Last fall I started seeing a recipe popping up online for something called “Pumpkin Dump Cake.â€Â I like the traditional pineapple-cherry-and-yellow cake mix version just fine. But pumpkin just makes everything better! Especially this time of year!
(Lest you be mislead by the name, “Dump Cake†refers more to the method than to the final product. It is not really “cake-y.†It could be re-named “Upside Down Pumpkin Pie.†My husband refers to it as “Pumpkin Cobbler.†And, I think that might be what I call it from now on too!)
The original recipe (which I have tweaked just a bit) said to serve it cold. And, since I like pumpkin pie cold, the first time I made this, I did just that. But, I’ve since discovered that it might be even better warm…
Ingredients:
1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree (or 2 cups of homemade pumpkin puree)
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
1 Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
½ tsp. salt
Topping:
1 box Spice Cake Mix (I have found several variations of this recipe that call for Yellow Cake mix, but I prefer the Spice Cake Mix…It just makes it more… “fall-ish.†Yes, that is a word.)
Approximately ½ – 1 cup Butter, melted (I started with ½ cup, and slowly added more until it the topping was sufficiently covered – but not swimming – in butter…I think I stopped around ¾ cup.)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°
In a large bowl, combine pumpkin puree, sugar, eggs, and evaporated milk. Stir in Pumpkin Pie Spice and salt.
Pour into greased 9X13 baking dish.
Sprinkle (or “dumpâ€) cake mix on top. (You could also add ½ cup of chopped pecans here…I didn’t, but you could.)
Drizzle melted butter over top.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the topping is lightly browned.
Serve warm (or cold)…with whipped cream.
 
Thanks for posting. I will definitely be making this. I have a couple of questions. When you say to combine pumpkin, sugar, etc, do you mean with a whisk, or spoon, or beaters? Also, when you’re describing the topping, you don’t mean to mix it with butter before sprinkling it over top and then adding more butter, right?
Melody,
I used a handheld mixer (beaters) to combine everything…a whisk might work, but the mixer is way easier!
For the topping, no, don’t combine the cake mix and the butter. Just sprinkle the (dry) cake mix on top of the pumpkin mixture, and then drizzle the butter all over the top of that. But, I started with 1/2 cup of butter, and it just didn’t seem like quite enough, so I just added more a little at a time…probably in 2-tablespoon increments. You don’t want the topping to be completely wet, or swimming in butter…it should still have some spots of dry mix showing through.
Does that make sense??
Veronica, you really should post this to Pinterest!
Done! 🙂
This cake is very easy and tasty. Butter should be unsalted, I could taste the saltiness in the topping. And I think I will mix the cake mix and melted butter before sprinkling on top. I had areas that seemed like plain cake mix and they didn’t brown well.
Helen,
I didn’t even think to mention that! I just use whatever butter I have on hand…which is typically unsalted. 🙂 I’ve also noticed that the amount of butter needed varies depending on the size of the cake mix used. That is why I didn’t give an exact measurement for the the amount of butter…I just kind of “eyeball” it, until it is covered. But mixing the 2 together first should solve the problem! 🙂
~Veronica