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This pumpkin dump cake is a delicious fall favorite that combines the rich flavors of pumpkin, spices, and a cake mix. It’s a mouthwatering treat that’s incredibly easy to make!
Pumpkin is a fall staple and is loved for its sweet and savory flavoring. If you love pumpkin then you’ve got to try this Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting, these delicious Pumpkin Cheesecake Snickerdoodles or this yummy Pumpkin Tres Leches.
What is Pumpkin Dump Cake?
Though the name “dump cake” isn’t the most appealing, the dessert is extremely decadent with a bold flavor. The name just describes the process of dumping the ingredients into a bowl and mixing before then dumping it into a baking dish.
I absolutely love sweet pumpkin recipes, especially easy ones like pumpkin monkey bread and pumpkin French toast casserole. This easy pumpkin dump cake makes a delicious dessert alternative to pumpkin pie.
Ingredients in Pumpkin Dump Cake
Packed with fall flavors and spices, this cake is not only delicious but so easy to make! Check out the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all of the exact ingredient measurements.
- Pumpkin Purée: Smooth and velvety, it’s the main ingredient to making this cake fall flavored. If you want to go the extra mile, you can make your own pumpkin puree from scratch with this recipe.
- Evaporated Milk: Creamy and rich, it adds a delicious texture to the cake.
- Granulated Sugar: This adds some sweetness to contrast the pumpkin.
- Light Brown Sugar: This brings a deep and delicious flavor.
- Large Eggs: The eggs bind all of the ingredients together to create the batter.
- Spices: Ground ginger, ground cloves, ground nutmeg, and ground cinnamon together make the perfect fall blend.
- Yellow Cake Mix: A super easy base for the cake, making it a breeze to prepare.
- Chopped Pecans: The nuts add a delightful crunch to the cake. Leave these out if you prefer to have no nuts.
- Salted Butter: Thin slices create a golden, buttery topping.
How to Make Pumpkin Dump Cake
With a slightly fluffy top layer made of yellow cake mix covered with melted butter and chopped pecans and a smooth bottom layer remnant of pumpkin pie, you won’t be able to stop eating this cake. Best of all it’s fit for a crowd (if you feel like sharing).
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9×13 baking dish and set it aside.
- Combine: In a large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, evaporated milk, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and spices, until smooth. Pour into the prepared pan
- Add Cake Mix on Top: Sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the pumpkin mixture and top with the pecans.
- Add Sliced Butter: Slice the butter into very thin pieces, about 20, and lay them across the top of the cake mix.
- Bake: Bake for 50-55 minutes until the top is set and the edges are browned.
- Cool: Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Variations and Substitutions
You can easily substitute a few things in this Pumpkin Dump Cake recipe without sacrificing its delicious flavor! Here are a few ideas that will make this cake taste just as delicious.
- Use a different cake mix! This recipe calls for a yellow cake mix, but you can use white, pumpkin, spice cake, or even chocolate! Whatever flavor you love paired with pumpkin is sure to be delicious.
- Can I Use Pumpkin Pie Mix instead of Pumpkin Puree? You may substitute the pumpkin puree for a 15-ounce can of pumpkin pie mix, but you may want to omit the added spices in the recipe. The pumpkin pie mix already has all the spices added, so it may end up overly spiced if you add them in on top of it. I prefer to use plain pumpkin puree and adjust the spices according to my taste.
- Add in Toffee: Add 1/3-1/2 cups of toffee pieces with the pecans! This adds a lovely caramel flavor.
- Grate the Butter: If you like the cake mix topping to be completely covered with butter, freeze the butter and then grate it on a cheese grater. This makes finer pieces of butter than can be scattered all across the top of the cake mix, giving it more even coverage as the butter melts. Work quickly, though! The grated butter will melt once you touch it with warm hands.
Storing Leftovers
Because this pumpkin dump cake is made with pumpkin, it is slightly more gooey than a fruit dump cake and stays together best when stored in the refrigerator.
- In the Refrigerator: Store leftover cake in a baking dish fitted with a top or covered in plastic wrap and kept in the refrigerator. To serve it warm just heat it in the oven set to 250 degrees Fahrenheit for 10 minutes or the microwave until warmed through.
- Can I Freeze Pumpkin Dump Cake: Dump cakes do not freeze well because they’re so gooey. Once the cake is defrosted, it becomes a gooey, watery mess. Because of this, I don’t recommend freezing this pumpkin dump cake.
More Pumpkin Recipes to Try
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Pumpkin Dump Cake
Ingredients
- 1 15- ounce can of pumpkin purée
- 1 12- ounce can of evaporated milk
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- 8 tablespoons salted butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a 9×13 baking dish and set it aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, evaporated milk, granulated sugar, brown sugar, eggs, and spices, until smooth. Pour into the prepared pan
- Sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the pumpkin mixture and top with the pecans.
- Slice the butter into very thin pieces, about 20, and lay them across the top of the cake mix.
- Bake for 50-55 minutes until the top is set and the edges are browned.
- Let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I followed your recipe except for the oven temp because I have read that convection ovens must be set at 325°f if the recipe says 350°. At about 50 min the edges looked brown and the pecans burned. I took it out of the oven, but the cake mix remained the same: a light color powder on top of it. After waiting for a while I added about 1 cup of milk on top and cooked it in the microwave for 10 min. I wonder what I did wrong so it doesn’t happen again. Also, it is a little too sweet for my taste. Can I use only the 1/2 cup brown sugar and no white sugar at all? Thanks a lot!
Tried this recipe yesterday. It is amazing. Put a little whipped cream on top. My husband loved it too. Will make it again over the holidays instead of pumpkin pie.