Foodanddrink

Apple dump cake (3 ingredients, one dish)

Cooking Chew · Jul 17, 2026 18:03 · 4 min read

Apple Dump Cake (3 Ingredients, One Dish) — This 3 ingredient apple dump cake layers apple pie filling, yellow cake mix, and butter in one 9x13 dish. Ten minutes of prep and the oven does the rest.

This 3 ingredient apple dump cake layers apple pie filling, yellow cake mix, and butter in one 9x13 dish. Ten minutes of prep and the oven does the rest.

Apple dump cake has been around almost as long as the boxed cake mix and canned pie filling. Combine the two with some pats of butter and you get a sweet casserole that is like a fruit cobbler with a crackly top.

That blunt name comes from the “no mix” instructions. The cake mix, cold butter, 2 cans of pie filling and that’s it—no fresh eggs or milk at all. Add a scoop of ice cream and it’s the easy dessert for last-minute company or to keep a few teens happy on a Friday night.

Baked apple dump cake in a white dish with a plated serving and vanilla ice cream

How to Make My 3-Ingredient Apple Dump Cake

Tools you’ll need

Step 1: Preheat and prep

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a 9×13 inch baking dish.

Three ingredients for apple dump cake: apple pie filling, yellow cake mix and butter

Step 2: Start with pie filling

Pour both cans of apple pie filling into the dish and spread into an even layer, corners included.

Apple pie filling spread evenly in a white 9x13 baking dish

Step 3: Dump in the cake mix

Pour the dry cake mix powder straight from the box over the filling and spread it evenly. Don’t stir it, though.

Dry yellow cake mix spread evenly over apple pie filling in a baking dish

Step 4: Cover with butter

Slice a whole stick of butter into thin slices and lay them across the entire surface of the cake mix, as shown, getting as much of the cake mix covered as possible.

Stick of butter cut into thin slices on a cutting board

Thin butter slices arranged over the dry cake mix layer

Step 5: Bake

Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until the top is golden and the filling bubbles up around the edges. Give it 10 minutes to cool—the filling underneath is very hot, so you’ll want to give it a bit of time before serving.

Step 6: Serve warm

Scoop it straight from the dish, plain, with whipped cream, or with vanilla ice cream.

Tools and Equipment

9×13 inch baking dish
Knife
Cutting board
Large spoon for serving

Tips for Success

This recipe calls for a yellow cake mix, but white works. A spice cake mix would make a nice fall dessert, too.
Let it rest 10 minutes before serving. The filling settles from molten to gooey.
For a butter pecan twist: scatter a handful of chopped pecans over the cake mix and a dash of apple pie spice or pumpkin pie spice over the butter.
Peach, blueberry or cherry pie filling also make good substitutes for apple.
Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for 3 days. Reheat scoops in the microwave for 20-30 seconds per serving.

Serving of warm apple dump cake with two scoops of vanilla ice cream

The bottom line

This 3 ingredient apple dump cake is a great almost-no-effort fall dessert for a quick “oops I forgot dessert, what can I make” or “here’s something to feed the crowd fast.” It’s got a jammy apple pie filling underneath, buttery golden cake mix crust on top, and ice cream if you’re feeling fancy.

Apple Dump Cake

Three ingredient dump cake with jammy apple pie filling under a golden, buttery cake mix crust. One 9×13 dish, no mixing bowl required.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword 3 ingredient apple dump cake, apple cobbler dump cake, apple dump cake, apple dump cake with yellow cake mix, apple pie filling recipes, cake mix dessert, dump cake recipe, easy apple dessert, fall dessert

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings 8 servings

Calories 449kcal

Equipment

Bamboo Cutting Board Set

Ingredients

42 oz apple pie filling 2 cans, 21 oz each
15.25 oz yellow cake mix 1 box
1/2 c butter 1 stick, sliced thin

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease or spray a 9×13 inch baking dish.
Pour the apple pie filling into the bottom of the baking dish and spread into an even layer.
Dump the cake mix on top, spreading it evenly; don't stir it, though.
Cut the butter into thin slices and arrange all over the top of the cake mix. Get close to the edges as well.
Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until golden and bubbling at the edges.
Let cool for 10 minutes before scooping it out of the pan; the inside will be very hot. Serve as is or with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Notes

Serves 6 to 8. Get the slices of butter as thin as possible so the top is covered edge to edge. Rest 10 minutes before serving; the filling will be very hot. Peach, cherry, or blueberry filling swap in with the same cake mix and butter ratio.