Tender apples, warm apple pie spice and a buttery cake mix topping make this Fall flavored treat a fast favorite. With just 4 ingredients from your pantry and fridge, this is the Easiest Apple Pie Dump Cake recipe!

You know I love a classic from-scratch dessert. (Grandma's Apple Cake with Cinnamon Crackle Glaze, I'm looking at you with all of the heart eye emojis.) BUT. If you are looking for a crowd pleasing dessert with minimal prep time and BIG Fall flavor, then look no further! This apple pie dump cake could not get any easier and starts with a few staples from your pantry and fridge:

Apple pie filling
A yellow cake mix
Apple Pie Spice (go with cinnamon or even pumpkin pie spice if you don't have apple pie spice)
Butter

Yes, pie filling and cake mixes are pantry staples for me. They are perfect for when a certain fruit is not in season or when I just don't have time for a more time consuming dessert.

Cherry Pie Dumplings, Apple Pie Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars and Cherry Cheesecake Chocolate Dessert Pizza are just a few of my favorite ways to use pie filling. I think it is definitely worth keeping a few cans on hand.

And cake mix. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

Now that we've stocked your pantry and made a list of all the desserts for the next few weeks, let's get down to the business of this easy apple pie dessert!

Easiest Apple Pie Dump Cake

I know it is not the prettiest dessert you'll ever make (ahem - it is called a dump cake), but the spiced apples and buttery yellow cake topping are a match made in Fall flavor heaven.

A couple of notes:

The traditional cherry pie filling and crushed pineapple dump cake recipe has a little more liquid in the filling thanks to the pineapple juice. So, make sure you cover the top of the cake mix as completely as possible with the melted butter since there is a little less liquid underneath it to bake with. I may even add a splash of apple juice or apple cider to the pie filling for the next apple pie dump cake I make. Or use ¾ of the bag of cake mix.
All that to say, keep an eye on this to make sure the topping doesn't get too done but is still baked through. You don't want any goopy raw batter but you don't also want the topping to get too brown. It's a fine line so just don't get too caught up in your favorite show while this is baking 🙂
I didn't have any nuts on hand, but chopped walnuts would pair beautifully with the apples and spice in this Apple Pie Dump Cake.

Now, next stop ... DESSERT!

The Easiest Apple Pie Dump Cake

Print Recipe

Description

Tender apples, warm apple pie spice and a buttery cake mix topping make this Fall flavored dessert a fast favorite! With just 4 ingredients from your pantry and fridge, this is the Easiest Apple Pie Dump Cake recipe!

Ingredients

Scale

2 21 oz. cans apple pie filling
1 15 oz box yellow cake mix
1 - 1 ½ tsp apple pie spice (+ additional to sprinkle)
1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and prepare a 9x13 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
Spoon the apple pie filling in an even layer in the bottom of the baking dish.
Sprinkle the apple pie filling with apple pie spice.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry yellow cake mix and 1 - 1 ½ teaspoons of the apple pie spice. Use the whisk to break up any large clumps of cake mix.
Spread the dry cake mixture over the apple pie filling in an even layer.
Drizzle the melted butter over the cake mix and try to get most of the dry cake mix covered. (While baking, drizzle an additional tablespoon of melted butter over any areas of dry cake mix if necessary.)
Bake for 30-40 minutes or until the cake mix topping is lightly browned and baked through.

Notes

The traditional cherry pie filling and crushed pineapple dump cake recipe has a little more liquid in the filling thanks to the pineapple juice. So, make sure you cover the top of the cake mix as completely as possible with the melted butter since there is a little less liquid underneath it to bake with. I may even add a splash of apple juice or apple cider to the pie filling for the next apple pie dump cake I make. Or use ¾ of the bag of cake mix.
All that to say, keep an eye on this to make sure the topping doesn't get too done but is still baked through. You don't want any goopy raw batter but you don't also want the topping to get too brown. It's a fine line so just don't get too caught up in your favorite show while this is baking 🙂
I didn't have any nuts on hand, but chopped walnuts would pair beautifully with the apples and spice in this Apple Pie Dump Cake.

You know what's missing from these pictures? A big ol' fat scoop of vanilla ice cream. This was a spur of the moment weekend dessert and there was no ice cream in sight. Since I was baking in my PJs, I was not about to make a grocery store run. But just trust me when I say that vanilla ice cream + apple pie dump cake will make the world right again.

Happy baking, friends!!