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Vampire Poke Cake

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This Vampire Poke Cake is a spooky Halloween dessert made with soft almond buttermilk cake, tart cherry ‘blood’ sauce, and fluffy whipped topping. Perfectly gory, sweet, and dramatic—this cake will steal the show on your Halloween table.

  • Author: Julia
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 35 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes to overnight
  • Yield: 15–18 servings
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. fresh or frozen cherries, pitted
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
  • 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
  • Cooking spray
  • 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 3/4 cups buttermilk, room temperature, divided
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 3 Tbsp. powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Instructions

  1. Cherry Sauce: Combine cherries, sugar, water, cornstarch, and salt in a pot and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
  2. Reduce heat and simmer for about 2 minutes, occasionally mashing cherries until thickened.
  3. Remove from heat, let cool, and blend until smooth. Store in fridge if making ahead; bring to room temperature before using.
  4. Cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 13×9-inch pan with cooking spray and line with parchment.
  5. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  6. In a mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then almond extract.
  7. Alternate adding dry mixture and buttermilk, ending with dry. Fold last portion by hand.
  8. Pour batter into pan and bake for 25–35 minutes.
  9. While warm, poke holes 1 inch apart using a wooden spoon handle. Fill holes with cherry sauce. Let cool completely and refrigerate overnight.
  10. Topping: Whip cream with powdered sugar and vanilla until medium peaks form.
  11. Remove cake from pan and spread whipped cream on top.
  12. Poke ‘fang marks’ into topping and fill with cherry sauce. Splatter sauce over top for a gory effect.

Notes

  • Frozen cherries work just as well as fresh.
  • Can be made 1 day ahead for best flavor.
  • Add cherry liqueur to sauce for an adult version.
  • Store in fridge up to 4 days.
  • For a gelatin-style version, replace sauce with cherry gelatin.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://juliameals.com/vampire-poke-cake/