3-Ingredient Cherry Dump Cake (Shorter Baking Time)

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This 3-Ingredient Cherry Dump Cake recipe is a delicious and easy-to-make dessert! In fact, it’s one of the easiest desserts ever! All you need are cherry pie filling, yellow cake mix, and butter to make this family favorite treat.

To reduce the baking time, we use 2 (9-inch) round pans instead of a 9×13-inch rectangular pan. Since the 9-inch baking pan takes less time to cook the cake mix (per Betty Crocker’s Yellow Cake Mix instructions), this means you can enjoy your delicious dessert quicker!

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What is Cherry Dump Cake?

Cherry Dump Cake is a simple dessert that is very similar in concept to a cherry cobbler, but much easier. It starts with a box of cake mix (usually yellow or white cake mix), which is combined with butter and then poured over cherry pie filling in a baking dish.

The entire mixture is then baked until golden brown. While some people serve it at room temperature, most recipes recommend serving it warm with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.

Some variations of cherry dump cake uses nuts like almonds on top of the cake mix for an extra crunch. Since this is meant to be an easy dump cake recipe, we’re sticking with the 3 simple ingredients here. Feel free to make this your own and add in your favorite toppings though!

What You Need to Make 3-Ingredient Cherry Dump Cake

• 1 (15.25 ounce) box of yellow cake mix (or white cake mix)
• 2 (21 ounce) cans of cherry pie filling
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted (plus extra for greasing)
• Equipment: 2 (9-inch) round pans

How to Make 3-Ingredient Cherry Dump Cake

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF (176°C) degrees.
2. Lightly grease two 9” round pans with the extra melted butter.
3. Pour a can of cherry pie filling into each pan, then use a spatula to spread them out evenly.
4. In a medium bowl, mix the butter and dry cake mix until combined. Divide this mixture into 2, then pour each 1/2 over the cherry filling in each pan. Make sure they are spread across evenly in both pans.
5. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until the cake mix is fully cooked through. Cool for 5-10 minutes, then serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. ENJOY!

Variations & Substitions for This Cherry Dump Cake

• Feel free to use a chocolate cake mix instead of yellow cake mix to make a chocolate cherry dump cake! If I’m making this version, I like to mix in some chopped milk chocolate or chocolate chips on top for extra deliciousness! A true crowd pleaser when paired with a dollop of whipped cream.
• Try other fruit fillings to make different types of dump cakes. For example, swap the canned cherry pie filling with canned peaches to make peach dump cake.
• Love lemons? Swap the cake mix with lemon cake mix to make zesty cherry-lemon dump cake.
• Add vanilla extract or almond extract to the dump cake mixture for extra flavors! It’s still such an easy dessert recipe.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should you refrigerate cherry dump cake?

Once baked, cherry dump cake should be refrigerated to keep it from spoiling. I recommend storing it covered with plastic wrap, or in an airtight container.

When ready to eat, just cut a piece and enjoy it at room temperature or slightly warmed.

What is the difference between a dump cake and a cobbler?

A dump cake is a type of dessert made by layering ingredients, such as cake mix, canned fruit and butter, in a baking dish and then baking it. It is typically very simple to make and requires minimal effort.

A cobbler, on the other hand, is a type of baked dessert that combines various fruit fillings with a homemade crust made from either biscuit dough or pastry. The filling is typically thickened with flour or cornstarch before baking. Unlike dump cakes which rely on pre-packaged cake mixes, cobblers require the baker to prepare the crust in addition to the filling.

In comparison, dump cakes require the ingredients to simply be dumped into the baking dish before being baked in the oven. It’s the perfect dessert if you don’t have a lot of time on hand! Cobblers, on the other hand, require more hands-on preparation.

Can you make dump cake the day before?

Yes, you can make dump cake the day before. You can assemble the ingredients and bake the cake ahead of time, then store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve it.

Can I stir a dump cake?

Yes, you can technically stir a dump cake, though doing so will lessen the layered look of the cherry filling and cake mix.

Looking for More Easy Dessert Recipes?

• Maggiano’s Lemon Cookies Recipe (Vera’s Lemon Cookies Copycat)
• 10/10 Copycat Famous Dave’s Bread Pudding Recipe
• Easy Lemon Blondies Recipe (Lemon Brownie Bars)
• Best Peach Cobbler Pound Cake (Soft Cake + Streusel Filling)
• Easy Banana Custard (Pastry Cream Filling) 
• How to Make Peach Pie With Canned Peaches
• Easy & Quick Turtle Pie (No-Bake!)
• Grandma’s Best Old-fashioned Apple Crisp (With GF/DF Options)
• Easy Cherry Coconut Creamsicles (GF, DF, VG)
• 4-Ingredient Sugar Free Jello Recipe (Strawberry & More Flavors!)
• 3-Ingredient Oreo Pie (10 Min Prep & No-Bake)

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If you make this easy 3-Ingredient Cherry Dump Cake recipe, please drop a comment below! I’d LOVE to know what you think! Or take a picture and share it on Instagram by tagging @dwellbymichelle so I can repost it on my stories!

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