Southern Pecan Praline Poke Cake
Looking for an irresistible dessert that everyone will LOVE? This Southern Pecan Praline Poke Cake is just dreamy! It’s one of those recipes you’ll find yourself making over and over again from holiday gatherings to special occasions throughout the year. You’ll fall in love at first bite of this dreamy cake!
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I love a good semi-homemade cake! You just can’t beat the ease of making them, and they always turn out just right! This pecan praline cake is no different. It starts with a box of butter pecan cake mix and a can of coconut pecan frosting. You know it’s going to be good with those two, right? Yep!
Pecan Praline Poke Cake Ingredients
BUTTER PECAN CAKE MIX: I use Betty Crocker brand, but use any brand you like.
COCONUT PECAN FROSTING: Again, I use Betty Crocker, but Pillsbury also makes one too.
EGGS: Use large eggs.
VEGETABLE OIL: Canola or vegetable oil will work fine.
MILK: I just used skim milk as that’s what I had on hand, but any regular milk will do.
CHOPPED PECANS: If you have time, I recommend toasting your pecans.
SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK: Just a 14 oz can is all you need.
BUTTER: You’ll need 1/4 cup. That’s half of a stick. You can use salted or unsalted, it doesn’t make a strong difference.
VANILLA EXTRACT: This is optional but I love a teaspoon added to the sauce!
That’s it! This cake doesn’t require a lot of ingredients, which I love because it makes it super simple to pull together.
It’s a super simple recipe, but let’s go over the steps quickly, shall we?
How to Make a Southern Pecan Praline Poke Cake
Mix up the cake batter by combining the cake mix with the frosting (YES, combine them in your mixer bowl) with eggs, vegetable oil and milk. Stir in 1/2 cup of chopped pecans (reserve the rest for the butter pecan sauce).
Bake at 350 degrees F. for about 40 minutes. Ovens vary so keep an eye on it. You’ll know it’s done when a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the edges start to pull away from the side.
Now for the fun part, poking the cake! I just used the end of a wooden spoon to poke my holes. Use any kitchen utensil you have to make holes in the cake. These holes will help the sauce pour down into the cake!
Make your sauce (recipe at the end in the recipe card) and pour it over the cooled cake.
This is the kind of Southern dessert recipe that I love to make for the Kentucky Derby or the Masters tournament. Just a little something sweet for the food spread! It’s also delicious at Thanksgiving and Christmas too. A year-round dessert to enjoy! If you like butter pecan desserts, you’ll love this one!
Add on extra chopped pecans if you have them! More pecans the better, in my opinion!
Speaking of pecans, if you have extra, make my pecan pie cupcakes and peach pecan baked brie! They’re both SO delicious!
I hope you’ll give this pecan praline poke cake a try! Enjoy!
Pecan Praline Poke Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box butter pecan cake mix - ex: Betty Crocker's
- 1 15.5 oz can coconut pecan frosting - ex. Betty Crocker's
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Butter Pecan Sauce
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9×13 baking pan.
- In a mixing bowl, beat together cake mix, frosting, eggs, vegetable oil and milk until consistency is smooth. Gently fold in chopped pecans.
- Pour butter pecan cake batter into greased baking pan. Bake for 40 minutes, check for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, cake is done.
- Remove cake from oven and use the back of a wooden spoon to poke holes throughout the cake. Set aside to cool while making sauce.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, combine sweetened condensed milk and butter until simmering. Remove from heat, stir in chopped pecans and vanilla extract.
- Pour butter pecan sauce over the cake and spread to the sides.
- Enjoy!
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