Peach Dump Cake
a 5-ingredient dessert I love to make
5 ingredients, stupid easy and never fails to impress, this Peach Dump Cake has quickly become my go-to dessert for the summer. Sweet, juicy peaches are baked beneath a buttery layer of golden cake until the fruit turns jammy and the edges caramelize. It takes 5 minutes of prep and one hour of unfussy baking that can be done directly on your Traeger while you grill dinner for the fam. Of course, it can be baked in the oven, but that gentle kiss of wood-fired flavour you get from the Traeger is what really sets this dessert apart. It’s incredible on its own but would be borderline criminal not to serve it with a scoop of your favourite vanilla ice cream.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
5 Ingredients: Peaches, coconut sugar, lemon juice, yellow cake mix and butter. Super simple, quick and delicious.
Incredibly Easy: No fancy stand mixer or equipment. No batter to mix. No complicated techniques. Very little cleanup. Just layer everything together and let the Traeger or oven do the work.
The Perfect Texture: As the butter melts into the cake mix, it creates a beautifully crisp, buttery topping while the peaches soften into a sweet, bubbling filling. The real trick is to just make sure the oven temperature is at 375F the entire way through. If the temp drops, the cake layer will not crisp.
Perfect for Summer: This is a really easy and delicious way to use up take advantage of fresh, ripe peaches while they’re in season. Especially if you’re like me and buy a couple trays at a time.
Versatile: Substitute apricots, nectarines, cherries or even frozen mixed berries.
Wow Factor: I’ve made this dump cake for a bunch of get togethers and everyone always oohs and aahs when I open the Traeger grill and there’s a beautiful, bubbling cake on the top rack. I don’t think many people realize just how versatile a Traeger is so it’s always fun to see their reaction.
What’s a Dump Cake?
Instead of preparing a traditional cake batter, the ingredients are layered or “dumped” into a baking dish before going into the oven. As the fruit releases its juices and the butter melts into the dry cake mix, the topping transforms into something that falls somewhere between a buttery crisp, a cobbler and a crumb cake. It’s unbelievably easy yet surprisingly impressive.
Ingredients You Need
Peaches: Fresh, ripe peaches are the star of the show here. Look for fruit that’s fragrant and ripe but still a little bit firm to the touch. As they bake, the peaches release their juices and become wonderfully tender and jammy. Fully ripe peaches won’t hold their shape and turn to mush. Still delicious though!
Lemon Juice: A squeeze of fresh lemon brightens the flavour of the peaches and balances their natural sweetness while helping prevent them from browning during preparation.
Coconut Sugar: I prefer to use coconut sugar here. It adds subtle caramel-like sweetness that pairs beautifully with peaches. Brown sugar or regular granulated sugar work just as well if that’s what you have on hand. Personally, I don’t like this dessert overly sweet, especially when serving with ice cream, so I use only half a cup of sugar.
Yellow Cake Mix: This is what creates the signature buttery, crisp topping. A classic yellow cake mix offers rich vanilla flavour, but a gluten-free version works equally well. Each cake mix will bake slightly differently and yield a different crust. I like this one from Bob’s Red Mill. The ingredients are a bit better than others I found at the grocery store.
Cold Unsalted Butter: Thin slices of cold butter slowly melt over the cake mix as it bakes, hydrating the topping and creating those irresistible golden, crispy edges. Take your time and spread the butter in an even layer. You want to maximize the coverage so you’re not left with dry pockets of cake mix.
For Best Results!
Use ripe but firm peaches: They should be fragrant and just slightly soft so they release plenty of juice as they bake but still hold their shape.
Slice the butter evenly: Thin, evenly spaced slices help ensure the cake mix browns uniformly without leaving dry patches.
Don’t stir the layers: I like to toss the fruit, lemon juice and sugar together so they’re evenly coated but keep the cake mix and butter in layers.
Let it cool before serving: The hardest part of this recipe is waiting for the cake to cool before diving in. Give it around an hour, if you can, so the juices and cake mix have time to thicken and settle.
Serve with Ice Cream: A scoop of vanilla ice cream slowly melting into the warm peach cake is hard to beat.
Substitution Ideas
No Fresh Peaches? Frozen peaches work just as well. Let them thaw first so they cook evenly.
Other Stone Fruits: Apricots, nectarines or cherries can be substituted here
Mixed Berries: Dump cake is incredible with mixed berries. In the colder months, frozen mixed berries are ideal.
Brown Sugar: Can replace the coconut sugar for a richer molasses flavour.
Gluten-Free Option: Substitute your favourite gluten-free yellow cake mix.
Add Cinnamon: If your heart desires, you can add a dash of cinnamon to the peaches along with the lemon juice and sugar.
Recipe FAQs
Can I make this ahead of time?
Yes. Bake it earlier in the day and gently reheat before serving if you plan to serve it with ice cream. Otherwise, serve it at room temperature.
Can I use canned peaches?
Yes, but I would drain them first before using. They most likely will not hold their texture though. Canned peaches are usually very tender. I would recommend frozen peaches instead.
Do I need to peel the peaches?
No. The skins soften as they bake and will help the fruit hold its shape.
The Recipe…
Peach Dump Cake
⏱ Time & Servings
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1:05 hours
Servings: 6
Ingredients
2 pounds peaches, cut into wedges
Juice of 1 lemon
½ cup coconut sugar, substitute regular granulated sugar or brown sugar
1 cup yellow cake mix, substitute gluten-free yellow cake mix
½ cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into thin slices
Vanilla ice cream, optional, for serving
Instructions
Preheat your Traeger Grill to 375F or oven to 350F.
Add the peaches, lemon juice and coconut sugar to a 10-inch pie dish and gently toss everything to coat. Arrange the peaches in a single layer, evenly cover with the cake mix and spread the slices of cold butter overtop. Transfer the dish to the top rack of the Traeger Grill or middle rack of the oven and bake until the top is golden-brown and the filling is bubbling, around 1 hour on the Traeger or 45 minutes in the oven.
Remove the cake from the grill or oven and let it cool at least 45 minutes before serving with vanilla ice cream.
So do I make 1 cup of the cake mix into batter or do I leave it dry?