If you’re looking for the ultimate festive dessert to impress your family and friends this holiday season, look no further than my vegan gingerbread poke cake recipe. This moist and indulgent poke cake combines the warming spices of gingerbread with a moist and fluffy cake texture, and a luscious spice-infused whipped cream topping. It’s the perfect dessert for the festive season.
This moist and gooey Gingerbread Poke Cake was a huge hit with my family last year. The deliciousness of a poke cake lies in its texture and flavour. By poking holes into a freshly baked gingerbread cake and soaking it with cinnamon infused condensed milk, you create a dessert that is both moist and bursting with festive flavours.
What is a Poke Cake?
A poke cake is so much more than a standard cake. True to their name, poke cakes are cakes that are baked, then (you guessed it!) poked with the back of a wooden spoon, then filled with a syrup or liquid to add extra flavour and moisture into the cake. Poke cakes are usually topped with whipped cream, cream cheese, or buttercream.
Why you’ll love this Gingerbread Poke Cake
If you love the taste of gingerbread but want something extra special for the holiday season, then this gingerbread poke cake is perfect for you!
The balance of warm spices, sweet condensed milk, and cinnamon cream is nothing short of perfection.
This cake can easily be made gluten-free
It’s completely vegan
It's made with readily available ingredients
You won’t need any fancy baking equipment
This is the moistest gingerbread cake, wonderful for bake sales and parties. It’s always a crowd favourite.
GET CREATIVE!
I’ve added typical gingerbread flavours to this gingerbread poke cake, but you can get creative with additional ingredients. You can add other dried fruits such as cranberries, or dried citrus peel, and why not try adding nuts such as chopped almonds or pecans.
How to store gingerbread poke cake
For best results, store this cake in the refrigerator to keep it fresh and moist. You can either wrap the baking dish in cling film or transfer leftovers to an airtight container.
Ingredients for gingerbread poke cake
Flour – I’ve used all-purpose flour for this recipe, but you can use a gluten-free flour alternative if you’d like to make this cake gluten-free.
Ground Almonds – The ground almonds help the cake to stay extra moist, but if you don’t want to use ground almonds, you can replace it with more flour.
Spices - A bit of cinnamon, ground cloves, ground nutmeg, ground ginger and allspice will give this gingerbread poke cake its festive flavour.
Baking Powder and baking soda - These additional raising agents will lighten the texture of the cake and will help it to rise better.
Vinegar – can use use either apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar. The vinegar acts as leavening agents. So as the batter bakes, these tiny bubbles expand, causing the cake to rise and giving it that light, airy texture we all love.
Brown Sugar - I’ve used dark brown sugar for this recipe, but light brown sugar or coconut sugar can be used as an alternative.
Unsweetened soya Milk - I’ve used soya milk for this recipe, but you could substitute soya milk with other neutral tasting, unsweetened plant-based milks such as oat milk.
Vegetable oil – You’ll need some oil to help combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. If you don’t have vegetable oil, any other neutral oil will work.
Vanilla extract – You’ll need vanilla extract for the cake batter and the whipped cream, so make sure you’ve got plenty on hand!
Condensed milk – You’ll need 1 can of good quality vegan condensed milk to pour on top of the cake.
Icing sugar – icing sugar not only sweetens the cream frosting, but it also helps to thicken it
Vegan Whipping Cream – Make sure to use a vegan whipping cream that stabilizes well. My favourite is the Oatly whipping cream
Vegan Gingerbread cookies – Used to decorate the cake.
How to make Gingerbread Poke Cake
STEP 1:
Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush a 11×7 in rectangle baking tray with butter then set aside. For the cake, whisk together the flour, ground almond, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, and spices in a medium bowl. Set aside.
STEP 2:
Combine the vinegar with the soya milk to create a vegan buttercream. Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients along with the vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined. If your batter still appears too dry, stir in 2-3 tbsp more soya milk. Pour batter evenly into the prepared pan and bake 20-25 minutes or until a skewer poked into the cake comes out dry.
STEP 3:
Allow the cake to cool down completely in the baking tray, then poke holes in cake using the back of a wooden spoon. Make sure to leave at least 1 inch space between each hole. Combine the condensed milk with the spices, then evenly pour on top of the cake, allowing the condensed milk to seep into the poked holes. Let the cake rest for a few minutes while you prepare the whipped cream.
STEP 4:
To make the whipped cream topping, add the vegan cream, icing sugar, vanilla extract, and cinnamon to a large bowl. Use a hand mixer to whip until stiff peaks form. Spread evenly over cooled cake, then top with vegan gingerbread cookies and redcurrants. Allow to chill in the fridge for 1 hour before serving.
Notes and Tips
Store poke cake in the fridge in a tightly covered sealed container. Since whipped cream is in the recipe, it needs to be refrigerated.
Be sure that you do not over-mix the cake batter or it can result in a chewy cake.
Allow the cake to cool down completely before spooning the whipped cream on top, if not, you’ll end up with a hot mess.