Old-School Dump Cake Recipes That Will Become Your Favorite Desserts

No need to haul out the electric mixers or special equipment.

Peach Dump Cake - Southern Living
Photo:

Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Christina Dailey

Dump cakes derive their name from the method in which they are made—you simply dump the ingredients into a baking dish and bake. A dump cake has the crumbly texture of a cobbler mixed with the buttery goodness of a cake. For the most part, you'll only need a baking dish, a can opener, and a couple spoons to make these recipes. The instructions, at their basic level, contain three ingredients: a can of fruit or pie filling, a box of cake mix, and butter. You may see an added extract or flavoring in a recipe, but you get the idea. A dump cake can be a fun, can't-miss project for a novice baker, or a quick dessert to satisfy your family's sweet tooth. You may notice that a few of these recipes are slightly more involved than just "dumping" the ingredients into the baking pan, but we promise they're still as simple and the outcome is the same: a decadent and cakey dessert that will disappear from the pan within minutes of cooling.

01 of 10

Pineapple Cherry Dump Cake

Pineapple Cherry Dump Cake
Micah A. Leal

The recipe combines a can of cherry pie filling with a can of pineapple tidbits, topped with a boxed cake mix and butter. You can't beat the fruity, buttery goodness from this combination.

02 of 10

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

Cranberry Upside-Down Cake
Oxmoor House

While this upside-down cake may require just a few more steps than a traditional dump cake recipe, we promise the gooey, tart, sweet result is completely worth it.

03 of 10

Peach Dump Cake

Peach Dump Cake - Southern Living

Victor Protasio; Food Stylist: Emily Nabors Hall; Prop Stylist: Christina Dailey

A can of peaches contains more than just pieces of fruit—the sweet syrup is infused with rich peach flavor and is just the right liquid ingredient to cook into a yellow cake mix. We added warm notes of cinnamon and nutmeg to a box of yellow cake mix before pouring it over the sliced peaches. The result? This luscious cake, a delicious cross between a buttery cake and a crumbly cobbler.

04 of 10

Apple Pie Cake

Apple Pie Cake
Photography: Caitlin Bensel, Food Styling: Rishon Hanners

When you don't feel like fussing over pie crusts, try this one-dish cake recipe that's just a sugary sweet as Grandma's beloved apple pie recipe.

05 of 10

Cherry Dump Cake

cherry dump cake on plates
Emily Laurae/Southern Living

Bypass the usual canned cherry pie filling and choose canned whole, pitted cherries to make this process quick and easy. The dark cherries also give this cake a deep color, making it look like a summer berry cobbler, but the cherry flavor is unmistakable.

06 of 10

Pumpkin Dump Cake

Pumpkin Dump Cake
Micah A. Leal

This dump cake veers off the traditional path by using a can of pumpkin puree instead of a pie filling. Velvety in texture and both savory and sweet in flavor, pure pumpkin puree requires a few more ingredients to make it set into a delicious filling before being topped with boxed cake mix and butter. The outcome is a dump cake that's flavorful with the familiar tastes of both a yellow cake and a spiced pumpkin pie. Serve the cake with whipped cream and freshly grated nutmeg for enhanced creaminess and spice.

07 of 10

Slow Cooker Peach Cobbler

slow cooker peach cobbler on a blue and white plate
Jessica Furniss/Southern Living

Although it has cobbler in its title, this recipe still calls for boxed cake mix in the crumble, and it couldn't be any simpler to make.

08 of 10

Two-Ingredient Pineapple Angel Food Cake

a corner slice of Two-Ingredient Pineapple Angel Food Cake on a white plate
Jessica Furniss/Southern Living

Be sure to read the instructions for this simple and fluffy cake carefully—you need to buy the exact ingredients listed for it to work! 

09 of 10

Mocha Pudding Cake

Mocha Pudding Cake

This coffee-twinged twist on classic chocolate pudding cake is just the sweet (and easy) finale any dinner could use. 

10 of 10

Lemon Bar Cake

Lemon Bar Cake
Jennifer Davick; Food Styling: Vanessa Rocchio; Prop Styling: Missie Crawford

Your guests won’t believe this layered beauty came together with basically no hands-on effort and the help of your slow cooker. 

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