This Easy Punch Bowl Cake is an old fashioned dessert that’s assembled in a punch bowl (or trifle dish). With layers of cake, vanilla custard, fruit, and whipped cream, it will have you coming back for more!
Cake…in a punch bowl? Yes! This old fashioned Southern cake is a show stopper for your table.
The cake resembles a trifle more than anything (especially when you make it in a trifle dish like I did—ha!), but I just love the idea of this Easy Punch Bowl Cake.
We’ll take a few shortcuts to keep it extra easy: boxed cake mix, instant pudding to create the custard, canned fruit, and whipped topping. It comes together into a fruity, creamy, flavorful dessert with lots of flavors and textures.
The original version of this was, of course, made in an actual punch bowl. However a trifle dish or a large glass bowl work well, too. Just make sure the dish is clear so everyone can see the layers!
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Top tips
- Leave time for the cake to cool before slicing it into cubes. You can even make it the day before. In a rush? Use a store-bought angel food cake instead.
- Drain the fruit so it doesn’t make the cake mushy. The cake pieces will soak up some of the liquid, so it doesn’t have to be perfect.
- Leave at least an hour for the cake to chill in the refrigerator before serving.
Ingredients
- The cake starts with a box of cake mix, made according to package directions.
- Instant vanilla pudding and milk create a creamy custard. Make sure it’s instant and not cook and serve pudding!
- Mandarin oranges, pineapple, and cherry pie filling create the pretty layers.
- The cake is topped off with whipped topping (like Cool Whip) and chopped pecans. Use fresh whipped cream instead of Cool Whip, if you like.
How to Make an Easy Punch Bowl Cake
- Start by making the cake mix according to package directions (unpictured) and let cool. Cut into 1–2 inch cubes. Then, stir together the milk and pudding mix.
- Layer half of the cake in the dish, followed by half of the pudding, half of the cherry pie filling, half of the pineapple, and half of the mandarin oranges.
- Layer the remaining cake, pudding, cherry pie filling, pineapple, and mandarin oranges in the dish.
- Top with the whipped topping, and garnish with chopped nuts.
Can punch bowl cake be made ahead?
This easy Punch Bowl Cake is a great make-ahead dessert. You can prepare the dish up to 8 hours in advance. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator before serving.
Variations
- Use fresh sliced strawberries instead of mandarin oranges
- Sprinkle shredded coconut or chocolate curls on top
- Use chocolate cake mix to create a chocolate punch bowl cake; you can also use chocolate pudding mix in place of vanilla
- Add sliced bananas in place of the mandarin oranges or pineapple
- Swap chopped almonds or walnuts for the pecans
- Use store-bought angel food cake in place of the prepared yellow cake
- Make individual desserts by layering the ingredients into mason jars instead of a punch bowl
More old fashioned cakes
- Chocolate Eclair Cake
- Old Fashioned Date Cake
- Jell-o Poke Cake
- Chocolate Delight
- Pistachio Cake with Pudding Mix
- Sock it to Me Cake
📖 Recipe
Easy Punch Bowl Cake
Ingredients
- 1 yellow or white cake mix
- 1 large box (5.1 oz) instant vanilla pudding
- 3 cups milk
- 1 can (20 oz) pineapple tidbits, drained
- 1 can (15 oz) mandarin oranges, drained
- 1 can (21 oz) cherry pie filling
- 1 carton (8 oz) whipped topping, thawed
- 2 tablespoons chopped pecans
Instructions
- Bake cake mix according to package directions. You can either use a 13×9 inch dish or the two 8–9 inch round options.
- Let the cake cool completely and cut into 1 inch pieces.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the instant vanilla pudding and the milk. Let sit for 10 minutes to firm up a bit.
- Place half of the cake cubes in a punch bowl or large trifle dish. Top with half of the vanilla pudding mixture.
- Top with half of the cherry pie filling, then half of the pineapple tidbits and half of the mandarin oranges.
- Repeat with the remaining cake, vanilla pudding, cherry pie filling, pineapple, and mandarin oranges.
- Top with the whipped topping, then sprinkle the pecans on top.
- Refrigerate for 1 hours before serving.
I made this cake about 25 years ago, instead of using a can of Mandarin orange, I use fruit cocktail. At the top of the 1st layer, I put whip cream layer, also whip cream layer at the top of the 2nd layer.
Sounds delicious!