This Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake is a super sweet, decadent dessert that's ready in just 45 minutes perfect for potlucks, a party dessert table, or even a special occasion! It's made with sweet cherry pie filling, chocolate cake mix, and semi-sweet chocolate chips for a simple, delicious treat!
If you love the delicious chocolate cherry combination, check out my Black Forest Cake, Black Forest Cheesecake, and these Chocolate Cherry Brownies!
Table of Contents
Dump cake is basically just a cobbler made super easy! I usually prefer to make things from scratch but every now and then a simple dump cake just tastes so darn good, especially with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
It's typically just three ingredients - dry cake mix, some kind of fruit filling, and butter - but you can add in a few extras like the additional chocolate chips and chopped pecans I added here for extra crunch and yummy flavor.
Cherry chocolate dump cake is one of our favorite versions. It gives Black Forest cake with a fraction of the effort. This Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake recipe (aka Black Forest dump cake) uses a can of cherry pie filling and a chocolate boxed cake mix and can be baked in the oven, slow cooker, or even over a camp fire with a dutch oven if you are camping and want something other than s'mores!
For more chocolate dessert recipes, try my German Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Cream Pie, Triple Chocolate Cheesecake, or this Devil's Food Cake with Chocolate Frosting!
Why We Love This Recipe
- It's a quick and easy recipe that's ready in just 45 minutes with minimal prep work!
- Use different berries or pie fillings to make various fruit versions of this chocolate cherry dessert.
- We'll be using canned cherry pie filling and a boxed cake mix to make this process super easy!
What You'll Need
Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Cherry Pie Filling - Find this in the baking aisle of grocery stores, or use my Homemade Cherry Pie Filling recipe to make your own with fresh cherries!
- Devil's Food Cake Mix - Rich and indulgent, this is the best kind of chocolate box cake mix for this recipe. Use your favorite brand.
- Semisweet Chocolate Chips - Because why not add more chocolate flavor to a chocolate dump cake?
- Pecans - Chopped pecans add a great nutty flavor that works well with cherries and chocolate, as well as a great crunchy texture throughout. It's optional for those of you who aren't fans of nuts in desserts, but we love it!
- Butter - Salted butter is best for this recipe to enhance all the flavors.
How to Make Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake
- Dump cherry filling into the pan. Evenly distribute the contents of two cans of cherry pie filling into the baking dish.
- Add dry cake mixture. Start sprinkling the cake mix mixture evenly over the cherry pie filling. Sprinkle with chocolate chips and chopped pecans, if using. Try to go for even coverage with the cake mix to completely cover the cherry filling underneath.
- Add butter and bake. Cover the cake mix with thinly sliced butter, ensuring it almost completely covers the surface.
- Bake and serve. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the top is baked through and the edges are bubbly. Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes, then serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Recipe FAQ's
A dump cake is a type of cake where instead of mixing the ingredients into a cake batter, you layer the ingredients into a baking dish and bake it without mixing them together. If you're looking for an easy cake recipe, then dump cakes are the way to go! You are pretty much just dumping filling, cake mix, and butter into a baking dish!
Yes, you can either melt the butter and drizzle it over the dry cake mix or use thinly sliced butter. Both methods work well.
Wait until the dessert has cooled to room temperature, then refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 3–4 days or freeze it for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and warm it in the microwave before serving.
Yes, and it's the perfect way to make this dessert ahead of time to have it on hand. After baking the dump cake, let it cool, then cover it tightly in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. Let it defrost in the refrigerator overnight, then reheat it in the oven for 10-20 minutes at 350°F until heated through.
You can make any dump cake in a slow cooker by layering the ingredients just like you would in a regular baking dish. Cover it with the lid of the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 4 hours or on HIGH for 2 hours.
Yes, if you are camping and have a dutch oven, you can light your briquettes, then layer the cake ingredients as mentioned. Set the dutch oven over approximately 15 briquettes and place 30 briquettes on top. After about 20 minutes your dump cake should be done!
Tips for Success
- After sprinkling the dry cake mix, DO NOT stir the mixture. Simply follow the "dump and bake" approach.
- This dump cake is best enjoyed when served warm.
- Use a 9x13-inch baking dish for the cake to have the right consistency. A larger dish will make the mixture too thin, but a smaller dish will make it too thick, and it may not cook through.
How do I serve Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake?
Try topping your dump cake with my Homemade Whipped Cream or this Chocolate Whipped Cream, or this Homemade Hot Fudge Sauce for a dessert upgrade. But don't forget the ice cream! Try my Cherry Vanilla Ice Cream, or my Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream for extra sweetness. Get creative and choose your favorite!
Substitutions and Variations
- 3-ingredient chocolate cherry dump cake. The Betty Crocker version of this recipe only requires three ingredients: the cherry pie filling, a box of chocolate cake mix, and butter. I've just added in the chocolate chips and pecans for extra flavor and texture! Some shredded sweetened coconut or chopped Oreo cookies would also be a good addition!
- Use other fillings. Try this recipe with Peach filling and yellow cake mix for a Peach Dump Cake, my Blueberry Pie Filling for a Blueberry Dump Cake, or even my Raspberry Filling for a raspberry version. You can even combine pie fillings if you want!
- Use a different cake mix. You can use different kinds of chocolate cake mixes or use a yellow cake mix, a red velvet cake mix, or a cherry chip cake mix to change the flavor of this dessert. Any cake mix works!
- Use a can of soda in place of the butter. Sounds crazy, but it really does work. You can use any flavor you like, but cherry coke, cherry dr. pepper, root beer, or sprite are our top picks. You won't really taste the flavor much anyway once the dump cake is baked. Just pour it over the cherry pie filling and cake mix and bake without stirring. I don't think this as well as butter, but it's a great solution if you are doing a dutch oven version of this cake while camping and it works at home too.
More Cherry Dessert Recipes
- Cherry Pie Bars
- The Best Cherry Pineapple Jello Salad
- Vintage Cherry Cake
- Cherry Crisp
- Cherry Crisp Cake
- Coca-Cola Cherry Jello Salad
- Best Homemade Cherry Pie
Did you make this recipe?
Let me know what you thought with a comment and rating below. You can also take a picture and tag me on Instagram @houseofnasheats or share it on the Pinterest pin so I can see.
Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 (21-ounce) cans cherry pie filling
- 1 (15.25-ounce) box Devil's Food cake mix
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
- ½ cup chopped pecans (optional)
- 1 cup salted butter
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with non-stick spray.
- Dump the contents of two cans of cherry pie filling into the bottom of the pan and spread it into an even layer.
- Sprinkle the cake mix, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and chopped pecans evenly over the cherry pie filling.
- Cover the cake mix with thinly sliced butter, ensuring it almost completely covers the surface.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the top is baked through and the edges are bubbly.
- Allow the cake to cool for 10 minutes, then serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- Cherry pie filling: I actually use my homemade cherry pie filling most of the time because I prefer the flavor to the store bought kind. But since dump cake is about simplification, I wrote the recipe with canned cherry pie filling because sometimes you just need a shortcut dessert!
- Storage: Wait until the dessert has cooled to room temperature, then refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 3–4 days or freeze it for up to 3 months. To reheat, thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and warm it in the microwave before serving.
- Freeze: Yes, and it's the perfect way to make this dessert ahead of time to have it on hand. After baking the dump cake, let it cool, then cover it tightly in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. Let it defrost in the refrigerator overnight, then reheat it in the oven for 10-20 minutes at 350°F until heated through.
- Slow Cooker: You can make any dump cake in a slow cooker by layering the ingredients just like you would in a regular baking dish. Cover it with the lid of the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 4 hours or on HIGH for 2 hours.
- Dutch Oven: Get 45 briquettes going, then layer the cake ingredients as mentioned in the recipe above inside your dutch oven. Set the dutch oven over approximately 15 briquettes and place the remaining 30 briquettes on top. After about 20 minutes your dump cake should be done.
Disappointed... Made this for a family celebration and it was mediocre at best. WAY too much butter and not much flavor.