Elvis Presley Cake – A Popular Version of Ice Box Cake
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A popular version of Ice Box Cake, this Elvis Presley Cake is said to have been his favorite. Whether it was or not, this easy-to-make and mouthwateringly moist cake is sure to become one of yours.
This post is dedicated to Su, one of my readers from Australia. Several years back, Su and her mother (a huge Elvis fan) came to the US to visit Graceland and I went and met up with them during their time here and we all had a grand day together!
This cake is said to have been one that Elvis’s cook made for him on a regular basis. Apparently, his favorite ingredient was the crushed pineapple. The cake is made from a vanilla pudding and yellow cake mix and you actually poke holes in the cake to let the sweet and juicy pineapple and sugar mixture soak right in. The cherry on top is a cream cheese and pecan icing. In the end, you have a deliciously sweet and moist cake that will probably become your favorite as well!
This is what we call an Ice Box Cake. Many in the greatest generation still refer to their refrigerators as iceboxes. Ice Box Cake recipes and pies are good any time of the year because they keep so much longer than regular cakes. Check out some of our other Ice Box Cake recipes like Lemon Icebox Cake and Icebox Fruitcake.
Recipe Ingredients
- Sugar
- Oil
- Milk
- Crushed pineapple
- Eggs
- Vanilla instant pudding
- A box of yellow cake mix (In the South, we have an unnatural fixation with Duncan Hine’s cake mix).
Icing ingredients are coming up in a few photos but of course, the entire recipe is in printable format at the bottom of this post too.
Helpful Kitchen Tools
- Electric Mixer (Budget Friendly)
- Electric Mixer (Splurge)
- 9×13 Baking Pan
- Icing Spatula
How to Make Elvis Presley Cake (A Version of an Ice Box Cake)
Pour milk into a mixing bowl. Add oil, eggs, pudding mix, and cake mix.
Beat with an electric mixer on for about a minute, then stop and scrape down the sides. Continue mixing for about two more minutes, until smooth.
Try not to taste this batter. Seriously, try really hard not to taste it. If you do, there may not be any left to actually bake. It’s that stinking good!
Spray your 9×13-inch cake pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Pour batter into pan and bake at 350 for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
While that is in the oven, pour pineapple into a saucepot, juice and all.
Add sugar and stir to combine. Bring to a boil over medium heat and then remove from heat.
While hot, poke a whole bunch of holes in the top of the cake with a fork. You could use the tip of a wooden spoon too if you like for a traditional poke cake.
Don’t stop until it looks like a swarm of four fanged mosquitoes took hold of it!
Spoon pineapple and juice over the hot cake, letting it soak in.
It should look like the picture above.
Now let’s make us some icing while that’s a coolin’!
For the icing, you will need cream cheese, butter, confectioner’s sugar, and crushed pecans. You can also add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the frosting if you like.
Place softened cream cheese in a mixing bowl. Toss in butter and mix until light and fluffy. Add confectioner’s sugar and beat with an electric mixer until well incorporated and creamy, scraping down sides as need be.
Add in pecans and mix just until incorporated.
Once you have a on your hands, drop the icing in dollops onto the top of it.
Spread and smooth to ice cake. Top with additional chopped pecans, if desired.
Storage
- When stored in an airtight container in the fridge, Elvis Cake leftovers will last up to 5 days.
- You can also store leftovers in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before serving.
Recipe Notes
- To really enhance the pineapple flavor, opt to use a pineapple cake mix. You could also use a simple .
- We love pecans in the South, but you can substitute them for walnuts or omit them altogether.
Recipe FAQs
Can I make Elvis Presley Cake ahead of time?
Absolutely! It actually tastes best when it’s had time to chill in the fridge, so you can bake and store the cake, covered, in the fridge overnight if you like.
Here are more of my favorite Ice Box and poke cakes:
Ingredients
CAKE:
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- 1 box vanilla pudding 3-ounce box that's not sugar-free
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup oil
- 1 cup milk
- 1 can crushed pineapple 16 ounces, undrained
- 1 cup sugar
FROSTING:
- 1 package cream cheese 8 ounces, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup butter softened to room temperature
- 3 cups confectioner's sugar
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans optional
(You can also add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the frosting if you like)
Instructions
- Please cake mix, pudding, eggs, oil, and milk in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer for one minute. Scrape down sides and beat again for about two minutes, or until smooth.1 box yellow cake mix, 1 box vanilla pudding, 4 eggs, 1/2 cup oil, 1 cup milk
- Pour batter into greased 9x13 baking dish and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, or until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- While the cake is baking, place pineapple and sugar into a medium saucepan on the stovetop. Bring just to a boil over medium-high heat while stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat.1 can crushed pineapple, 1 cup sugar
- Once the cake is done, remove the dish from the oven and poke holes all over the top with a fork. While the cake is still hot, pour the hot pineapple mixture over the top and spread to cover. Let cool.
- For frosting, place the butter and cream cheese in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add confectioner's sugar gradually, scraping down sides as needed, while beating with an electric mixer. Stir in pecans, if desired.1 package cream cheese, 1/2 cup butter, 3 cups confectioner's sugar, 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- Drop dollops of the icing onto the top of the cooled cake. Slowly spread the dollops together to cover the cake, being careful not to disturb the pineapple topping. Sprinkle the finished cake with additional pecans, if desired.
Video
Nutrition
Rhythm is something you either have or you don’t have. But when you have it, you have it all over.
~Elvis Presley
I made this cake today. It is absolutely delicious and very light. I love the cream cheese icing. I Will be making this cake again. It’s a keeper.
Baked the Elvis Cake on Thursday. Put in refrigerator until Saturday. Said no way will I be making this again. It was literally so heavy. Along came Saturday and I served it to my ladies group. There were so many oohhhhs & ahhhhhs & oh it’s so goods. ladies were coming back for more! If you think this sounds good just wait until you taste it. You may not be able to stop with one piece. It is that GOOD!
I made this for the family tonight..it was so good.everyone loved it!!!! Its a keeper!!
I am so glad to hear it was a hit!!!
Of course Duncan Hines! It is simply the best! And the company’s customer service is the best!
Being diabetic, why can you not use sugar free pudding?
Made this January, 2019 for a birthday. Ummmm, I mean yummmmm! This cake is fabulous!
🙂 I am so glad you liked it Beth!!
Made it today, my crushed pineapple can was 20 ounce but it worked fine. I left the vanilla out of the frosting but next time I will put it in, the frosting needed a little umph! I was wondering if they make a pineapple extract, I would like to try that in the icing.
There is a pineapple extract that you can order off of Amazon. I have never seen it in stores here where I live but a cake or candy shop may carry it.