Christmas Dump Cake Recipe

One of the oldest-known recipes for dump cakes appeared in 1912 and instructed the baker to "dump" butter, sugar, eggs, flour, raisins, cream of tartar, baking soda, and water into a dish and bake them.

During World War II, a version of dump cake—known as wacky cake—was made with vinegar and water in place of eggs, which were highly rationed and mostly unavailable to the home cook.

17 Cozy Winter Desserts

Today's dump cake makes use of boxed cake mixes and some type of fruit or pie filling. What remains the same throughout the years is how they can be prepared with minimum effort for maximum impact.

The addition of apple pie filling and cranberry sauce—flavors so evocative of the holidays—gives this easy dessert its name: Christmas dump cake. But it could just as well be called Thanksgiving dump cake and works for both holidays.

It's easy to prepare because it starts with a yellow cake mix, and all the ingredients are mixed right in the baking pan. That's right—no bowls to wash.

This recipe lends itself to many different variations. Start here and let your creativity take wing.

A Collection of Easy Dump Cakes