I wasn’t going to share this dump cake recipe with you. I don’t know why… I just felt like maybe it was beneath my “standards”.
I have no idea why I’m being so judgey with myself about it! It’s really not that different than the amazing Peach Dump Cake I shared on Dine & Dish a couple years ago. It’s not like I’m “above” using canned ingredients and box cake mixes. I guess I just felt that it was too simple. In fact, it was so simple, Leah (my 4 year old) pretty much made it herself. I just had to open the cans for her and tell her what to do and she did it. With an abundance of pride, at that!
I was making this recipe to photograph for a client…and honestly, did not think it was going to be all that great. But when it was fresh out of the oven and I sneaked a spoonful, I couldn’t help but keep digging in. I then topped the cake with whipped cream and had a little bit of cherry chocolate dessert euphoria right in my little kitchen. This recipe is simply simple, but simply good. I’ve even deemed it “company worthy” if served in a little fancy dessert dish!
Please don’t judge me like I’m judging myself for sharing this recipe with you today! I promise, once you make this and take your first bite, any thought of judgement will fly right out the window. Enjoy!
3 Ingredient Cherry Chocolate Dump Cake
Ingredients
- 2 20 ounce cans cherry pie filling
- 1 18.5 ounce box Devil's Food Cake Mix unprepared
- 3/4 cup butter melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- Dump cherry pie filling into a 13x9 inch cake pan. Spread evenly out in pan.
- Top cherry pie filling with unprepared cake mix. Make sure it is evenly spread out.
- Drizzle melted butter over the top.
- Bake for 1 hour.
- Serve topped with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
A dump cake was one of the first recipes I ever posted on my blog -and then I shied away from it because I thought it was beneath my “standards” too. – But when you find something so good – who cares where it’s from – I’m 110% behind this beauty!! I love chocolate and cherry.
Thanks, friend! It kind of blew me away when I tasted it… and I felt like not posting it was keeping it out of the recipe boxes of others. Can’t hold a good thing back 🙂
I wish you would all come out during the holiday’s and post fast, easy recipes. A ;pt of family’and friends drop by and some of these are so easy to whip up in a hurry. I also like the spice cake with apple pie filling.
I absolutely love these kind of recipes too. You should definitely check out the skillet cookie recipe I posted most recently (on the main page of Dine & Dish). It has turned into my favorite dessert in a pinch!
A “Dump Cake” was one of the first recipes I learned as a new bride MANY years ago…. and I think they are wonderful. There are so many versions and it’s a quick fix dessert when you’re short on time. Great reminder! I haven’t made one in a while and it would be fun to make with my daughter. PS ~ Your Sweet Girl is absolutely precious! LOVE that pic of her. She looks very serious about her job. 🙂
You are SO like me. I always wonder if I should post super easy recipes and then judge myself forever if I do decided to post them.
I have actually never had a dump cake, so I am super glad you posted! It’s so easy!
Your little girl is melting my heart by the way!
Pinning
Thank you for posting this recipe! I was looking for it! I have 3 teenage boys I am trying to teach to cook. Something yummy like this will get them in the kitchen! Lynn
I’m so happy that you went through and posted this recipe. I LOVE the fact that it is so simple and its photographs are gorgeous. Everyone needs to know how to a do a dump cake.
YUM!! We makes something similar to this, but with brownie mix. I’ve gotta try some cake mix!!
Fabulous! I love chocolate and cherries combo! So glad you posted it.
Rule #1. Never keep stuff like this to yourself! Rule #2. Share it with me
Dump cakes are the best. I’m glad you shared this, we all need chocolate cherry dump cakes sometime.
This is so great Kristen! People love dump cakes even though they just seem so easy. I think that’s why they’re so popular. Love this version!
This is one of my very favorite desserts except I go ahead and use a whole cup of butter. Love it, so glad you shared!
It just doesn’t get easier than this! My 4 yr old is big into cooking so I am always on a look out for recipes like this one. Something tells me the moment I tell her about this recipe we will have to drive up to the supermarket. 🙂
Love that Leah helped you! My kids love to help me too and this would be perfect! thanks for sharing,
I never thought of using devil’s food cake mix. I have made this many times with white or yellow cake mix and it’s kind of a cherry crisp. Can’t wait to try this version
The only problem with dump cakes is that their name is kind of awful.
Dude. I want to judge you all the way to my house to make this for me. My middle name is “Easy Desserts”!!! Also, that photo of Leah makes me want to eat her cheeks!!!
No judgement here! I am all about making things simple and if that means opening a box of cake mix, so be it! Looks super yummy!
Can it really be that easy?? I will have to try this 🙂 Sometimes a quick sweet tooth fix is just what you need!
I’ve made dump cake before but never chocolate and cherry!! oh I bet that’s good!! and I love that Leah made it!
Oh my goodness, I unabashedly love dump cakes!!! I’ve never tried one with cherries though. Sounds pretty much heavenly. 🙂
No judging here. I’m all about a cake that comes together in 4 minutes and is just as delicious as any other cake. Your wee one is adorable. Pinned.
I love how proud Leah was of getting to make it herself. Those are the best moments!
Wow one of those incredible OMG what am I going to serve NOW dishes!!!! Plus it uses on hand ingredients. Albeit is one suppose to admit they use cake mixes these days? They are often pretty darn handy. I love the picture of your daughter helping. That is sooooo sweet.
You are so so so right those really are THE best moments. I say that from the stand point of my sons are grown. Luckily for me they have grown into wonderful men. So I still have THE best moments, but they are a little different now. Laughing.
For my honey, of course.
I think I’m making this for my FIL’s birthday this weekend! I love how easy it is. 😉
Wow, this looks fantastic…and I love that it only has 3 ingredients! Definitely pinned it for later!
What a precious photo for your album and for little Leah. I think sometimes we forget how much they look up to Mom. Precious and I bet it WAS delicious.
I used to make these when my kids were little; a quick and simple treat for mom get togethers that EVERYONE knew and made. No apologies necessary here. One of my favorites cakes is a box mix with pudding and rum. It is wonderful and I have no plans to change it just because it’s also simple and used ready made ingredients!
Barbara can you post your cake with pudding & rum , what do you use to make that ? sounds good
Oh yes…..please share the recipe! 🙂
Could you please share your rum & pudding & cake mix recipe? It sounds simply DIVINE.
I like this simple recipe. Thank you.
Would love to see that recipe using Rum.
You can also use peach pie filling and a yellow cake mix – or apple pie filling and a spice cake mix. All kinds of combos. This can also be fixed in the crockpot. Cook on Low for 3 hrs.
I tried this exact combination some years back after discovering dump cakes for the first time. It SOUNDED like a fantastic idea- chocolate and cherries and whipped cream are pretty much made for each other, Black Forest is popular for a reason. Unfortunately, I don’t know if it was the brand of cake mix I used or something, but the cake mix and butter ended up turning into this very dense mass on top of the pie filling after baking and after eating a small portion I’d feel like I’d eaten so much cement. I finished it because I’m stubborn and it was sweet, but I would never make it again. I’ll stick with white / lemon cake mixes for my dump cakes!
We bake ours in the slow cooker for 4 hrs.
Easy and GREAT!
We made this with the Boy Scout troop, in a dutch oven over charcoal. Called it Black Forest Cobbler. In fact , all our cobblers are “dump cakes”, in that they use fruit, cake mix and butter. We also had a saying, “There’s no such thing as too much butter” 🙂
Another neat trick is if you don’t have fruit to make the cake . Leave out eggs and all other ingredients and use 7 up of ginger ale. Makes a high moist cake
I disagree. My father and I discussed this, and we came to realize that if you put a gallon of butter with the mix, it would never actually bake into a cake. That would be too much butter.
do you know many calories. this cake has and what is a serving is thank you
I don’t know how many calories this cake is, but if you’re worried about calories try this one: http://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/cherry-cola-dump-cake/ad1382ab-cf7f-478c-a124-921711920daa/ using sugar free cake mix and sugar free cherry Coke or Dr. Pepper.
Delicious, but I feel that the cook time of 1 hour was too much. My cake burnt on the side and bottom.
Next time I would bake for 35 – 40 minutes.
This sounds awesome! Do you think it would also work if you used vanilla with apple pie filling? Thank you!
Oh yes!! That would be tasty!
It truly doesn’t get easier and chocolate and cherries together is straight from heaven!
Very true!!
I’m so thankful that you posted this recipe! I cook for a large ministry on a small budget and this is exactly the kind of dessert I need! Thank you for posting.
Dump cakes are a favorite for us. I love how easy they are to make and my family loves how tasty they are. So delicious – I can’t wait to try this one!
This is so beyond easy! It’s dangerous! It looks phenomenal too!
The dump cake I grew up with was a bit more complicated than this, but still fabulously delicious. Goes like this:
1 can cherry pie filling
1 can sliced peaches in light syrup (you can use in juice if you prefer it less sweet)
1 can crushed pineapple
1 butter cake mix
1 stick butter, cut into thin pats
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Layer the fruit, with the juice/syrup in the bottom of the 13×9 pan (we always started with the cherry filling, then peaches and finished with the pineapple) Being sure to get it all spread out as evenly as possible
Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over the top of the fruit
Lay out butter pats evenly across the top (being greedy, I always double the amount of butter)
sprinkle chopped nuts across the top
Bake at 325 for 30-45 minutes
We always have this around the holidays because it not only makes a good dessert but a delicious breakfast as well, and is equally tasty hot or cold.
Oh I can’t wait to try this. Thanks so much for sharing!
The only problem with dump cakes is that their name is kind of awful.
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Haha I totally agree!
Fabulous! I love chocolate and cherries combo! So glad you posted it.
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