Apple Dump Cake is probably the easiest sweet treat to make of all time. Just six total ingredients and a few effortless steps and dessert is served! Make sure to check out my Cherry Dump Cake too!
Apple Dump Cake
The genius that decided to dump a bunch of dessert staples into a pan and see what happens next deserves an award. They are my hero. Dump cakes are a dream recipe for busy moms and dads. For those days when just getting through the door is a chore, you can still impress the entire family with a tasty dessert that doesn’t take much effort from you. The prep for this delicious recipe is five minutes. Ill say it louder, FIVE MINUTES. No mess, no fuss, just dump it in the pan and go.
How to Make Apple Dump Cake
You hear me talking a lot about “your recipe is only as good as your ingredients” and most cases, that is my primary rule of thumb. This dessert is designed for ease. So, in this case, you won’t hear me say that. For this Apple Dump Cake, you need a box of yellow cake mix, your favorite can of apple pie filling and a few run-of-the-mill spices. Yes, there are a few ways you can make this cake fancy, but with a name like Apple Dump Cake, you really can’t dress it up too much. If you really want to dress it up, the next best apple recipe that has a similar flavor and texture (but uses real apples) would be an apple crisp. Check out my Apple Crisp recipe if you were on the hunt for a fancier version:)
Can you Make Crockpot Apple Dump Cake?
You can and you should! It is literally the exact same recipe and instructions, except you use a crockpot instead of the skillet and an oven. For this method, you will put the apple pie filling in the bottom of a greased crockpot, top with the cake mixture, top with butter, and then cover and cook on high for 2 hours.
Topping Ideas for Apple Dump Cake
The basic topping choices for an apple dump cake are whipped cream or ice cream. Within those two categories, there are a few variations that can really take this dump cake to a whole new level. For the ice cream, we almost always have vanilla or vanilla bean as a staple in our freezer. When we want to make this apple dump cake just a little bit sweeter, we mix it up with some cinnamon ice cream or a caramel ice cream. Drizzle with some caramel sauce for a Carmel Apple Dump Cake. The kids absolutely love the special touch (and probably the extra sugar too).
Homemade Whipped Cream
Making your own whipped cream is probably one of the top recommendations that I will ever give you when discussing homemade desserts. To do that, you need heavy whipping cream and confectioners sugar. Essentially, from here you just pour the whipping cream into a bowl and whip until peaks start to form. I would recommend using a hand mixer or a stand mixer unless you are really focusing on those arm muscles. Slowly add in the sugar and serve. Super simple. You can put a few other fun twists on this by adding in cinnamon or apple pie spice into the whipped cream. I have another recipe for Apple Cider Whipped Cream as well. You can do this all with store-bought whipped cream too. The same method applies here, you just add spices to the pre-made version.
Apple Dump Cake
Ingredients
- 1 box (15.25 ounces) yellow cake mix
- 1 teaspoon apple pie spice
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 can (21 oz) apple pie filling
- 1/2 cup butter, cold
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, apple pie spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix well.
- In an oven-safe 12-inch skillet (you could also use a 9x13 or 9x9-inch pan), add the apple pie filling and spread it evenly over the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle the cake mixture over the top, being careful to cover all of the pie filling.
- Slice the butter into small pads (about 16) and spread them out evenly over the top of the cake mixture.
- Bake for 1 hour or until the topping is golden brown and the pie filling is bubbling.
Video
Did you make this recipe?
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I just made the Apple Dump Cake. I had to change (of course) the cake mix so I didn’t have to drive to town. I had a carrot cake mix so I didn’t add the extra spices. OMG! My sweet hubby got his two favourite flavours in one pan. It was beyond delicious. Thank you so much for such an easy recipe; we love making so many of your creations.
Followed instructions but cake topping was very firm after an hour. I would have liked more of a crumble or soft cake texture with firm parts here and there. Loved the simplicity of the recipe, maybe just should have shortened the cook time?
This turned out really well. I did add a little brown sugar to the top of the pie filling along with a few extra pats of butter. The top resembled a crumble topping.