Amaretto Poke Cake
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Amaretto Poke Cake isn’t just for Amaretto lovers. It’s a moist cake that pairs great with coffee for breakfast or makes the most delicious dessert for all ages. It features a decadent Amaretto glaze that is poured over an amped up box cake mix.
Amaretto Poke Cake Recipe
I became hooked on Amaretto after a week-long trip to Florida where they served up Amaretto Pina Coladas. Afterwards, I ran home recreated the amazing drinks and was left with a good portion of a bottle of Amaretto. With the leftover Amaretto, I made Amaretto Chicken and Rice and Amaretto French Toast. It just so happened that a co-worker brought in this amazing Homemade Amaretto Cake. She happily shared her special recipe and here we are with a new favorite in our house.
Aren’t familiar with Amaretto? It is an Italian liquor that features a sweet almond and apricot flavor.
Our favorite part of the recipe is where our friend adds that the chef should consume a good part of the bottle of Amaretto while baking the cake, and that the chef should be sure to keep tasting the glaze (with her finger). The glaze is so good that it is impossible to not taste test.
How to Make Amaretto Poke Cake:
Instructions:
- With a mixer, combine box cake mix, instant vanilla pudding, oil, water, eggs, vanilla extract and almond extract for 2 minutes.
- Pour into a 13 x 9 inch pan that has been sprayed heavily with cooking spray.
- Cook at 350 degrees F for 23-33 minutes of until a toothpick comes out clean.
- To make the glaze, add sugar, Amaretto and butter in a small saucepan. Bring it to a rolling boil for 2 minutes; add chopped nuts, and pour all over the hot cake that has been poked all over with holes.
For the full recipe for Amaretto Coffee Cake, scroll to the bottom of the page.
Notes About Amaretto Cake:
- Use your favorite box cake mix for this Homemade Amaretto Cake. This recipe calls for Butter Pecan cake mix, and I’ve used yellow cake mix and golden cake mix and which are both great. A spice cake mix would be fantastic.
- Be sure to use instant vanilla pudding – not the cook and serve type. This is the secret to the moist texture.
- I use nonstick cooking spray to coat the cake pan. You can most certainly use softened butter, margarine or shortening.
- Use your favorite chopped nut for this homemade amaretto cake. I’ve used almonds, pecans and walnuts. You could leave these out too if desired, or you can mix in additional nuts into the cake mix.
- For the glaze, use butter or margarine.
- Use whatever you have to poke holes in the cake (a wooden or metal skewer, straw, back of a spoon, etc). When you think you have enough holes, keep poking!
Want to make this cake a bit fancier? Bake it in a bundt cake pan. Here are the additional steps you’ll need to take:
- Use your favorite bundt cake pan and grease it well.
- Sprinkle chopped nuts on the bottom of the pan (instead of waiting to put them on top of the cake) so when you take the cake out of the oven, you’ll see the nuts baked on top.
- Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from the pan immediately once it’s done baking and then poke your holes and add the glaze on top and over the sides of the cake.
Other Desserts Made with Cake Mixes
- We are the queens of using cake mixes in recipes. Try some of our favorites:
- Honey Bun Coffee Cake
- Pistachio Coffee Cake
- Yellow Cake Mix Gooey Bars
- Easy Cake Mix Caramel Bars
- Crock Pot Banana Bread
- Pumpkin Crunch
- Banana Pudding Poke Cake
Amaretto Poke Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 16.5 oz. butter pecan cake mix
- 1 (3.4 oz). box instant vanilla pudding mix
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
Glaze
- 1 stick butter
- 1/2 cup Amaretto
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup chopped almonds, pecans or walnuts
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Spray a 9 x 13 inch cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.
- Beat cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, water, vanilla and almond extract on high for 2 minutes.
- Pour into prepared pan; cook for 20 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Immediately poke holes all over the cake.
Glaze
- For glaze, add butter, Amaretto and sugar to a small saucepan.
- Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly until a rolling boil. Boil for 2 minutes; remove from heat. Immediately pour over hot cake.
- If needed, pour the excess glaze back into the saucepan and repeat until all the glaze has been absorbed.
- Note: By now the cook should have consumed another cup of Amaretto and should be licking up the spilt glaze!
Notes
- Use your favorite box cake mix for this Homemade Amaretto Cake. This recipe calls for Butter Pecan cake mix, and I've used yellow cake mix and golden cake mix and which are both great. A spice cake mix would be fantastic or you can lighten it up with an Angel Food Cake Mix.
- Be sure to use instant vanilla pudding---not the cook and serve type. This is the secret to the moist texture.
- I use nonstick cooking spray to coat the cake pan. You can most certainly use softened butter, margarine or shortening.
- Use your favorite chopped nut for this homemade amaretto cake. I've used almonds, pecans and walnuts. You could leave these out too if desired, or you can mix in additional nuts into the cake mix.
- For the glaze, use butter or margarine.
- Use whatever you have to poke holes in the cake (a wooden or metal skewer, straw, back of a spoon, etc). When you think you have enough holes, keep poking!
- Love Amaretto? Try Amaretto Pina Colada, Amaretto French Toast and Amaretto Chicken and Rice.
Nutrition
Your recipe is really good, everyone loved it. Thank you! But the recipe calls for a 1- 1 oz box of instant vanilla pudding. I can only find 3.4 oz or 5.1. so I used the smaller one and the cake came out fine. Was that just a typo?
Thank you for pointing this out. Yes, you were right. It was a typo and you chose right, it should be a 3.4 oz box of pudding. Thank you so much for letting us know and we are so glad you enjoyed the cake!