Cherry dump cake is an easy to make cherry cobbler with cake mix dessert. This recipe for cherry dump cake comes together quickly with pantry basics such as cake mix, cherry pie filling, canned or fresh cherries and butter. Top this cherry cobbler dump cake with vanilla ice cream for the perfect easy baked dessert.
Why Should You Make This Recipe
I have quiet a few cake mix dump cake recipes on the blog. My Pineapple Dump Cake, Strawberry Dump Cake, Lemon Dump Cake and Peach Cobbler with Cake Mix are all quick, easy and delicious pie filling and cake mix recipes. I am so excited to add this easy cherry dump cake recipe to the blog. I know you’ll love it because:
- You need a quick dessert. Whether you are looking for a sweet and delicious dish to end a meal, or you need a great last minute holiday or celebratory dessert, nothing is as easy as a pie filling cake.
- Easy to make, easy to bake. This dump cake with cherry pie filling uses just a handful of ingredients to make. All you have to do is assemble and bake!
- A simple dessert with layers of flavor. The rich and sweet cherry pie filling pairs perfectly with the optional almond and vanilla extract, buttery cake crust and crunchy sliced almonds. Top this cake mix cherry cobbler with cold vanilla ice cream and you have the perfect dessert.
Ingredients
This easy and delicious cherry dump cake recipe requires only a handful of ingredients to make and is as simple as dumping a few ingredients into a pan and baking.
Gather cherry pie filling, canned or fresh pitted cherries, white cake mix, vanilla extract, almond extract, butter and sliced almonds.
Substitutions
This cherry pie filling cake is meant to be quick, easy and so delicious. Here are my recommended substitutions for this recipe if you need them:
- Cherry Pie Filling: To make this cherry dump cake super easy, use any cherry pie filling you like.
- Canned Cherries: Rather than adding more canned cherry pie filling, I like to add fresh or canned pitted cherries to mix into the filling. Feel free to use frozen cherries that have been thawed.
- Vanilla and Almond Extracts: Both extracts are used for flavor. Feel free to omit, use one or both.
- Box White Cake Mix: I prefer using white cake mix for a contrast of color and flavor, but feel free to use any box cake mix such as vanilla or yellow cake mix. You can also use strawberry cake mix for an all pink hued strawberry dessert!
- Butter: Feel free to use any butter you like. To ensure even coverage of the butter on the dry cake mix, I like to use sliced butter as well as melted butter.
- Sliced Almonds: I like to top my cherry pie dump cake with sliced almonds for more texture. Feel free to omit or top with another nut.
Variations
- Chocolate Dump Cake with Cherries: Prepare the cherry dump cake recipe according to the recipe directions. Omit the almond extract and sliced almonds. Instead of using white cake mix, use chocolate cake mix. If you like, sprinkle ½ cup chocolate chips on top of the cake mix in place of the sliced almonds.
- Cherry Dump Cake with Pineapple: Instead of adding canned cherries, add an equal amount of canned, fresh or frozen (and thawed) pineapple pieces. Omit the almond extract and sliced almonds.
- Cream Cheese Cherry Dump Cake: In a small mixing bowl, mix 8 oz. (226 g) softened cream cheese with ¼ cup (50 g) sugar until well combined. Drop tablespoon sized (15 g) scoops of cream cheese on top of the cherry filling. Swirl or spread gently as needed to cover most of the filling. Top the cherry and cream cheese filling with the cake mix, butter and bake according to the recipe directions.
How To Make
Learn how to make cherry dump cake in a few easy steps.
- Lightly grease a 9 x9, 11 x 7 or 9 x 13 inch baking dish using a tablespoon of butter. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Evenly spread the canned cherry pie filling across the greased baking dish. Top with the drained canned cherries, vanilla extract and almond extract. Gently mix to combine the pie filling with the cherries and extracts.
- Evenly spread the cake mix on top of the cherry pie filling. Evenly cover the cake mix layer with slices of cold butter. Try to cover as much of the cake mix as possible. Sprinkle the sliced almonds on top of the sliced butter. In a small bowl, melt the remaining ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter. Drizzle the melted butter in between the slices of cold butter. Try to cover as much of the cake as possible with butter.
- Bake the cherry dump cake for 40 - 50 minutes or until the top is a beautiful golden brown and the cherry filling is bubbling around the edges of the baking dish.
- Cool the cake mix cherry cobbler for 30 minutes, scoop into a bowl, top with ice cream or whipped cream and enjoy!
How To Freeze and Store and Serve
- Store: Transfer any leftover cherry pie dump cake in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 - 4 days.
- Freeze: Make and bake the cake according to the cherry dump cake recipe directions and cool completely. Wrap the entire dish in plastic wrap and aluminum foil. Store the cherry pie cake dessert in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight and reheat the dump cake in the oven at 350 F (177 C) for 15 minutes or until warmed through.
- The best way to serve this cherry dump cake is warm from the oven with a big scoop of cold vanilla ice cream or freshly whipped cream on top!
M’s Expert Tips
- Grease the bottom and sides of the baking dish with about 1 tablespoon (14 g) softened butter.
- Add more cherries. Adding a cup or two of fresh, frozen or canned cherries really makes this baked cherry dessert really shine.
- Flavor booster. Mix in both the vanilla and almond extracts. The almond and vanilla are great flavor pairings with cherry and buttery cake mix topping.
- Add more butter. After topping the cake mix with thinly sliced pats of butter, drizzle about ½ cup of melted butter on any spaces left uncovered by the butter. This helps ensure there are no pieces of dried cake mix.
- Let the cherry pie cake dessert rest. Give this cherry dump cake about 20 - 30 minutes to rest and cool slightly. This allows the juices and filling to thicken a bit more.
FAQs
For the cake mix and pie filling cake to truly be called a dump cake, the one thing you should not do is mix the ingredients. The ease and beauty of dump cake desserts is that the literal dumping of all the ingredients into a pan in a certain order and baking.
The name comes from the way this cobbler like dessert is prepared. To make a dump cake, simply dump a can of pie filling or fresh fruit into a greased dish, top with a dry cake mix and butter.
The top will be golden brown and the filling will be bubbling. Depending on the kind of dump cake, most need to nake for about 45 minutes.
More Cherry Recipes to Try
If you try this Cherry Dump Cake recipe please rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Doing so helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to bake. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using @olivesnthyme so I can see what you’re baking!
Cherry Dump Cake Recipe
Equipment
- 1 9x9 or 11x7 or 9x13 baking dish
Ingredients
- 2 21 oz. cans cherry pie filling
- 1 cup canned, fresh or frozen cherries
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) almond extract optional
- 1 15.25 oz. white or yellow box cake mix
- ½ cup (113 g) cold sliced butter
- ¼ cup sliced almonds
- ½ cup (113 g) melted butter
Instructions
- Lightly grease a 9 x9, 11 x 7 or 9 x 13 inch baking dish using a tablespoon of butter. Preheat the oven to 350 F (177 C).
- Evenly spread the canned cherry pie filling across the greased baking dish. Top with the drained canned cherries and almond extract. Gently mix to combine the pie filling with the cherries and extract.2 21 oz. cans cherry pie filling, 1 cup canned, fresh or frozen cherries, 1 teaspoon (5 ml) almond extract
- Evenly spread the cake mix on top of the cherry pie filling. Evenly cover the cake mix layer with slices of cold butter. Try to cover as much of the cake mix as possible. Sprinkle the sliced almonds on top of the sliced butter.1 15.25 oz. white or yellow box cake mix, ½ cup (113 g) cold sliced butter, ¼ cup sliced almonds
- In a small bowl, melt the remaining ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter. Drizzle the melted butter in between the slices of cold butter. Try to cover as much of the cake as possible with butter.½ cup (113 g) melted butter
- Bake the cherry dump cake for 40 - 50 minutes or until the top is a beautiful golden brown and the cherry filling is bubbling around the edges of the baking dish.
- Cool the cake mix cherry cobbler for 30 minutes, scoop into a bowl, top with ice cream or whipped cream and enjoy!
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