This deliciously indulgent Easy Caramel Apple Dump Cake can be made in minutes for a perfect fall treat. Apple Pie Filling is topped off with a spice cake (or yellow cake mix) mixed with some additional seasonal spices and then finished with caramel sauce. It’s quick and easy and you just dump it all into your dish and bake it.
There’s nothing quite like a cake baked from scratch, but sometimes with hectic schedules, school, games, family, and everything in between, there’s just no time.
That’s why I love dump cakes and this one is similar to an Apple Crisp or Apple Crumble where there are just a few layers, but everything is dumped into a dish and then baked.
This delicious cake is one of the easiest fall desserts to make and requires very little kitchen skills. With two layers, one a gooey caramel apple pie filling and the other a crispy buttery spice cake you’ll want to just eat this straight out of the dish.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy to make. This delicious cake is one of the easiest fall desserts to make and requires very little kitchen skills. With two layers, one a gooey caramel apple pie filling and the other a crispy buttery spice cake you’ll want to just eat this straight out of the dish.
- Basic ingredients. This is one easy apple dump cake recipe with only the simplest ingredients. Apple pie filling, boxed cake mix, seasonal spices, and some butter and caramel sauce. You won’t need much to make it.
- Perfect for a crowd. Caramel and apple are about as fall as it gets when it comes to flavors
Ingredients Needed
If you want to take this recipe to the next level make your caramel apple dump cake with caramel bits. They’ll melt into gooey goodness and add tons of caramel flavor.
- Spiced Cake Mix or Yellow Cake Mix: the key is to use a box cake mix for this recipe and just about any flavor will work. I often use the Betty Crocker basic yellow cake mix but wanted to make this a little more seasonal use I choose the Spice Cake Mix. Any brand or flavor will work.
- Spices: I like to use Apple Pie Spice and then sometimes add in cinnamon and nutmeg, but really you just need cinnamon. Use what you have in your pantry.
- Apple Pie Filling: you can make your own apple pie filling for this recipe, but the main point of this recipe is how easy it is to make. You just dump it all in the baking dish! This is why I prefer to use store-bought canned apple pie filling.
- Butter: melted butter gets poured directly over the cake mix to get that crunchy topping. You can use either salted butter or unsalted.
- Caramel Sauce: You can use any type of caramel sauce such as caramel syrup that you can often find next to the chocolate syrup or caramel ice cream topping. You can even use caramel bits. This is to add in that gooey rich caramel flavor. You’ll also want to drizzle some extra on top.
How to Make Caramel Apple Dump Cake
This is quite possibly one of the easiest cake recipes, besides using boxed cake, there is. I’ve still included some tips and step-by-step information on how to bake it though.
Prep. Preheat the oven to 350º F and lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish or even a 9×13 cake pan (sometimes I’ll even use a deep square-shaped casserole dish) with cooking spray and set it aside.
- Mix the cake mix topping: In a large bowl whisk the spice cake mix and apple pie spice together until well combined.
- Dump the apple in: Pour the apple pie filling into the prepared baking dish and drizzle some caramel sauce on top. You can mix it together with the apple pie filling or leave it as is.
- Layer on the cake mix topping. Sprinkle the cake mix on top of the apple pie filling and try and cover all the apple filling in the edges. As it bakes some of the filling will bubble up around the edges as it does in this pecan pie cobbler.
- Add the butter. You have two options when it comes to adding butter to the cake mix topping. You can melt it and pour it on top, which is the method I prefer, or you can toss it with the cake mix first or cut it into the cake mix using a pastry cutter, which is shown in the picture.
- Bake until golden. Place the dish into the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour or until the topping beings to turn a crispy golden brown and some of the apple filling is bubbling up against the sides.
How to Make Apple Pie Spice
Below is a quick recipe for making apple pie spice if you don’t have any or can’t find it at the store. This will make slightly more than you need but you can use the leftovers to sprinkle on top of some homemade whipped cream or ice cream after to top the dump cake.
- 1 tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
- 3/4 teaspoon Ground Cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon Allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger
Toppings to Add
This easy dump cake is delicious as is, but if you’d like to serve it to guests or just elevate your cake add some toppings. Below are some of my favorite options. This is also a simple recipe and there’s no need to complicate it so if you don’t want toppings then don’t add them.
- Whipped Cream: Make your own, get some Cool Whip, or just the kind in the spray can, but this cake is infinitely better with some whipped cream on top.
- Any type of nuts: Adding nuts to this cake gives it a little crunch and I recommend sprinkling some pecans on top just before you bake it. It will give it some pecan flavor, which is delicious during fall.
- Vanilla Ice Cream: Any kind of baked apples and vanilla ice cream were made for each other, which is why I also highly recommend adding a scoop on top.
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Serve this cake warm and a la mode. Scoop some vanilla ice cream on top and drizzle it with extra caramel sauce.
- Store any leftovers in the fridge. You can place it into an air-tight container which will give you about 6 days of freshness or just wrap it tightly with plastic wrap or foil, which will keep it good for about 5 days.
- To reheat the cake. Set the oven to 350º F and heat the cake until warmed throughout. The timing will depend upon how much cake you need to reheat. You can also warm it in the microwave.
FAQS
A dump cake is just as the name states, it’s a gooey cake where all the ingredients are literally dumped into the baking dish and then baked. They’re super easy to prepare and make a perfect dessert for a crowd.
You can definitely use fresh apples, but you will still need to turn the apples into apple pie filling. You can follow this apple pie filling recipe but cut it in half.
Yes! In order to freeze this apple dump cake, I recommend preparing it in a freezer-safe aluminum baking pan. Let it cool completely after baking and tightly double wrap it in aluminum foil before placing it into the freezer. The cake will last up to 3 months in the freezer.
Related Recipes
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Caramel Apple Dump Cake
Equipment
- 9×13 baking dish or pan
Ingredients
- 1 15.25 ounce box Spice Cake Mix or yellow cake
- 2 teaspoons Apple Pie Spice
- 1/4 cup Caramel Sauce divided
- 2 21 ounce cans Apple Pie Filling
- 1/2 cup Butter cold
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and lightly grease a 9×13 baking dish or a 9×9 baking pan for a thicker cake (or even a 12-inch sized iron skillet).
- In a large bowl whisk the spice cake mix (or yellow cake mix) and apple pie spice together until well combined.
- Pour the apple pie filling into the prepared baking dish and drizzle some caramel sauce on top. You can mix it together with the apple pie filling or leave it as is.
- Sprinkle the cake mix on top of the apple pie filling and try and cover all the apple filling in the edges. As it bakes some of the filling will bubble up around the edges as it does in this pecan pie cobbler.
- You have two options when it comes to adding butter to the cake mix topping. You can melt it and pour it on top, which is the method I prefer, or you can toss it with the cake mix first or cut it into the cake mix using a pastry cutter, which is shown in the picture.
- Place the dish into the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour or until the topping beings to turn a crispy golden brown and some of the apple filling is bubbling up against the sides.
Notes
- Serve this cake warm and a la mode. Scoop some vanilla ice cream on top and drizzle it with extra caramel sauce.
- Store any leftovers in the fridge. You can place it into an air-tight container which will give you about 6 days of freshness or just wrap it tightly with plastic wrap or foil, which will keep it good for about 5 days.
- To reheat the cake. Set the oven to 350º F and heat the cake until warmed throughout. The timing will depend upon how much cake you need to reheat. You can also warm it in the microwave.
Make Your Own Apple Pie Spice
- 1 tablespoon Ground Cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
- 3/4 teaspoon Ground Cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon Allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger
