This Blueberry Dump Cake is a real crowd-pleaser.
Get ready to wow your guests with a scrumptious dessert that requires only 3 simple ingredients!
This is a great recipe when you want to make an easy dessert and are pressed for time.
Storytime!
Growing up German, I'd never heard of a dump cake. It just wasn't a thing. But a few years ago, I visited my friend's house, and she served a delicious blueberry dessert.
Each bite was moist, tender, and loaded with blueberry flavor. When I asked her about the dessert, she laughed and said. It's a dump cake!
Huh? A what? I grew up with recipes like a Cherry Crumble, a yeasty Butterkuchen, or Bee Sting Cake. But a dump cake? What's that?
The name comes from the concept of this cake. Dump and Bake!
Quite literally, you take the ingredients and 'dump them' into the baking dish. Turn on the oven, and about 45 minutes later, you'll have the most delicious summer dessert.
The immigrant in me thought, "Americans. They are brilliant!" And that's why I became an American myself. 😉
Some of you might think this isn't a "real cake," and you might be right. But don't judge till you try!
Ever since, I've added a few more 'dump cake recipes' to my repertoire. And let me tell you, I've never had a single guest/family member complain.
If you've never made a dump cake. Do try this one. It's so simple, so good.
Ingredients
Please check the recipe card below for a detailed, printable ingredient list.
BLUEBERRIES - I highly recommend using fresh blueberries for this recipe. But you can use frozen ones if fresh ones aren't available. There's no need to defrost frozen blueberries. But you will have to adjust the baking time.
YELLOW CAKE MIX - There are so many great cakes mixes out there. Use whichever one you have on hand. And if you live near Trader Joe's, try their Trader Joe's Vanilla Cake & Baking Mix.
RELATED RECIPE
PEACH DUMP CAKE - A combination of sweet, juicy peaches, buttery vanilla, and cinnamon cake topped with crunchy walnuts.
BUTTER - As always, use unsalted butter for your cooking and baking. Salted butter is great for making sandwiches but shouldn't be used for baking. Make sure your butter is cold. You'll cut the butter into thin slices, which is much easier to do when it is cold.
Variations and Additions
PINEAPPLES - A cup of fresh pineapple adds crispiness and a tropical flavor to the dump cake.
LEMON - Blueberry and lemon are a delicious flavor combination. Substitute the Yellow Cake mix with Lemon Cake Mix, and for an extra boost of lemony flavor, toss the blueberries in the juice and zest one lemon.
COCONUT - Shredded coconut adds another layer of taste and texture. Try sprinkling about ½ cup of sweetened shredded pineapples on top of the layer of thinly sliced butter. Yummy.
VANILLA ICE CREAM - adding a scoop of vanilla ice cream just before serving the blueberry dump cake adds another layer of deliciousness.
WHIPPED CREAM or COOL WHIP - Same as with ice cream, it adds extra yumminess.
How To Make A Blueberry Dump Cake
Please check the printable recipe card below for more detailed measurements and instructions.
- BLUEBERRIES - Add blueberries to a lightly greased 9x13 glass baking dish.
- CAKE MIX - Sprinkle the yellow cake mix evenly over the fresh blueberries.
- BUTTER - Layer sliced butter on top of the cake mix.
- BAKE - at 375º Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes. When the Blueberry Dump Cake looks golden brown, use a wooden toothpick to check for doneness. Serve warm.
More Delicious Dump Cakes
Recipe Success Tips
Make sure to use cold butter for this recipe. Slice the butter very thinly. You'll want to layer the butter all over the cake. While the Blueberry Dump Cake is in the oven, the butter will melt and "activate" the cake mix.
If you find that the butter doesn't cover the entire baking dish, you can add a few additional (thinly) sliced pieces of butter.
You might have noticed that I am not adding sugar to this recipe. I don't because there's already plenty of sweetness from the cake mix.
If you love extra sweet desserts, feel free to sprinkle a ¼ cup of granulated sugar over the blueberries. Again, I don't think it's necessary, but it sure won't hurt.
SERVING TIP: I like to serve this Dump Cake in small mason jars. First of all, it's great for portioning. And second of all, it's great for easy transport to parties or picnics.
ICE CREAM: Serving a scoop of ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream is optional but highly recommended.
STORAGE: Once cooled, you can store your dump cake covered with saran wrap or aluminum foil in the fridge for up to 7 days.
FROZEN BLUEBERRIES: Yes, you can use frozen blueberries. Place the frozen blueberries in a large colander and rinse with cold water. Drain and transfer onto a paper towel and pat dry.
BLUEBERRY PIE FILLING. If you don't have fresh or frozen blueberries, you can also substitute the fresh blueberries with 2 cans of blueberry pie filling.
Some Of Our Favorite Dessert Recipes
German Strawberry Torte - one of the most delicious fruit cakes.
Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies - cookies you can make all year long
Blueberry Coffee Cake - one of my best breakfast cake recipes
German Butterkuchen - this rich, ooey-gooey dessert is to die for
Easy Bee Sting Cake - the easiest recipe to make a killer Bee Sting Cake
Blueberry Dump Cake
Ingredients
- 4 cups blueberries fresh
- 1 box yellow cake mix
- ½ cup butter unsalted, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Add blueberries to a lightly greased 9x13 glass baking dish.
- Sprinkle the yellow cake mix evenly over the fresh blueberries.
- Layer sliced butter on top of the cake mix.
- Bake at 375º Fahrenheit for 40-45 minutes. When the Blueberry Dump Cake looks golden brown use a wooden toothpick to check for doneness. Serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
Hi There, I’m Maike!
A German girl turned American sharing hundreds of easy, homemade comfort food recipes perfect for everyday cooking.
Joan
OK - 1 where have you been all my life and 2 - holy molly this is amazing!!!!
I made this today and I only had a white cake mix on hand but it was delicious!!! and I mean - wow! I had just picked blueberries from the neighbors patch and this was to die for!! I’m going to try all different varieties - thanks !!
Liz
This is very easy and time saving. Delicious 😋 for family and friends that just drop in. Really fun to take for pot luck.
Erin
I just made this tonight with 4cups of frozen blueberries that I let slightly defrost in the 13x9. I added a dash or 2 of cinnamon and a tsp of vanilla extract. My husband is soooo happy and it only took me 5 mins to prep! Thank you!
Maike
I'm so glad you guys liked it. Thank you for sharing. 😁
Cheryl
I made it for desert tonight, and it was DELICIOUS ❤️. My husband and our guest raved and raved!
Mary
I’ve made this so many times. I always keep Wymans frozen blueberries in stock & yellow cake mix. I added one ingredient though. Walnuts on top. I use less butter & less cake mix but it’s still the bomb!
Kierston Young
I made this tonight using Annie’s organic yellow cake mix. I used fresh blueberries and fresh cherries ( took the seeds out) I only had salted butter so I just used that and it came out DELICIOUS! My 10yr old said it was so good and she is a very picky eater. Five stars! Will add this as my go to when I have a large family gathering. Thank you!
Tammy
I just made this, for the first time. all I can say is YUMMO, it’s so delicious. Thank you 😋
Laurie
This is a super easy and awesome dessert! It easily feeds a crowd and is good as leftovers. I’ve made this recipe several times, always a hit!
Lynn
Don’t know what I did wrong but it didn’t become cake. Too powdery
Maike
First of call, I'm sorry to hear that your dump cake didn't turn out as expected. Dump cakes are generally simple to make, but sometimes things can go wrong.
The most likely issue is that there the butter wasn't spread evenly enough. So, you may have cut the butter a bit too thick and it didn't moisten the cake mix properly. Now, the good new is there's a simple method to avoid this.
You can melt the butter and mix it with the cake mix and then sprinkle the cake mix crumbles over the blueberries. I'm showing this technique in another dump cake recipe (Cherry Dump Cake).
I hope that helps. 🙂
Lynn
Thanks for the advice. I will definitely try that next time. Even though it didn’t work out it looked like it would be good 😊
Yoshi
Can you use frozen blueberries for this recipe?
Maike
Yes, you can!