Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake recipe will remind you of the classic strawberry shortcake ice cream bars you loved as a kid, but baked as a bright and beautiful poke cake so the fruit flavor runs all the way through.
It’s light and fluffy with pretty pink stripes, all covered in cool whipped cream and a cookie crumble on top.
Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake Recipe
Our Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake can be prepared in 15 minutes using my favorite cake mix shortcut plus a packet of strawberry jello, Cool Whip, vanilla sandwich cookies, and strawberry syrup.
This strawberry crunch cake is a tasty twist on my strawberry poke cake recipe, with an added strawberry crunch topping so it resembles the texture of your favorite Good Humor frozen dairy dessert bar.
Once baked, this simple sheet cake is poked with a wooden spoon handle and filled with a creamy strawberry gelatin mixture that sinks into each hole and makes the moistest and most flavorful strawberry shortcake poke cake – it’s almost like a tres leches cake with sweet strawberry flavor stripes.
This strawberry shortcake crunch cake recipe has the perfect combination of moist cake, fruity flavor, fluffy whipped topping, and cookie crunch coating in every delicious forkful.
Why We Love This Strawberry Shortcake Poke Cake Recipe
- Quick and easy to make using a box cake mix base.
- Uses a handful of simple ingredients.
- Moist cake, creamy filling, fluffy topping, and fresh fruity flavor in every berry-filled bite.
- Poke cake recipes make the most moist and delicious desserts.
- Perfect for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, birthday parties, potlucks, or holiday celebrations.
Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake Ingredients
- White cake mix
- Eggs
- Heavy cream
- Vegetable oil
- Strawberry gelatin powder
- Water
- Whipped topping
- Vanilla sandwich cookies
- Strawberry syrup
- Fresh strawberries (optional garnish)
Substitutions and Additions
- Cook Your Cake: This recipe uses a box cake mix which makes it so convenient, but you can use a homemade recipe to bake the cake from scratch if you prefer. You can also substitute a French vanilla or yellow cake mix, but if you choose a yellow mix, the color will be yellow so the contrast between the cake and strawberry won’t be as striking.
- Create Without Cream: You can substitute half and half or whole milk for the heavy cream, but the cake may need more time to chill for the poke liquid to fully set up.
- Crush Your Cookies: You can use Golden Oreos or a generic brand of sandwich cookies to create your cookie crunch. You can also use vanilla wafers but your crumble will be more of a crumb topping than a crumble topping.
- Go Gluten-Free: You can make this a gluten-free recipe by using a gluten-free cake mix as well as gluten-free cookies for the topping.
Recommended Tools
- 9×13 inch baking pan
- Baking spray
- Hand or stand mixer
- Food processor (not required, but helpful)
How to Make Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake
- Bake The Cake: Beat together the cake mix, eggs, heavy cream, and oil until smooth. Spread the batter into the baking pan and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-35 minutes
Pro Tip: The cake is done when the top bounces back when gently tapped or a toothpick comes out of the middle of the cake with only a few crumbs. - Poke: Cooled the cake for 20 minutes and then poke several large holes all over it.
Pro Tip: Do not poke all the way to the bottom of the cake, only poke about ¾ of the way down. - Make The Jello Mixture: Dissolve the strawberry gelatin powder with boiling water. Whisk in the heavy cream until you have a dark pink, creamy liquid.
- Fill: Pour the warm mixture over the cake slowly, filling in the holes with any remaining liquid sitting on the top of the cake. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours or overnight.
- Create The Crumble: Crush the cookies in the food processor, pour in the strawberry syrup, and pulse until you have a white and pink crumble mixture.
TIP: If you do not have a food processor, place cookies in a sturdy, sealable zip-top bag, and gently crush them using a rolling pin, heavy skillet, or meat mallet until the desired consistency is reached. - Cover The Cake: Spread the whipped topping over the top and sprinkle with the crumble topping.
- Slice And Serve: Cut and serve your cake with fresh strawberries and a dollop of whipped topping. Enjoy!
Tips For Making The Best Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake
- Don’t over-mix your batter and don’t over-bake your cake. In either case, you will end up with a dry, crumbly cake that doesn’t taste nearly as good as it will if mixed and baked properly.
- When poking holes in your cake, you want holes larger than a chopstick would make but not huge. And avoid poking the hole all the way through the cake or your strawberry liquid will go right through and you won’t have stripes in your cake but rather a layer of liquid on the bottom.
- Don’t skip the cooling period if you want those beautiful poke holes all over your cake. If the cake is too warm, the gelatin liquid will simply sink to the bottom and you’ll have a bottom layer of strawberry but not the lines that you want in a poke cake. You can even allow the cake to cool completely but you may end up with a layer of the strawberry liquid remaining on top because it doesn’t all get soaked up by the cake.
- Be sure that your whipped topping is allowed to thaw in the refrigerator for several hours before you attempt to spread it on the cake. If it is thawed too quickly or is stirred while still frozen it may get liquidy and not stay fluffy.
How to Store Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake
- To Store: This Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake should be chilled in the refrigerator and will stay fresh for 3-5 days. Be aware that the crumble will soften the longer it is stored and may become mushy.
- To Freeze: You can cut and wrap the cake in individual pieces and store them in the freezer for about 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and serve chilled. Note: the whipped topping may get watery if frozen and thawed.
More Easy Poke Cake Recipes
Other Easy Strawberry Recipes
- Strawberry Pretzel Dessert
- Strawberry Fluff Salad
- Strawberry Fudge
- Strawberry Peanut Butter Bark
- Strawberry Shortcake Poke Cake
Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake
Serves — 20
This Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake is moist and soft with a cool whipped topping and crunchy cookie crumble. Light and fluffy with pretty pink stripes, it has the perfect sweet taste and creamy texture in every poked piece.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Chill Time 2 hours
Total Time 3 hours 10 minutes
Ingredients
Cake:
- 15.25 ounces box white cake mix
- 3 large eggs
- 2½ cups heavy cream divided
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 3 ounces box strawberry gelatin powder
- 1 cup boiling water
Topping:
- 8 ounces tub whipped topping
- 20 vanilla sandwich cookies
- 2½ tablespoons strawberry syrup
- Fresh strawberries and additional whipped topping optional garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 9×13 inch baking pan with cooking spray.
- In a large mixing bowl beat together the cake mix, eggs, 1 ½ cups of heavy cream and vegetable oil with a hand or stand mixer until fully smooth.
- Spread the cake batter into the prepared baking pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top bounces back when gently tapped or a toothpick comes out of the middle of the cake with only a few crumbs. Do not overbake
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes.
- Once the cake has cooled for 20 minutes, poke several large holes all over it with the bottom of a stirring spoon. Do not poke all the way to the bottom of the cake, only poke about ¾ of the way down.
- Pour the strawberry gelatin powder into a medium sized mixing bowl and whisk in the boiling water until dissolved.
- Gradually add in the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream, whisking constantly, until it is all added and combined. You should have a dark pink, creamy liquid.
- Pour the warm mixture over the cake slowly, being sure to fill the holes as much as possible and avoiding the edges of the cake.
- Spread any remaining liquid sitting on the top of the cake into the holes.
- Cover well and place in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours or overnight.
- When ready to cut and serve the cake, remove from the refrigerator, uncover and spread the whipped topping all over the top.
- Place the cookies in a food processor and pulse 1-2 times to begin to crush them.
- Pour in the strawberry syrup and pulse several more times until the cookies are roughly crumbled and the syrup is mixed in. You will have a white and pink crumble mixture.
- Sprinkle the topping evenly over the whipped topping, spreading gently if necessary to reach all the edges, and then cut and serve with fresh strawberries and whipped topping, optional.
Jenn’s Notes
Storage:
- To Store: This Strawberry Crunch Poke Cake should be chilled in the refrigerator and will stay fresh for 3-5 days. Be aware that the crumble will soften the longer it is stored and may become mushy.
- To Freeze: You can cut and wrap the cake in individual pieces and store them in the freezer for about 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and serve chilled. Note: the whipped topping may get watery if frozen and thawed.
- Don’t over mix your batter and don’t over bake your cake. In either case, you will end up with a dry, crumbly cake that doesn’t taste nearly as good as it will if mixed and baked properly.
- When poking holes in your cake, you want holes larger than a chopstick would make but not huge. And avoid poking the hole all the way through the cake or your strawberry liquid will go right through and you won’t have stripes in your cake but rather a layer of liquid on the bottom.
- Don’t skip the cooling period if you want those beautiful poke holes all over your cake. If the cake is too warm, the gelatin liquid will simply sink to the bottom and you’ll have a bottom layer of strawberry but not the lines that you want in a poke cake. You can even allow the cake to cool completely but you may end up with a layer of the strawberry liquid remaining on top because it doesn’t all get soaked up by the cake.
- Be sure that your whipped topping is allowed to thaw in the refrigerator for several hours before you attempt to spread it on the cake. If it is thawed too quickly or is stirred while still frozen it may get liquidy and not stay fluffy.
Nutrition Info
Calories: 298kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 244mg | Potassium: 79mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 481IU | Vitamin C: 0.2mg | Calcium: 83mg | Iron: 1mg
Have not made it yet. Can I do this without a processor?
Love all your recipes, question where do you get strawberry syrup?
Thank you so much!! Regarding the syrup, any strawberry syrup will work but we used the Great Value brand of strawberry syrup from Walmart.