Red Velvet Poke Cake
Red velvet cake is infused with sweetened condensed milk and topped with the best cream cheese frosting. A must for Valentine’s Day!
Poke cakes have been around for a long, long time. I remember getting recipes for different versions through email “recipe exchanges” back in the early 2000’s. That’s when they popped onto my radar, and I have a feeling that they had been floating around for decades before that.
This cake was my first go at a completely from-scratch poke cake. I have a deep love for better than sex cake, which features the combination of chocolate cake, caramel topping, Cool Whip, and Heath bits that has been popular for ages, but in anticipation of Valentine’s Day in 2013, I wanted to go all-in on homemade cake. This red velvet poke cake is based on my red velvet cupcake recipe, is infused with sweetened condensed milk (ahh, shades of tres leches cake!) and topped with my favorite cream cheese frosting.
I doubled the recipe for my red velvet cupcakes and baked it in a 9×13-inch pan. Once it came out of the oven, I poked holes all over the top using a metal skewer and poured a can of sweetened condensed milk over top. The idea is to let the sweetened condensed milk slowly seep into the cake, giving it a boost of flavor and keeping it incredibly moist. You can’t have red velvet without cream cheese frosting, so once the cake cooled completely, I slathered cream cheese frosting over the top and showered it with some pretty pink, red and white sprinkles.
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This is the red velvet cake of dreams. I made it again a couple of weeks ago for Sunday dinner dessert and everyone loved it. Those dinners are a great way for me to gauge how good a recipe is – our family is made up of quite a varying array of tastes and preferences, so if I serve something that EVERYONE goes nuts over, then I know it’s a for-sure winner.
Watch How to Make Red Velvet Poke Cake (video):
What’s YOUR favorite poke cake recipe? There are still a million I want to try!
One year ago: King Bundt Cake
Five years ago: Red Velvet Cheesecake
Red Velvet Poke Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 6 tablespoons red food coloring
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk
- 2¼ cups (281.25 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- 14 ounce (396.89 ml) can sweetened condensed milk
For the Frosting:
- 1 cup (236.59 g) salted butter, at room temperature
- 8 ounces (226.8 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
- 3½ cups (420 g) powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.
- On medium-high speed, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Turn the mixer to high and add the eggs. Scrape down the bowl and beat until well incorporated.
- In a separate small bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, vanilla extract and red food coloring to make a thick paste. Add to the batter and mix on medium speed until completely combined. You may need to stop the mixer to scrape the bottom of the bowl, making sure that all the batter gets color.
- Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add half of the buttermilk. Add half of the flour and mix until combined. Scrape the bowl and repeat the process with the remaining milk and flour. Beat on high until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Again, reduce the mixer speed to low and add the salt, baking soda and vinegar. Turn to high and beat for another 2 minutes until completely combined and smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan, smoothing the top into an even layer with a spatula. Bake until a thin knife or skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the oven and immediately poke holes all over the top of the cake. You can use the end of a wooden spoon, a skewer, the tines of a fork, etc. Slowly pour the can of condensed milk all over the top of the cake, making sure to drizzle it evenly all over the top. If it pools along the edges, use a spoon to scoop it up and redistribute it on top. Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting and decorating.
- Make the Frosting: Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip the butter and cream cheese on high speed for about 5 minutes, scraping the bowl down as necessary. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the powdered sugar until all is incorporated. Add the vanilla and mix to combine. Increase the speed to medium high and whip for a few minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy, scraping the bowl as necessary.
- Spread the frosting evenly over the top of the cake and decorate as desired. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
This cake is the best thing I’ve ever made. I use this website for all baked goods but this one takes the cake ;) Not too sweet of a cake base, notes of cocoa, and the sweetened condensed milk is amazing. The cream cheese frosting is to die for. I halved the recipe and put it in a brownie pan and it set up thick with a high stack of frosting. I will be enjoying all week long.
I have another question, sorry! But we use unsalted butter and then you have butter for the icing. What kind of butter for the icing? Making this Saturday!
Hi Marchelle, Salted butter for the frosting. Or, you can use unsalted and add a pinch of salt.
Can I bake it in a heart shaped foil pan?
Hi Marchelle, I don’t see why not, just make sure the volume is the same.
Loved the cake! Made it for my husband’s family yesterday when we hosted Christmas. Cake was perfect. Did take a bit longer to bake, but I anticipated that. I was wondering if the 2 Tbsp. vanilla extract in the frosting was supposed to be 2 Tsp? I thought it tasted overwhelmingly of the extract. I also messed up because I assumed it was 8 Tbsp of butter (1 stick) and not 8 oz. of butter. Ooops. It was still a big hit and I’ll make it again and tweak the frosting a bit. Thanks!
Hey there,
I had to copy and adjust your recipe to german. OMG! I’m druling all over the place – this is just delish!
Thx for sharing. You’ll find mine here: http://www.sabotagebuch.de/wordpress/2014/06/14/copycat-red-velvet-poke-cake/
Greets, Sandra / sabo
Well, everything that has been mentioned above went wrong for me. The cake took about 50 minutes to bake, it cracked and rose in the middle, the frosting was runny and lumpy, and the whole thing wasn’t at all pleasant to eat; the cake wasn’t light, it was rather dense and not a nice taste. I also think the whole tin of condensed milk was too much, as it just sat on top despite the holes. Even the bit that went into the cake didn’t make it light at all. I tried to follow the recipe to a T, doing the conversions from the US to UK measurements (i.e. ounces to grams, etc) used the right sized glass tray, only difference is that I didn’t have a machine and did everything by hand (surely 50 years ago this would have been normal). Who knows what went wrong?! I’m very disappointed, but I suppose it’s my fault, only don’t know what I did wrong. Going in the bin now. Better luck to everyone else.
I’m all for the cakes made from scratch but there was a red velvet poke cake made with a box mix where you bake the cake as directed then you pour 2 BOXES of LEMON jello into the holes then cool cake.Then you mix a box of COOK VANILLA PUDDING along with other ingredients and then you pour this over the cold cake and serve warm or cold. I want to make the one with the box cake for my kids and the one from scratch for me my kids won’t eat CREAM CHEESE FROSTING does anyone have the box cake recipe?I already bought the mix And the LEMON Jello and COOK BOX OF VANILLA PUDDING I HAVE been looking all over face book for that recipe any help WOULD be appreciated thanks
Made it yesterday for my uncles’ anniversary and wooow! I’ve tried nothing like it before, the chocolate with the red colour, the condensed milk and the cream chesse everything was just perfect! Sending you a huge thank you from Argentina!
Just made cake. Its in oven. Confused bout food coloring. I bout thepkg of food coloring and the red was small, only gave me 1 tbsp. So i used 5 tbsp water but cake still was really red so i dont know if i just had strong food coloring…?
Made this last night…super moist and yummy! I was even able to adapt the recipe for my lactose free hubby!
Made this following your exact recipe and it was absolutely delicious. I am not a huge red velvet fan but my husband is and so I made it for his Birthday. Your directions were so clear and easy to follow and it was a fun cake to make. I did have to add an additional 5 minutes to the cooking time using a metal pan but it seems most things have a range of how long it takes based in personal variables. Anyways., thanks for the great recipe. If you are a fan of Red Velvet, this won’t disappoint. I think I actually liked this more bc of the Sweetened Condensed Milk addition.
This cake looks too pretty to eat! Wait…did I just say that? Just kidding!
Hi, im always a bid fan of your blog. I love cupcakes so is it possible if i do use this recipe and the poke nethod on a cupcake? pls help me… i was so depress because redvelvet cupcakes are always dry after 2-3 days. Pls pls help me… im always searching for the moistiest red velvet cupcake ever thanks .
Hi Monique, I have never tried this method with cupcakes, so I can’t vouch for how it would turn out. I do have red velvet cupcakes on the site, though, if you’d like to try those (they are quite moist!): https://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/11/08/red-velvet-cupcakes-cream-cheese-frosting/
Wow! So delicious. I love it. You are sharing such a yummy recipe. I never heard this recipe name before.
Hi. i made this last night. The texture was perfect! However, i think the coloring should be reduced to half? Because it’s came out quite bitter at the top. I have another recipe which i made previously (cupcakes) with similar amounts of flour/sugar, the coloring required was only about 2.5 tbsp. ^^ Just wondering if that caused the bitter after taste in my red velvet. I didn’t add much condensed milk because worried it would be too sweet.
Hi Jaclyn, If you left out some of the sweetened condensed milk, that could have made it less sweet (i.e. more bitter). However, you may also want to try a different brand of food coloring; some of them have off-tastes.
Okay, one last question! I’m going to make this tomorrow night for my mother’s birthday on Saturday (I’m a novice baker and this is my first cake!!). I’m planning on baking the cake on Friday night, storing it in the fridge overnight, and frosting it in the morning. Should I poke the holes and add the condensed milk on Friday night, or should I wait until Saturday morning to poke the holes and add the condensed milk right before frosting? Any help or advice is greatly appreciated!!!
Hi Neal, You’ll want to poke holes and add the condensed milk on Friday night. Enjoy the cake!
I’m planning on making this over the weekend and can’t wait! Should I use salted or unsalted butter for the frosting?
Hi Neal, You could use salted butter, or unsalted butter with a pinch of salt added.
Is this the same recipe for your red velvet cupcakes, well, except that you pour over condensed milk? :)
Is this the same recipe for your red velvet cupcakes, well, except that you pour over condensed milk? :)
I already saw the answer to my question :) thanks!
Hi, this recipe looks absolutely scrumptious! I do have a question though that I am hoping you could provide me some guidance on… I will be baking for a fairly large group of people (including quite a few kids), so I was thinking of doubling the recipe, i.e. making two layers of cake and then more frosting to cover the whole thing so it is birthday cake like. Do you think this cake has the structural integrity for that? I have never made poke cake before so not sure if the pokes make it less sturdy! Also, in your opinion, how much frosting would I need? Lots of questions, I know, but I appreciate any help you could provide! Thanks :)
Hi Alex, I have never done a layer cake with a poke cake, I’m not sure how it would hold up. Pouring the sweetened condensed milk and caramel over a layer cake might end up a bit messy. In a 9×13, the ends of the pan helps hold in the liquid while it seeps into the cake.
I just made this cake for friends and it was a huge hit! So great. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi! I was wondering if I could use something else instead of the condensed milk? Do you have any suggestions? Thank you!
Hi Georgia, I’m not really sure what else you could use without knowing why exactly you don’t want to use the sweetened condensed milk – dairy restrictions, taste, etc.? You could try a thick simple syrup just to give it some extra moisture if you’d like.
Is it really meant to be 8 Oz of butter rather than 8 tablespoons in the frosting?
Yes, 8 ounces, which is 2 sticks of butter.
I made this other day and it is so delicious! I made it with a glass Pyrex dish and the cake cooked perfectly in about 28 minutes.
I have no experience with poke cakes. How long does it take for the cake to fully absorb the condensed milk?? Can this cake be turned out of its pan, for instance if i was using a 9 inch cake pan, and then be stacked and decorated?
You could do that, but just know that the bottom of the cake can sometimes be moist, if your’e worried about presentation. Usually a piece of tres leches cake has a lot of moisture on the bottom of each piece.
Hey, can I use red gel food colour for this cake. And if i can, how many do I have to use? :)) Thank you.
I have tried using gel food coloring in red velvet, but didn’t have as much luck as I do with the liquid food coloring.
I have to tell you, this recipe left a lot to be desired. I would suggest using salted butter as opposed to un-salted. Also, you need to add at least 1/3 cup oil to add some substance to this. I found this recipe to be quite bland. The only thing that was good about it was the cream cheese frosting, which by the way, 2 and 1/4 cups of powdered sugar is plenty as cream cheese frosting shouldn’t be too sweet. All this being said, to each her own, but I have to say, I have tried other recipes from you and they have been good-this totally disappointed.
hi..tried this recipe today….the cake was just yum…but the problem is, here in india, the cream cheese is quite costly so i substituted cream cheese with cottage cheese..but the frosting came out grainy :(. nevertheless the cake tasted great without the frosting as well. could you plz suggest any other frosting that goes with this cake, since i am planning on baking this cake for my nieces’ bday next week :) . I have one more question , my cake rose unevenly, i would like to know y and would it have helped if i had covered it with aluminium foil? sorry for bothering u with so many questions…i m v new to baking….but am loving it…btw LOVE UR BLOG :)
Hi Rashmi, You could use a regular vanilla buttercream; I like this one: https://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/03/24/easy-vanilla-bean-buttercream/. As for how the cake rose, mine did dome slightly in the middle and fall off towards the edges as well, but I wouldn’t recommend covering the pan with foil.
thank u :)
I was thinking of making this cake for St. Patty’s so instead of the red food coloring can I just replace it with green food coloring? I’ve made quite a few of your recipes and ALL have been a huge hit.
Hi Mariann, I haven’t used a different color for red velvet cakes before, but I have seen it done. I would think due to the cocoa that your green will be a darker hue than light. Enjoy!
This cake is absolutely delightful! I made it over the weekend for my family and in-laws and they all gave rave reviews! I did make a few minor adjustments in that I made half the amount of icing, used half the amount of sweetened condensed milk, and instead of using 6 tbsp of red food coloring I did 2 tbsp of food coloring plus 2 tbsp milk, and cut down on the cocoa powder by 2 tbsps and it was still incredibly moist! I would HIGHLY recommend this recipe to others! :)
Great recipe..red velvet is my favorite! Just a quick question though…I have never used condensed milk for anything other than baking cookies, so is it safe to eat “not baked”? I’mjust a little worried having it plain,and then serving it to my kids, just want to make sure its okay :)
Hi Lindsay, I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t eat it without baking it.