Hamdi Saidani This dead-simple Pioneer Woman dump cake is made with canned cherry pie filling, crushed pineapple, dry yellow cake mix, and sliced butter and margarine, all layered in a dish and baked until golden and bubbly. It takes about 15 minutes to throw together and an hour in the oven.
There is no mixing, no bowls, no eggs, no milk. You dump the cherry filling and pineapple into the dish, stir them together, sprinkle the dry cake mix over the top, and lay slices of butter and margarine across the surface. The fruit juices bubble up from below and the melting fat soaks down from above, and that’s all the moisture the cake mix needs to turn into a crispy, golden crust.
Distribute the butter and margarine slices as evenly as possible across the entire surface. Every section of dry mix needs fat above it to melt down during baking. Any bare spots stay powdery and raw-tasting instead of turning into that light, crispy topping. Smooth out any large clumps of cake mix with a spoon before adding the butter so the layer sits flat and bakes evenly.
Pioneer Woman Dump Cake
Description
This Pioneer Woman dump cake layers cherry pie filling and crushed pineapple under dry cake mix and sliced butter, baked until golden and bubbly with zero mixing.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Dump the cherry pie filling and crushed pineapple into a 9×13-inch baking dish. Stir together until combined.
- Sprinkle the dry cake mix evenly over the top of the fruit mixture. Smooth out any large clumps with a spoon.
- Slice the stick of margarine and distribute the pieces evenly over the surface of the cake mix. Cut the half stick of butter into slices and scatter those across any gaps.
- Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the top is golden brown and the fruit is bubbling up around the edges.
- Serve warm with a dollop of freshly whipped cream.
FAQs
What do I serve it with?
Warm from the dish with a big spoonful of whipped cream on top. For a dessert table, the Peach Cobbler with cake mix next to it lets guests compare two different dump-style desserts side by side. The Peach Crumble alongside adds a from-scratch option with a crunchy topping for anyone who wants something a little more homemade.
Can I use different fruit combinations?
Yes. Blueberry pie filling with crushed pineapple works, so does apple pie filling on its own. You can scatter a cup of fresh berries over the canned fruit before adding the cake mix for extra color and flavor. Stick with fruits that have enough juice to hydrate the dry mix from below.
Why does the recipe use both margarine and butter?
Margarine has a higher water content than butter, which helps create more moisture to soak into the cake mix. The butter adds richer flavor. Together they cover both jobs: hydrating the dry mix and making the top taste good. If you only have butter, use 1 1/2 sticks total.
Is dump cake supposed to be gooey on the bottom?
Yes. The fruit layer stays soft and syrupy, more like a cobbler filling than a traditional cake. You serve this with a spoon, not a knife. The contrast between the crispy top and the gooey fruit bottom is the whole point.
How do I store leftovers?
Let it cool completely, cover tightly with plastic wrap or foil, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. The topping softens in the fridge, so reheat uncovered in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes to crisp it back up. The fruit layer actually tastes better the next day once the flavors have had time to meld.
