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This Kahlua Chocolate Poke Cake is an incredibly moist Kahlua chocolate cake made from scratch that is soaked in more chocolate and Kahlua! It’s topped with fresh Kahlua whipped cream and is truly an indulgent treat!
Kahlua Chocolate Poke Cake Recipe
If you are a lover of Kahlua, then there’s no doubt that you will love this cake. It was a major hit in our home with friends and family. Between all the chocolate, Kahlua and such a moist chocolate cake, it’s heaven in a pan!
Not to mention that the homemade chocolate cake used for the base is not only moist and amazing itself, it’s also incredibly easy to put together. The whole dessert comes together quite quickly and easily for such a tasty cake.
To get started with the Kahlua Chocolate Poke Cake, you’ll combine the dry ingredients and wet ingredients (minus the water) separately. Included in the wet ingredients is a whole half cup of Kahlua! Lots of Kahlua flavor in here! Combine them all together, then add the water. Don’t be alarmed when you see that the batter is very thin. It’s supposed to be. This is one majorly moist cake, which means there’s a lot of moisture and liquid that goes into it.
Another thing to not be alarmed by is the low baking temperature. It’s not an error. The cake bakes at 300 degrees. It’s a slow bake cake that’s worth every second of waiting. It’s also the base of my very favorite Homemade Moist Chocolate Cupcakes, which are always a hit.
After the cake has baked, poke it all over with holes. I like to use a knife sharpening rod, but something similar would work as well. Common alternatives are thick straws or the handle of a wooden spoon.
Heat the sweetened condensed milk and another half cup of Kahlua and pour the mixture over the chocolate chips. The heat from the mixture will melt the chocolate and then it’s all poured over the cake.
Allow the mixture to seep into the holes in the cake, using a spatula to spread it around, if needed.
Next you’ll want to allow the cake to cool completely in the fridge. Once it’s ready, you’ll add the whipped cream on top. It’s a lightly Kahlua flavored whipped cream that compliments the richness of the cake perfectly. Be sure to use the full amount of powdered sugar, as that is what adds stability to the whipped cream.
This Kahlua Chocolate Poke Cake is finished off with some mini chocolate chips and a drizzle of chocolate sauce. A simple cake in presentation, but totally over-the-top in flavor! Loads of chocolate, loads of Kahlua and moist and delicious for days! It’s a wonderful cake to eat on a random Tuesday night or take to a potluck to share with friends. Just depends on how generous you’re feeling. 😉
You might also like:
Baileys Chocolate Poke Cake
Kahlua Coffee Chocolate Layer Cake
Kahlua Coffee Brownie Cheesecake
Kahlua Ice Cream Pie
Kahlua Coffee Cake
Homemade Kahlua
Kahlua Chocolate Poke Cake
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 12-15 slices
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
This Kahlua Chocolate Poke Cake is an incredibly rich, moist Kahlua chocolate cake made from-scratch that is soaked in more chocolate and Kahlua! It’s topped with Kahlua whipped cream!
Ingredients
KAHLUA CHOCOLATE CAKE
- 2 cups (260g) all purpose flour
- 2 cups (414g) sugar
- 3/4 cup (85g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup (180ml) milk
- 1 cup (240ml) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (240ml) Kahlua Liqueur, divided
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3/4 cup (180ml) boiling water
- 1 cup (240ml) sweetened condensed milk
- 3/4 cup (127g) semi sweet chocolate chips
WHIPPED CREAM TOPPING
- 2 cups (480) heavy whipping cream, cold
- 3/4 cup (86g) powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup (29g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp (30ml) Kahlua Liqueur, optional
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
ADDITIONAL
- Mini chocolate chips
- Chocolate sauce
Instructions
1. Prepare a 9×13 inch cake pan by greasing the sides. Preheat oven to 300°F (148°C).
2. Add all dry ingredients to a large bowl and combine.
3. Add eggs, milk, vegetable oil, 1/2 cup of Kahlua and vanilla to the dry ingredients and mix well.
4. Slowly pour the water into the batter, mixing well and being careful of splashing.
5. Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for about 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few crumbs.
6. Remove the cake from the oven and poke holes all over. I use a knife sharpening rod, but you could also use a straw.
7. While the cake is still warm, add the chocolate chips to a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
8. Add the sweetened condensed milk and remaining 1/2 cup of Kahlua to a microwave safe measuring cup. Heat heat the condensed milk and Kahlua until they begin to boil, then pour over the chocolate chips.
9. Whisk the chocolate until smooth, then immediately pour over the cake, spreading it into the holes. Don’t let the mixture sit before pouring it over the cake or it’ll start to thicken and not soak in the holes as well.
10. Set the cake in the fridge to cool and soak.
11. When the cake has cooled, add the ingredients for the whipped cream topping to a large mixer bowl. Whip on high speed until stiff peaks form.
12. Spread the whipped cream evenly over the cake. Top the cake with mini chocolate chips and a drizzle of chocolate sauce, if desired. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 Slice
- Calories: 632
- Sugar: 57.2 g
- Sodium: 375.4 mg
- Fat: 32.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 75.5 g
- Protein: 8.1 g
- Cholesterol: 69.4 mg
Categories
Enjoy!
Hello,
Can I substitute the condensed milk with something else?
I’m not really sure of a good alternative.
I’ve made this before as directed and it got rave reviews. But this time, I’m making it for someone who can’t have alcohol due to their medications. Can you just substitute brewed coffee for Kahlua in this cake, or no?
I would actually swap it out for milk. If you want to use coffee, use it in place of the boiling water.
I followed your instructions on using extra milk in the cake batter in place of Kahlua and replacing the boiling water with coffee (heated until boiling in the microwave). I also replaced the Kahlua with coffee in the soaking liquid 1:1, and added just a splash of coffee into the whipped cream, and it came out just as decadent as the first time, just without the booziness. My coffee-hating family loved it- they couldn’t even taste the coffee, and thought it just tasted like a really rich chocolate cake. Guess that was just enough coffee to intensify the chocolate. Thanks so much!
Additionally, I made a half-batch in my 8×8 square pan, and if anyone else is wondering about bake time like I was, it takes exactly the same amount of time as a full 9×13 pan.
I’m so glad it worked out! Thanks for sharing how it turned out!
Hi, I want to try this recipe, but I don’t drink alcohol. what can I substitute Kahlua with?
Replace the kahlua in the cake with additional milk, the Kahlúa in the chocolate mixture on top with additional sweeten condensed milk and I would just leave it out of the whipped cream.
Since I got more into baking, I’ve wanted to try a Kahlua-based dessert, and I found this. I wound up making this for an office party because my parents don’t do alcohol and I still never see my neighbors, but I work at a hip tech company that has beer-o’clock Fridays. I botched the soaking liquid a bit- the consistency needs to be as thin as possible for maximum effect, but I kept whisking it because there were some additives or something from the chocolate chips that weren’t incorporating and made it look streaky (who cares about streaks; they’re going to get absorbed into the cake and will be under the whipped cream frosting) and it came out to not quite a ganache-like consistency that mostly settled on top of the cake. Everything else worked out, though, and the cake turned out to be a hit at the party that made me very popular- people were complimenting how moist and rich it was. Will definitely make it again someday and get it right.
I want to make a smaller cake . Maybe 6-7 pieces ..is it ok if I half the recipe ?
I made this for our first post-Covid gathering and it was a hit! I used dark chocolate cocoa and Bailey’s chips. It had an extra layer of adult dessert.
Hi Lindsay,
This is a fabulous cake!! If I wanted to stabilize this whipped cream using gelatin, would I need to make any changes to the whipped cream recipe? And how much gelatin would I use?
So glad you enjoyed it! I’m not sure how to advise on gelatin because I haven’t ever used it in whipped cream. This whipped cream should be stable without it.
Thanks, Lindsay! Do you think it would be stable even at room temperature for about 2.5 hours of car traveling? If so I won’t add gelatin, I just don’t want it to melt!
As long as it’s not too hot, it should be fine.
Great recipe but wanted something fancier for a birthday cake, so I reduced quantities to 2/3 and made it in my 9″ spring form pan. It was beautiful moist and rich.
Hello! I’m planning on making this cake for a friend’s birthday later this month. I tried the recipe today as a test run and something went wrong. After 45 minutes in the oven the cake was still liquid. So I left it in for another 15 minutes. The edges are cooked and pulled away from the pan but the middle is still raw. It has also completely collapsed after being out of the oven for 5 minutes.
I have no idea what went wrong – I followed all the directions for the batter.
When I cook it again should I try at a higher oven temp?
Thanks 🙂
I haven’t ever had that happen, so it’s hard to say. It sounds like a measurement of something might have been off. You might also check your baking soda and make sure it’s still good.
I only have a glass 13×9 pan so I reduced the oven temperature to 275 degrees, but when I made the cake in it the center isn’t cooked! Do you have any suggestions?
Lindsay, your recipe says to bake it at 300 degrees, but is it supposed to say 350 or 375, instead?
Nope, 300 degrees is correct.
Can I use a cake mix and just add kahlua and do I also add the boiling water? I have a lot to make and looking to save time. Can’t wait to try it!
You can use a cake mix, but will want to follow those instructions for the cake. I imagine you could substitute some of the liquid in those ingredients for Kahlua.