Punch Bowl Cake is an easy to make classic Southern dessert with delicious layers. You will love the wonderful flavors of fluffy cake, pudding, fruit, whipped cream and more.
You don’t have to be from the South to make this easy Punch Bowl Cake. It is perfect for a family reunion, birthday party, dinner party or any occasion you need a tasty dessert.
This recipe is similar to Strawberry Trifle and the layers are gorgeous. It is one of the easiest cake recipes. If you can toss a few ingredients together, you can make this recipe!
While it is traditionally made in a large punch bowl, you can choose a punch bowl or trifle dish. Either option will show the gorgeous layers in this recipe for punch bowl cake. You may also love this Atomic Cake and Margarita Cake.
What's in this post: Punch Bowl Cake
Why Everyone Loves This Recipe
- Simple Ingredients. The ingredient list is simple and you won’t find anything complicated.
- Quick and easy. The recipe is super easy.
- Rich and Delicious. This dessert is the perfect blend of tasty ingredients.
Ingredients
- Yellow cake mix. Any brand you like is fine.
- Instant vanilla pudding mix. Make sure to use instant pudding mix.
- Bananas. They should not be overly ripe, or they will get brown faster in the dish.
- Crushed pineapple. Drain before using.
- Cherry pie filling. You can also use strawberry pie filling.
- Whipped topping. Store bought or Homemade Whipped Cream.
- Chopped pecans. These can easily be omitted but we love them.
You can find the complete ingredient list in the recipe card at the bottom.
Substitutions and Additions
- Pudding. Try using white chocolate pudding or lemon pudding.
- Cake. More options include angel food cake, pound cake, white cake mix, strawberry boxed cake mix and more.
- Omit the Nuts. Feel free to leave the nuts out of the recipe if you prefer.
- Try different nuts. I also like chopped walnuts, cashews and almonds instead of the pecans.
- Topping. Add a few fresh strawberries or fresh blueberries to the top of the punch bowl cake recipe. Coconut is also delicious.
- Pie filling. Swap the cherry pie filling for strawberry or blueberry.
- Chocolate Punch Bowl Cake. You can also use chocolate pudding and chocolate cake to make chocolate punch bowl cake.
- Patriotic Version. Layer blueberry pie filling in this dessert with the cherry pie filling. It is perfect for July 4th.
How to Make a Punch Bowl Cake
Step 1. Prepare the cake mix according to package and bake in a 9X13 baking pan. Allow the cake to cool completely.
Step 2. Mix together the pudding with the milk. While the pudding is thickening, cut the cooled cakes into smaller bite size pieces.
Step 3. Crumble half of the cake pieces in the trifle dish. Then add half of the pudding mixture on top evenly. Top with sliced banana.
Step 4. Next, spread the can of pineapple, can of cherry pie filling and half of the cool whip.
Step 5. Top the layers of cake with the remaining whipped topping. Sprinkle the chopped walnuts on
Step 6. Place the lid on the dish or use a layer of plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and then serve and enjoy!
Pro Tips
- Drain the pineapple. Remove all of the juice from the pineapple so it does not make the dessert soggy.
- Don’t use fresh pineapple. Canned pineapple results in a better texture than fresh in this recipe.
- Chill before serving. The flavors need time to combine before serving. Chill at least an hour but I prefer overnight.
- Cut the cake into small pieces. The cake cubes need to be bite size so you don’t have any large chunks in the dessert.
FAQ’s
Yes, this recipe is easy to adapt to meet your needs. Swap the pudding for sugar free pudding, use light whipped cream and sugar free cake mix.
Store the leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1-2 days. Any longer and the bananas will turn brown.
Feel free to use homemade whipped cream if you prefer. It only takes a few minutes, and it tastes delicious.
Yes, this recipe can be made 1 day in advance. I actually prefer to do this because the flavors taste even better.
Traditionally, this dessert is made in a glass punch bowl. However, you can use a trifle bowl or any glass bowl you have on hand. Just make sure it is clear so that you can see the pretty layers.
More Easy Trifle Desserts
Make this for your next get together and watch it disappear. Then please come back and leave a comment letting us know how you liked it.
Punch Bowl Cake
Ingredients
Instructions
- Bake the yellow cake mix based on the package instructions in a 9X13 baking pan. Let the cake cool completely.
- Prepare the pudding by combining the 2 vanilla pudding mixes with the 5 cups of milk. Leave it to set for 30 minutes to thicken.
- Cut the cakes into smaller bite size pieces after they have reached room temperature.
- Put half of the cake pieces in a big bowl, then add half of the pudding on top, spreading it out evenly.
- Slice 3 bananas and lay them onto the layer of pudding. Follow it up with 1 can of pineapple, 1 can of the cherry pie filling and half of the whipped topping.
- Do the same steps with the ingredients that you have left.
- Finish it off with whipped topping and sprinkle it with chopped walnuts.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and then the cake is ready to serve and enjoy!
