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Orange Creamsicle Cake tastes exactly like the nostalgic push pop of your childhood, a soft orange jello cake soaked in sweet mandarin condensed milk and blanketed in a fluffy vanilla pudding topping. I made it for a summer cookout on a whim and now it gets requested as often as our strawberry earthquake cake.
A boxed white cake gets an orange jello boost, a poke cake soak, and a mandarin studded creamy topping for the easiest crowd dessert of the summer.
Orange Creamsicle Cake Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 32 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 47 minutes (plus chilling)
- 🍽️ Serving: 12 servings
- ⚡ Calories: 397kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Bright orange and vanilla cream (creamsicle in cake form)
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our fresh strawberry dump cake
Quick Answer
Prepare a white cake mix per the box, mixing the dry orange jello into the batter, and bake it in a sprayed 9×13 dish. Let it cool 5 minutes, poke holes all over, then pour over a soak of sweetened condensed milk whisked with mandarin orange juice. Once the cake cools completely, whisk instant vanilla pudding with milk, fold in whipped topping and drained mandarin oranges, spread it over the cake, and chill 2 to 4 hours before slicing.
Jump to:
- Orange Creamsicle Cake Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Orange Creamsicle Cake
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Orange Creamsicle Cake FAQs
- Other Recommended Easy Cake Recipes
- Easy Orange Creamsicle Cake Recipe
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Jello goes in the batter, not on top. Mixing the dry orange jello straight into the cake batter flavors and tints every crumb instead of just the surface.
- The poke and soak keeps it moist for days. Holes poked while the cake is warm pull the mandarin condensed milk soak deep inside, so every bite is tender and never dry.
- Mandarin juice does double duty. Using the juice from the canned mandarins in the soak means real orange flavor with zero waste, and the drained fruit goes into the topping.
- Pudding stabilizes the topping. Folding whipped topping into just whisked instant pudding creates a mousse like layer that slices clean and holds up in the fridge.
- Work fast with the pudding. Folding before the pudding sets keeps the topping light and spreadable instead of stiff and lumpy.
- The chill sets the slice. Two to four hours in the fridge lets the soak settle and the topping firm up, so squares come out clean and beautiful.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It tastes like a creamsicle. Bright orange cake plus vanilla cream topping is pure nostalgia in a 9×13 pan.
- Box mix easy, homemade flavor. The jello, soak, and mandarin topping make a simple mix taste like a bakery cake with almost no effort.
- It feeds a crowd and travels well. One pan, 12 servings, and it rides to the potluck right in the dish, just like our lemon blueberry poke cake.
Key Ingredients
A short grocery list delivers big creamsicle flavor. Quantities are in the recipe card below; here is why each one matters.
- White cake mix. The blank canvas. White mix (plus the eggs, oil, and water the box calls for) shows off the orange color and flavor better than yellow.
- Orange jello mix. The creamsicle secret. The dry powder goes right into the batter for bold orange flavor and that signature sunny color.
- Sweetened condensed milk. The soak. Whisked with mandarin juice, it seeps into every poked hole for a tender, tres leches style crumb.
- Canned mandarin oranges. Juice in the soak, fruit in the topping. Drain them well and break the segments up a little as you stir.
- Instant vanilla pudding and whipped topping. Together they make the fluffy, stable cream layer, the same trick we use on our key lime eclair cake.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
This poke cake formula is easy to riff on for any craving or season.
- Try different jello flavors. Lemon, lime, or strawberry jello with matching fruit turns this into a whole family of creamsicle cakes.
- Make it extra orange. Add a teaspoon of orange zest to the batter and a few drops of orange extract to the topping.
- Swap the topping. A layer of stabilized whipped cream with vanilla bean is a from scratch alternative to the pudding topping.
- Add a graham crunch. Sprinkle crushed golden sandwich cookies or graham crackers over the topping right before serving.
- Love fruity sheet cakes? Our strawberry dump cake is the same easy, crowd size energy.
How to Make Orange Creamsicle Cake
- Prepare the cake per the box directions, mixing the dry orange jello in with the other ingredients, and bake in a sprayed 9×13 dish per the box timing.
- Let the cake cool for 5 minutes, then poke holes all over with a chopstick or similar sized object.
- Whisk the sweetened condensed milk with the mandarin orange juice, then pour the soak all over the cake, focusing on the holes, and use it all.
- Let the cake cool completely at room temperature while it absorbs the soak.
- Once the cake is cool, whisk the instant pudding with the milk in a large bowl, then quickly fold in the whipped topping before the pudding sets, until no streaks remain.
- Add the drained mandarin oranges to the topping.
- Stir the oranges in, breaking them up a little so there are varied sized pieces throughout.
- Spread the topping all over the cake, cover with plastic wrap, and chill 2 to 4 hours or up to overnight before slicing and serving.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Poke while the cake is warm. Five minutes out of the oven is the sweet spot, the holes stay open and drink up the soak.
- Use the whole soak. It looks like a lot, but the cake absorbs every bit as it cools, that is the secret to the moist crumb.
- Drain the mandarins well. Extra syrup thins the topping, so give the segments a good drain after reserving the juice you need.
- Do not let the pudding set before folding. Whisk and fold in one smooth sequence so the topping stays light and fluffy.
- Chill at least 2 hours. The wait pays off in clean slices and fully developed creamsicle flavor.
- Make it the day before. This cake is even better overnight, which makes it perfect for parties and holidays.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
This cake is built for summer spreads. Serve cold squares next to a pitcher of our large batch mojitos or a round of cherry limeade cocktails for a backyard party dessert table that handles the heat.
For potlucks, it rides right in the 9×13 with a lid. Pair it with our strawberry earthquake cake so chocolate and citrus fans are both covered.
It also makes a sunny ending to a cookout plate of burgers and our classic potato salad. Cold, creamy, and bright is exactly what a hot afternoon calls for.
Orange Creamsicle Cake FAQs
It borrows the flavor of the classic creamsicle pop: bright orange sherbet wrapped around vanilla ice cream. The orange jello cake plays the sherbet role and the vanilla pudding whipped topping is the cream, so every bite tastes like the ice cream truck favorite.
Yes, it is actually better made ahead. Assemble the cake, cover, and refrigerate overnight; the soak fully settles and the topping sets for picture clean slices. It keeps well for up to 4 days covered in the fridge.
Yes. Between the condensed milk soak, pudding, and whipped topping, this cake belongs in the fridge. Keep it covered and chilled, and do not leave it out more than 2 hours at a party, less on a hot day.
Canned mandarins work best because they are soft, sweet, and come with the juice the soak needs. If you only have fresh, use small segments with the membrane removed and substitute fresh orange juice in the soak, about 3/4 cup.
Usually one of two things: the mandarins were not drained well, or the pudding sat too long before the whipped topping was folded in. Drain the fruit thoroughly and fold the topping together right after whisking the pudding and milk.
It is not the best freezer candidate. The jello cake itself freezes fine, but the pudding topping can weep when thawed. If you want to work ahead, bake and soak the cake, freeze it, then thaw and add the fresh topping the day you serve.
Want one more nostalgic treat? Our copycat Wendy’s Frosty is three ingredients of pure childhood.
Easy Orange Creamsicle Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 box white cake mix plus ingredients to make the cake (eggs, oil, water)
- 3 ounces orange jello mix
For the soak:
For the topping:
- 3.4 ounce french vanilla instant pudding mix
- 1 cup whole milk
- 8 ounces whipped topping
- 15 ounces mandarin oranges drained and juice reserved
Instructions
- Prepare the cake per the directions on the back of the box, mixing in the orange jello with the other ingredients.1 box white cake mix, 3 ounces orange jello mix
- Bake in a 9×13 baking dish that is sprayed with cooking spray per the box directions.
- While the cake is baking, make the soak. Whisk together the sweetened condensed milk with the mandarin orange juice.14 ounces sweetened condensed milk, 3/4 cup mandarin orange juice from the 15 ounce can for the topping
- Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes, then poke all over with a chop stick or similar-sized object.
- Pour the soak over the cake, focusing on the holes, and use it all.
- Allow to cool completely at room temperature, the cake will absorb the soak.
- Once the cake is cool, whisk together the instant pudding with the milk in a large bowl; do not allow it to set up.3.4 ounce french vanilla instant pudding mix, 1 cup whole milk
- Quickly, fold in the whipped topping until there are no streaks left.8 ounces whipped topping
- Add the drained mandarin oranges and stir them in, try and break them up some so there are varying sized pieces.15 ounces mandarin oranges
- Spread the topping all over the cake, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 2-4 hours to set, or up to overnight. Slice and serve.
Notes
- Use fresh orange juice: For an even fresher taste.
- Chill the cake: Allowing it to chill helps the flavors meld together.
- Use an electric mixer: Makes mixing easier and the batter smoother.
- Poke holes while the cake is warm: This helps the soak absorb better.
- Don’t skip the soak: It keeps the cake moist and flavorful.
- Be patient: Let the cake chill for at least 4 hours for the best texture.
Nutrition
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