Description
This Cream Cheese Carrot Cake Poke Cake is a decadent upgrade to the traditional favorite. Featuring a moist, deeply spiced carrot cake saturated with silky white chocolate pudding and topped with a tangy cream cheese frosting, it’s a melt-in-your-mouth showstopper for any spring gathering.
Ingredients
The Spiced Carrot Cake
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar + 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 3 cups freshly grated carrots (fine grate)
- 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
- Spices: 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp cloves
- Leavening: 1 3/4 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp vanilla
The White Chocolate Filling
- 2 (3.4 oz) boxes white chocolate instant pudding mix
- 4 cups cold milk
The Tangy Cream Cheese Frosting
- 6 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract + dash of salt
Instructions
Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Whisk oil, eggs, sugars, and vanilla. Stir in dry ingredients/spices, then fold in carrots and nuts. Bake in a 9×13 dish for 40–50 mins.
Poke: Cool for 10 mins. Use a wooden spoon handle to poke holes less than 1 inch apart across the cake.
Fill: Whisk pudding mix and milk. While pourable, pour over warm cake, guiding into holes. Chill until set.
Frost: Beat cream cheese, butter, sugar, and vanilla until fluffy. Spread over cold pudding layer. Chill 30–45 mins before serving.
Notes
White Chocolate Secret: White chocolate pudding provides a buttery depth that bridges earthy spices and tangy frosting better than vanilla.
Fresh Grating: Bagged carrots are too dry; fresh carrots ensure the cake is moist enough to absorb the pudding correctly.
Timing the Pudding: Pour the pudding immediately after whisking. If it begins to set in the bowl, it won’t settle into the holes properly.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Dessert / Poke Cake
- Method: Baking / Whisking
- Cuisine: American Holiday
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Square
- Calories: 480
- Sugar: 46
- Sodium: 340
- Fat: 28
- Saturated Fat: 12
- Unsaturated Fat: 16
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 56
- Fiber: 2
- Protein: 6
- Cholesterol: 85
Keywords: carrot cake poke cake, white chocolate pudding cake, cream cheese frosting recipes, easter dessert cakes, moist carrot cake recipe, holiday poke cakes, spiced spring desserts