My mom pulled out this Elvis Presley cake recipe from her recipe box back in 1998 after her friend Barbara swore it came from someone who knew Elvis's cook at Graceland. I rolled my eyes - another celebrity recipe story that probably wasn't true. But when I tasted it at Barbara's potluck, I stopped caring about the history. The cake was incredible - tender yellow layers soaked through with sweet pineapple juice, covered in tangy cream cheese frosting mixed with crushed pineapple chunks and crunchy pecans. Emma took one bite and said "Mom, this tastes like wet cake but in a good way" - which is actually the perfect description.
Why You'll Love This Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
From watching this cake disappear at probably 20 different gatherings over the years, I've figured out what makes people come back for more. It stays moist - like, four-days-in-the-fridge-and-still-soft moist. That pineapple juice soak makes a huge difference. Most cakes dry out after a day, but this one gets better as it sits and everything soaks together. The cake layers come from a box mix (yes, really - that's the traditional way), so you're not stuck in the kitchen all day. The work is just poking holes and mixing frosting with pineapple and pecans.
The taste is hard to pin down if you haven't had it. Sweet but tangy from the pineapple and cream cheese, crunchy from the pecans, soft and almost pudding-like where the juice soaked in. It's not light and fluffy - it's dense and filling. Mom always says "this is a cake that sticks to your ribs," which sounds odd but makes sense when you eat it. One slice fills you up, and honestly, that's probably enough because it's pretty rich.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- Ingredients for Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- How To Make Elvis Presley Cake Recipe Step By Step
- Smart Swaps for Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- Elvis Presley Cake Recipe Variations
- Equipment For Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- Storing Your Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- Grandma's Hidden Recipe Touch
- Top Tip
- What to Serve With Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- FAQ
- Time to Make This Southern Classic!
- Related
- Pairing
- Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
Ingredients for Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
The Cake Base:
- Yellow cake mix
- Eggs
- Vegetable oil
- Water
- Crushed pineapple with juice
The Frosting:
- Cream cheese
- Butter
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
- More crushed pineapple
- Chopped pecans
For Soaking:
- Reserved pineapple juice from the can
See recipe card for quantities.
How To Make Elvis Presley Cake Recipe Step By Step
Bake the Cake:
- Mix cake according to box directions
- Pour into greased 9x13 pan
- Bake at temperature on box
- Check with toothpick around 25-30 minutes
- Let cool for exactly 10 minutes
The Soaking:
- While cake cools, drain one can of crushed pineapple
- Save that juice in a measuring cup
- Use wooden spoon handle to poke holes all over warm cake
- Pour pineapple juice slowly over entire cake
- Let it soak in completely
Make the Frosting:
- Beat softened cream cheese and butter together
- Add powdered sugar gradually
- Mix in vanilla
- Fold in drained crushed pineapple
- Stir in chopped pecans
Put It Together:
- Keep refrigerated
- Spread frosting over cooled, soaked cake
- Get it in all the corners
- Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving
Smart Swaps for Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
Cake Options:
- Yellow cake mix → White cake mix (works fine, just lighter color)
- Box mix → Scratch cake (don't - doesn't soak right)
- Regular → Gluten-free cake mix (works okay, bit drier)
Pineapple Swaps:
- Crushed → Chunks (too big, doesn't spread well in frosting)
- Canned → Fresh (way too much work, not worth it)
- Regular → Light syrup version (less sweet, but fine)
Frosting Changes:
- Cream cheese → Mascarpone (too expensive, not better)
- Butter → All cream cheese (gets too tangy)
- Pecans → Walnuts (works but different flavor)
- Pecans → Skip them (missing something without the crunch)
Dietary Versions:
- Dairy → Coconut cream (Emma's friend's mom did this, said it was okay)
- Regular → Sugar-free cake mix (haven't tried, can't say)
Elvis Presley Cake Recipe Variations
Chocolate Elvis:
- Chocolate cake mix instead of yellow
- Keep everything else the same
- Tastes like chocolate-covered pineapple
Coconut Version:
- Add shredded coconut to frosting
- Toast it first for better flavor
- Mom's friend Linda makes it this way
Cherry Pineapple:
- Add drained maraschino cherries to frosting
- Looks festive, tastes like fruit cocktail
- Good for Christmas parties
Banana Addition:
- Mash a banana into the cake batter
- Makes it more like actual Elvis food
- Gets really moist, almost too moist
Extra Nuts:
- Double the pecans
- Add some to the cake batter too
- For people who really like nuts
Equipment For Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
- 9x13 inch baking pan
- Electric mixer (hand mixer or stand mixer)
- Large mixing bowl
- Wooden spoon or chopstick (for poking holes)
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Rubber spatula
Storing Your Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
Fridge Storage (5-7 days):
- Cover tightly with plastic wrap or foil
- Keep in the fridge at all times
- Gets more moist as days go by
- Tastes better on day 2 or 3
Serving:
- Can serve cold straight from fridge
- Some people like it room temperature
- Cut with a sharp knife, wipe between slices
- Frosting gets messy when it warms up
Freezing (don't):
- Mom tried freezing this once
- The pineapple in the frosting gets watery when thawed
- Texture gets weird and soggy in a bad way
- Just don't
Make-Ahead:
- One less thing to worry about
- Make it the day before you need it
- Flavors blend together overnight
- Saves you time on party day
Grandma's Hidden Recipe Touch
My grandmother found something about Elvis Presley cake recipe that she kept quiet about for years. Back in the early 2000s, she was making this for a church bake sale and accidentally grabbed the wrong can from her pantry - coconut cream instead of regular cream of coconut. She almost threw the whole thing out, but she was running late and just went with it. Turns out, that tiny bit of coconut cream mixed into the frosting (maybe two tablespoons) added this subtle tropical flavor that made people go crazy trying to figure out what was different.
She never wrote it down, just kept doing it. When I asked her about it years later, she shrugged and said "sometimes the best Elvis Presley Cake Recipe come from mistakes." The coconut is so subtle you can't really identify it, but it rounds out the pineapple flavor and makes the whole thing taste better. She also told me she'd let the cake sit for 15 minutes after poking holes before adding the juice - said it gave the holes time to "relax" so they'd absorb better. I have no idea if that's real or just something she made up, but I do it anyway because her cakes always turned out better than mine.
Top Tip
- My mom learned something about this Elvis Presley cake recipe back in 2001 that changed how we make it. Most people just poke random holes all over the cake, but she figured out that poking them in a grid pattern - like rows about an inch apart - works way better. The juice spreads more evenly and you don't end up with super-soggy spots next to dry patches.
- Her other trick is toasting the pecans before chopping them and adding them to the frosting. She spreads them on a baking sheet and puts them in the oven at 350°F for about 5-7 minutes while the cake bakes. They get fragrant and a little oily, and the flavor gets deeper. When she forgot to toast them once, everyone noticed something was off even though they couldn't figure out what.
- But here's the thing she won't admit she does - she adds a tiny splash of rum to the pineapple juice before soaking the cake. Maybe a tablespoon, not enough that you can really taste alcohol, but enough that it adds this warmth and makes the cake taste more interesting. She only does this for adult gatherings, not when she's making it for church or Emma's school events.
What to Serve With Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
This cake is rich and sweet, so you want lighter stuff to balance it out. Strong black coffee cuts through the sweetness better than anything - Mom always puts on a fresh pot right before cutting into the cake. Sweet tea works if you're going full Southern, or milk if you're like Emma and want to wash down every bite. For actual food, pair it with savory main dishes like fried chicken, BBQ pulled pork, or grilled burgers. The cake is heavy enough that you don't want another rich dessert alongside it.
At potlucks, this Elvis Presley cake recipe dessert usually shows up next to green bean casserole, mac and cheese, and other Southern sides. It holds its own at the end of the meal. If you're doing a dessert table for some reason, add things that aren't as sweet - fruit salad or lemon bars work. But honestly, this cake is dessert enough on its own. One slice fills you up and you're done.
FAQ
Why is it called Elvis Presley Cake Recipe?
Nobody knows for sure why it's called Elvis Presley Cake Recipe. The most common story is that Elvis liked pineapple and pecans, both Southern ingredients. Some say it was served at Graceland, but there's no proof. The name might just be because it became popular in the South around the same time Elvis was famous.
What was Elvis's favorite kind of cake?
Elvis's actual favorite cake was his grandmother's pound cake. He also loved German chocolate cake and banana pudding. While this pineapple cake gets his name on it, there's no solid evidence he ever ate it or that it was his favorite.
What is the Elvis style cake?
Elvis Presley Cake Recipe usually means this pineapple poke cake with cream cheese frosting, pecans, and crushed pineapple. Some people also call banana cakes or peanut butter desserts "Elvis style" because of his fried peanut butter and banana sandwiches. The term basically means Southern, sweet, and rich.
What makes Elvis cake moist?
The pineapple juice soaked through the warm cake makes it stay moist. You poke holes all over the cake right after baking, then pour the juice over it. The cake absorbs the liquid and stays soft for days. The crushed pineapple mixed into the frosting also adds moisture.
Time to Make This Southern Classic!
Now you've got everything you need to make Elvis Presley Cake Recipe - from the basic box mix method to Grandma's coconut cream trick and Mom's toasted pecan technique. This cake has been showing up at Southern gatherings for decades, and once you make it, you'll understand why people keep asking for it. It's not fancy, it's not difficult, but it's the kind of dessert that sticks in people's memories. The pineapple juice soak keeps it moist for days, the cream cheese frosting with crushed pineapple and pecans gives you different textures in every bite, and honestly, it just tastes good in a way that's hard to explain until you try it.
Craving more easy desserts that actually work? Try our Easy Carrot Cupcake Recipe for another crowd-pleaser that comes together fast. Want something that tastes like childhood? Our Best Star Crunch Recipe nails that Little Debbie flavor but fresh. Need a side dish for your next potluck that people will recognize? Our Best Cranberry Jello Salad Recipe is straight out of the 1970s in the best way possible - it shows up at every holiday table for a reason.
Share your Elvis cake! We love seeing how yours turns out, especially if you tried Grandma's coconut cream trick.
Rate this Elvis Presley Cake Recipe and let us know what you think!
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Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
Elvis Presley Cake Recipe
Equipment
- 1 9x13-inch baking pan (Standard size for cakes)
- 1 Electric mixer (Hand or stand mixer)
- 1 Wooden spoon or chopstick (For poking holes in cake)
- 1 Large mixing bowl (For mixing cake and frosting)
- 1 Measuring cups and spoons (For accurate ingredient measurements)
- 1 Rubber spatula (For spreading frosting evenly)
Ingredients
- 1 box Yellow cake mix - Standard box mix
- 3 eggs Eggs
- ½ cup Vegetable oil
- 1 cup Water
- 8 oz Cream cheese - Softened
- ½ cup Butter - Softened
- 2 cups Powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- ½ cup Chopped pecans - Toasted optional
Instructions
-
Mix the ingredients and bake the cake according to box instructions.
-
Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes before adding the soaking juice.
-
Poke holes in the warm cake and pour pineapple juice evenly over it.
-
Beat cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla, then add pineapple and pecans.
-
Spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cake, ensuring full coverage.
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