Easy Cherry Pineapple Dump Cake
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
This Pineapple Cherry “Dump” Cake has just 5 ingredients and is probably one of the easiest desserts you’ll ever make. I admit the name isn’t all too appealing, but you literally just “dump” the ingredients into the pan. There’s no stirring, beating, or prep involved that you’d normally expect when baking a dessert. It’s easy peasy. Pair this dump cake with vanilla ice cream and you have yourself one super tasty, crowd-pleasing cake.
I first tried this cake at a party and it was made by a gal in our church, Tanya M, who got the recipe from her sister Natalya K, who got the recipe from a friend, Tanya O. When a recipe makes its way around the block, you know it’s gonna be a good one! Thank you ladies for passing it along :).
Ingredients for Cherry Dump Cake:
20 oz crushed pineapple, undrained (we used Dole)
21 oz cherry pie filling (we used Duncan Hines)
1 pkg moist yellow cake mix (we used Betty Crocker)
1/2 – 1 cup shaved almonds or chopped walnuts
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
How to Make a Dump Cake:
1. Preheat oven to 350˚. Butter bottom and sides of a 9×13 inch baking pan.
2. Dump pineapple with juice and spread into bottom of pan. Top with cherry pie filling.
3. Sprinkle the top evenly with dry cake mix, add nuts if using then drizzle the top with melted butter. Bake uncovered at 350˚F for 55-60 min or until bubbly and browned.
Easy Pineapple Cherry Dump Cake
Ingredients
- 20 oz crushed pineapple, undrained (we used Dole)
- 21 oz cherry pie filling, we used Duncan Hines
- 1 pkg moist yellow cake mix, we used Betty Crocker
- 1/2 - 1 cup shaved almonds or chopped walnuts
- 1/2 cup 1 stick butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350˚. Butter bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch baking pan.
- Dump pineapple with juice and spread into bottom of pan. Top with cherry pie filling.
- Sprinkle the top evenly with dry cake mix, add nuts if using then drizzle the top with melted butter. Bake uncovered at 350˚F for 55-60 min or until bubbly and browned.
♥ FAVORITE THINGS ♥
Shown in this post: (nope, no one paid us to write this; just stuff we love):
* This is my favorite baking casserole dish. I love that it has a lid!
* A well stocked kitchen needs measuring cups of all sizes 🙂
Natasha Kravchuk
Hi! I'm Natasha Kravchuk. Here you'll find delicious, trusted recipes with easy step-by-step photos and videos. 
This turned out horribly. The cake mix didn’t all bake in with the butter, mostly where it was higher over cherries, so there were patches of browned baked cake mix. When we served it, where it wasn’t powdery, it was mushy. Now the next day most of the cake layer is complete slimy mush. The empty areas of the pan where we cut pieces from is filled with pineapple juice. If I were to make this again, which I highly doubt, I would drain most of the pineapple and instead of pouring melted butter I would lay thin slices of butter to cover the top.
Hi Molly, I’m sorry to hear it didn’t work out for you. I haven’t had that happen – did you possibly change or substitute any of the ingredients or proportions?
Wish I’d read the comments before making this- the top definitely needs a better distribution of butter (which would change it from 100% dump cake, I guess… but maybe the liquid from the pineapple could be the middle layer?). Generally, toasted almonds are a great addition, the cake tastes great with vanilla ice cream, cake mix comes out powdery in places the butter didn’t reach.
Thank you so much for sharing your feedback with us, Emme!
Natasha,
Can this be put together earlier in the day and then baked later that same day?
Hello Liz, I honestly haven’t tried making this recipe that way to advise but I imagine that should be fine.
It’s in the oven now!
I hope you love it! Please share with us how it goes.
Oh my goodness, this dump cake is to die for, Natasha! I followed the exact directions and I must say it’s a hit at my house! The almonds are a wonderful tasty addition and they toast so nicely! What a delicious flavor this cake has. We ate it warm with coconut whipped topping sprayed on top and it was fabulous! I’ll definitely make it again! Love your recipes, Natasha!
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
Made this today, it was amazing. Hubby loved it. I made it as written and enjoyed every bite of it.
Glad to hear that Tamie. Thanks for sharing that with us!
Natasha, is a dump cake suppose to be cake like or gooey on the inside? You can guess I don’t do much cooking!
Hi, the cherry portion is supposed to be gooey while the cake portion is more baked.
I put cake mix, butter, little brown sugar and pecans in food processor, pulse a few times then spread over fruit…..no more cake mix that didn’t get butter! I have made this cake for at least 30 years, always a favorite! Love all your recipes, Natasha!
Thank you so much for sharing that with me. I’m so glad you enjoyed that.
Dump cakes are always a hit. I try different cake flavors. Recently did the cherries/pineapple with a coconut cake mix, very good. A while back, after have many dishes that required “drizzling or patting” butter on top, and it never turning out “just right”, I started doing this and it was a game changer. Put a stick of butter in the freezer for a while, then use a flat cheese grater to evenly distribute over the top… it’s heavenly! Everyone thought it was mozzarella cheese lol. It allows that nice browning and crispness with every single bite.
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing your great review!
does it need to be re/frigerated?.
Hi Theresa, the leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days
Nice blog!!
I am making this for Thanksgiving, 2018. i used to make it literally decades ago. So I looked up to make sure I had details right
. I was thinking about trying VANILLA cake mix but no pineapple (husband doesn’t like pineapple) . Hope it’s not too dry! Thanks ladies for reviews
I hope you love it, Cindy!
HAs anyone mixed this all together and baked to see how it would come out? I’m curious
Amazingly easy,I changed the layering I found starting with cherry filling on bottom then using a sifter to add cake mix followed by pineapple tidbits and drizzling butter on top eliminated dry cake mix . I didn’t use coconut or nuts because family didn’t like those ingredients. Really good with ice cream
Thank you for sharing this with us, Pam!
This is a classic recipe for pot luck meals. This time i used a cherry chip cake mix on top of pineapple and cherry pie filling. I topped it with chopped pecans and shredded coconut. I drizzled the top with 1 stick of melted butter to which i added half cup of coconut oil. I can’t wait until it’s time to eat!
That sounds amazing, Contrary! Thank you for sharing that with us!
This cake is soo simple to make! And super delicious too!
I omitted the nuts, as some people I planned on serving it to have allergies.
That’s so great Amber! I love that you planned ahead for your guests, so thoughtful! I’m happy you enjoyed this cake!
I can’t have nuts so I was wondering what would be a good topping to replace the nuts. Any suggestions?
You might just omit them or maybe try some kind of seed like pumpkin seeds?
I tried this recipe with shaved sweetened coconut flakes (instead of the nuts), and it was amazing.
Tried this recipe. Disappointed ther was not enough moisture and the cake mix was only dry floured caiei mix. I put butter on top and followed directions.
Hi Vivian, I’ve never had that experience before so I’m not sure what could have gone wrong. Was the size of the baking dish different or maybe the proportions were altered? I hope that helps! It’s difficult to say without being there.
I have had that happen to me (and I have made it many times). I decided to completely cover the top of the cake mix with pats of butter (overlapped the pieces). That worked well.
Thanks for sharing that Jenny!
I had that problem too. I believe my pan was a little big. I added pats of butter to the dry spots while cooking and it worked.
Do you have to use butter? How about applesauce? Trying to cut calories. I already use lite cherries and sugar free cake mix
Hi Gail, I really haven’t tested that substitute so it is difficult to guess. If you try it, let me know how it goes 🙂 Sorry I can’t be more helpful!
I did substitute dollops of chunky applesauce, for the butter. Added pecans on top. FABULOUS! Great , Thank you!
My pleasure Gail! I’m glad the substitution worked out, thanks for sharing!
How many calories in a serving
Maddy, I don’t typically include calorie counts because of the time constraint that I have. I really need to hire some help to do that for me! When I need a quick answer though; I have used Caloriecount.com (their recipe analyzer is free).”
Best Pineapple Cake ever!!!…and so simple!
Thank you!
This cake is from back in the 1980’s !!!!
LOL! It is so good!! 🙂
try before that….we were eating this in the 70’s…it can be made with any pie filling and we added crushed pecans to the top….always with the pineapple and yellow cake mix and two sticks of real butter!!! It was a go to favorite at pot lucks… 🙂
Thank you for sharing!! 🙂
Has anyone tried this recipe with chunk pineapple? I have company coming and have the cherry filling and cake mix but no crushed pineapple…..
Ok…. I will be brave and go for it…. No time to get to the store…. Wish me luck….!
I think chunk pineapple would work. Let me know how you like it!
I just used that crushing tool on a 20 oz. can of pineapple pieces.
i want to make this the night before our gathering. is that recommended?
Hi Maria, I think it’s best eaten the same day it’s made. It presents best on the day it’s made.
OMG! So good. Used triple chocolate cake mix. Told hubby to hide it before I eat it all. So easy.
Oh wow I had never thought to use chocolate cake. Yum!!
Did you use the pineapple or 2 cans of cherries?
Hi Priscilla, I use both:
20 oz crushed pineapple, undrained (we used Dole)
21 oz cherry pie filling (we used Duncan Hines)
My cherries in the pie filling were very tart so with the pineapple it seemed just right to me ! I had several Duncan Hines cake mixes on hand none of which were yellow so I used a Pineapple Supreme … That mix is a little sweet but to me it was absolutely delicious !!! Must be enjoyed with ice cream !
Yes it’s definitely nice to have tart cherries to cut through the sweetness of the cake. Thank you for sharing your great review! 🙂
Making it right now, the smell is incredible! Can’t wait to taste it!
I hope you love it!! I can imagine how nice your kitchen smells right now 🙂
My Aunt made this for our Christmas gathering and oh my it was tasty!! I told her she had to send me the recipe! It reminded me of Pineapple upside down cake (a fav) I can’t wait to make this myself!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
I have made this alot. I add coconut before almonds. Really good, and all the flavors really go together. Love it!! Oh and I use butter cake mix. I like it better for some reason.
Tanya, thank you for the nice review and I really like the idea of adding coconut 😀
I have made this cake over 5 times, everyone loves it!!
That’s awesome!! I’m so happy you love it 🙂
Do you have to add pineapple to the cake or are there other substitutes I can use?
I haven’t tried it without pineapple and haven’t seen it made with anything else. The cake needs the liquid from the pineapple in order to bake properly. You could probably replace it with another canned fruit; I just haven’t tested anything else.
I read the comments before making it, and was a little nervous because Tanya said it was too sweet. I still made it, and was pleasantly surprised. Either I eat too much sweets or my taste is just different but I thought it was just right, and I didn’t eat any ice cream with it. The pineapple gave it a little tang which paired well with the sweetness of the cherries.
Olya, thank you for such a great review, I’m glad you liked it :).
I’m eating this as I write my review and I gotta say I’m kinda disappointed:/ this dessert is way too sweet and I usually like sweet but this is over powering.
Unfortunately there isn’t a way to cut back on the sugar unless you buy canned fruit that is reduced sugar. It doesn’t seem as sweet when served with vanilla ice cream. Have you tried it that way?
Yes I ate it with ice cream, that was the only way I was able to eat some of it. But on a happy note my husband liked it and I was surprised by that lol
This looks so easy and fun to do!
It really is. You could probably make it with your eyes closed; lol. 😉
The layers look amazing
Thank you Sowmya :).
Great recipe, also substitution the butter for vegan butter and using a cake mix without dairy products makes a great vegan dessert:)
Thank you Luby for sharing how to make it a vegan dessert :).
This sounds really easy and yummy. I love that you have a mix of Slavic and American recipes on here! I think I’m going to experiment with making homemade cake mix so I can have it on hand for recipes like this!
That’s a great idea! If you come up with something awesome, let me know! 🙂
Привіт 🙂 сьогодні готувала цей пиріг з морозивом. Вийшов смачний, дітям дуже сподобався, але я поставила 4 зірки, тому що для мене засолодкий. Але неймовірно легко і швидко було готувати, прекрасне рішення коли потрібно щось швидко. Дякую, Наташа, за прекрасні і смачні рецепти!
Hi Katya 🙂 I’m so glad to hear your children loved it! Thank you for sharing your review.
Wow!! Awesome!! Now this is my kinda cake! Already have everything needed in the pantry! ☺️☺️Thanks!
I love it when that happens! 🙂
Do you think you can make this with a packaged gluten free cake mix?
I HOPE so.
I haven’t tried it, but I don’t see why not. If you try it, please let me know how it goes! My sister is also gluten free and I’m sure she’d be very happy to know also 🙂
Hey Natasha,
Congratulations on your beautiful new addition to the family! I must say this looks sooo yummy! I really would love to eat this,but I can’t.However I can make this for my family.My second oldest daughter loves cherries.Their her favorite! As for me I’m on a diet away from processed foods and dairy as well as sugary foods. I have TMAU it’s a rare disorder. I would like to know if I can still cook some of your yummy dishes that maybe low in choline? Thanks a lot!!
I’m so sorry to hear that you have that disorder :(. I’m not super familiar with a low choline diet. It seems like meats and eggs are very high in choline. What foods are on the low choline list?
Any suggestions if you can’t use nuts.
Also, congratulatiobs on the birth of your beautiful baby girl.
Thank you so much Gloria! You can leave the nuts out and it will still taste great. I’ve seen it done with and without nuts. It’s just a topping so it won’t alter the recipe much to leave them out.
I love dump cakes! I recently tried a peach cobbler dump cake, it was delicious!
Ooo that sounds really really yummy! I hadn’t thought about using peaches!
This dumb cake sounds delicious! I love the addition of cherries!
Thanks Shelby! They make it so tasty and prettier too :). I love that cherry filling. I could eat it straight up and be very content :).
Wow, this looks incredibly easy and delicious!
It really is so so easy. The first time I got the instructions, I was like, really? That’s it? 😉