Key Lime Poke Cake

Key Lime Poke Cake is just heaven on a plate. The combination of fresh whipping cream and citrusy lime cake is fabulous. It was an easy Jell-O poke cake that I will make often. I love it {dare I say}, more than the Strawberry Lemonade Poke Cake that inspired it. 

Last month when I made that Strawberry Lemonade Poke Cake, it got the wheels turning on the poke cake flavor possibilities. And key lime anything is my husband's favorite. Last year for his birthday, I made a Key Lime Cake that was....meh. It wasn't moist. And it was just...well, meh. So I decided to give the poke cake a go with the key lime flavor. And WOOHOO! It was awesome.

Just awesome.

The key to this cake was not using just water to make the lime Jell-O. Because plain lime Jell-O tastes like a green lifesaver...not exactly the light, citrusy key lime flavor I had in mind. I wasn't sure this would work. It would either taste awesome or like swamp water. Nobody's more surprised than me that it worked.

My store was fresh out of actual key limes, so I used regular limes, and they worked just fine. I squeezed seven whole limes to get the half cup of juice I used. You can use the bottled lime stuff, but I really like the fresh juice. 

For this cake, you'll need:

• 1 box of white cake mix
• ingredients for cake mix {from the back of the box}
• 1 small box of lime Jell-o
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice {key lime juice would be awesome}
• 1/2 cup cold water
• 1 quart heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar
• graham cracker crumbs {about 2 squares' worth}
• lime zest {from 2 limes}

Bake cake according to the box directions in a 9x13 pan. Allow to cool completely. Poke holes in cake with skewer {or the end of a wooden spoon}. Make Jell-O using the 1 cup of boiling water, the 1/2 cup of fresh lime juice and the 1/2 cup cold water. While the Jell-O is still hot, pour it over the cake and into the holes. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. 
Make whipped cream with heavy cream and 1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar, whipping until peaks form. Top cake with whipped cream and sprinkle with the graham cracker crumbs and lime zest. I thought the graham cracker crumbs were a nice addition to bring in the flavor of a traditional Key Lime Pie crust.
Store in refrigerator. 

This is the consistency I prefer for the whipping cream...a little on the thicker side. One more minute of whipping and I would have had butter. It's a fine line, peeps.

So good and summery. We may or may not have informed the children this cake was in the house. As in, we may or may not have eaten the whole 9x13 pan by ourselves. 

Click on the image below to download the printable recipe. It prints in both 4x6 and 3x5 recipe card sizes.

{i linky-party here}

and at Coastal Charm and Savvy Southern Style

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