across the remaining rows of holes. Continue until you have used ½ of the blue jello mixture. The other half is extra.
- Chill the cake for 1-2 hours.
- Whip heavy cream with powdered sugar until soft peaks form.
- Gently spread the whipped cream over the top of the sheet cake.
- Refrigerate until serving time. Add sprinkles immediately before serving.
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Notes
- It is simple and quick to bake your own using a boxed cake mix. WHITE CAKE, so that you get your red, white, and blue. This typically means that you use only the egg whites. If you add in the whole eggs, the yolks with give a creamy tint to the cake – it’s not really a big deal and will still be delicious. If you’d like to bake your cake from scratch, use this white cupcake recipe and bake the batter in a 9×13.
- To poke holes in the cake, I like to use the end of a wooden spoon – it’s a nice ¼″ circle in diameter. You can also use a fork, a skewer or really anything you like. I made nice even holes spaced about 1″ apart. If you’re using a smaller poking device, your holes will be closer together.
- Keep some space between your rows of jello color. There is a lot of jello to soak into the cake and if the colors are on top of each other, you’ll end up with a red, blue, and purple cake, instead of a red, white, and blue poke cake.
- One 3.4 oz. box of jello is typically used for one cake. Since we’re using two colors, we have twice as much jello as needed. Use just half of each color so the colors don’t bleed into each other. You can pour the remaining liquid jello into another pan to make jello squares or use it to make red white and blue jello cups or 4th of July jello shots!
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Theresa says
I remember eating this cake as a child. A family friend would make it and I was always excited when she did. As I got older and bake myself, I never thought about making this cake until I seen it in a magazine. So nice to see that some of best things never go away.