One of the oldest-known recipes for dump cakes appeared in 1912 and instructed the baker to "dump" butter, sugar, eggs, flour, raisins, cream of tartar, baking soda, and water into a dish and bake them.
During World War II, a version of dump cake—known as wacky cake—was made with vinegar and water in place of eggs, which were highly rationed and mostly unavailable to the home cook.
Today's dump cake makes use of boxed cake mixes and some type of fruit or pie filling. What remains the same throughout the years is how they can be prepared with minimum effort for maximum impact.
The addition of apple pie filling and cranberry sauce—flavors so evocative of the holidays—gives this easy dessert its name: Christmas dump cake. But it could just as well be called Thanksgiving dump cake and works for both holidays.
It’s easy to prepare because it starts with a yellow cake mix, and all the ingredients are mixed right in the baking pan. That’s right—no bowls to wash.
This recipe lends itself to many different variations. Start here and let your creativity take wing.
Ingredients
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1 (16-ounce) can whole cranberry sauce
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1 (21-ounce) can apple pie filling
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1 box yellow cake mix
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4 ounces butter, softened
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1/2 cup walnuts, or pecans, chopped
Steps to Make It
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Gather the ingredients.
The Spruce / Preethi Venkatram
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Preheat oven to 325 F. Dump cranberry sauce into an ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan.
The Spruce / Preethi Venkatram
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Dump apple pie filling into pan.
The Spruce / Preethi Venkatram
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Spread mixture evenly and sprinkle dry cake mix on top. Cut up butter and sprinkle on top of cake.
The Spruce / Preethi Venkatram
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Sprinkle walnuts or pecans over cake batter.
The Spruce / Preethi Venkatram
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Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in center comes out clean.
The Spruce / Preethi Venkatram
