This Healthier Apple Cobbler Dump Cake is the perfect way to use up those delicious bushels you got from apple picking! It’s simple, tasty and made with ingredients that you can feel good about. Plus, it’s gluten free!
This post contains affiliate links. Please read our Privacy Policy here.
Picture this: You’ve just returned from a trip to the apple orchard. You’re tired from all that picking, but you still want to make a quick & easy apple dessert. Well, let me introduce you to the ultimate FALL DESSERT HACK. Now, this dump cake is just like an apple cobbler but with less ingredients and less work. Everyone will absolutely love it! The apples create an ooey-gooey filling that makes the best accompaniment to chill, autumn day, paired perfectly with the crunch of walnuts. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream (“a la mode”) and voila! you’ve got the apple, cinnamon fall dessert of your dreams.
When I first started my healthier dump cake series, I was already looking forward to making variations during my favorite baking season – fall! And this Apple Cobbler Dump Cake was the first on my agenda. Without a doubt, this is a recipe you’ll have on repeat this season. However, variety is the spice of life, as they say. So, definitely check out my other dump cake recipes: Strawberry Shortcake, Blueberry Lemon, and Fresh Peach.
PrintHealthier Apple Walnut Crunch Dump Cake
This Healthier Apple Cobbler Dump Cake is the ultimate fall dessert hack. It’s simple, tasty and made with ingredients that you can feel good about. Plus, it’s gluten-free!
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 50
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 12–16 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 4–5 medium apples, peeled and cut into cubes or slices
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 box gluten-free yellow cake mix
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold (regular or vegan) butter, cut into thin slices
- vanilla ice cream for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Toss apples with sugar and cinnamon, then add to the bottom of a 9×13 cake pan
- Sprinkle cake mix evenly on top of the apples (do not mix!), then a layer of the walnuts
- Place butter slices evenly across top, making sure to reach the edges
- Bake for 40-50 minutes,* until edges are bubbling and top is golden brown
- Enjoy warm or allow to cool before serving topped with ice cream
Notes
* Baking time can vary based on the cake mix you use, so keep an eye on it. You want the top to be golden brown
Keywords: easy dump cake recipe, apple dump cake recipe, dump cake fresh fruit, fresh apple dump cake, healthier dump cake recipe, simple apple dessert recipe, easy vegan dump cake recipes, easy gluten free dump cake recipe, easy gluten free apple dessert recipe, how to make a dump cake, healthy apple dump cake, apple pie dump cake, apple cobbler dump cake, easy fall apple recipes, easy fall recipes, fall recipe dessert hack, easy thanksgiving dessert recipes, easy thanksgiving recipe hacks
The Difference of Using Fresh Apples
So, most dump cakes use canned fruit filling, but let me tell you – using fresh fruit makes ALL the difference! Plus, it’s really quite simple to make your own filling. The secret is adding a bit of sugar and water to the fruit, which helps it develop a natural syrup. It’s that natural syrup that gives this cake that punch of sweet, fresh flavor.
What apples should I use? I like using Granny Smith apples because of their firmness, they hold up well in baking recipes without getting too soft.
For peeling, coring and slicing the apples I highly recommend investing in this apple peeler/corer tool – it’s such a time-saver!
Can I use canned apple pie filling instead of fresh? Yes, but in that case omit the water and sugar and only add in the filling.
Ingredients and Substitutions for Apple Cobbler Dump Cake
An essential part of every dump cake is the cake mix. In this case, I used Betty Crocker gluten-free yellow cake mix, but can use any you like. If want your cake to be grain-free, then I recommend Simple Mills vanilla cake mix. Feeling really fancy? You can make your own vanilla cake batter and use that here, too!
Nut substitutions: If you don’t want to use walnuts, then pecans would go great with this, or a mixture of both.
To make vegan: If you want to make this vegan, then opt for vegan butter and a dairy-free whipped topping.
To serve: Now, I recommend serving this cake with warm, with a heaping scoop of vanilla ice cream and a dollop of whipped cream… maybe even pumpkin whipped cream (;
As always, if you make this Healthier Apple Cobbler Dump Cake or any of my other recipes I’d love to know how they turned out. Please leave a review, and be sure to tag me on Instagram @Hungry.Blonde! xoxo GG
You might also like:
The Easy Fall Recipes You Need This Season
Apple Cinnamon Walnut Loaf
Apple Cinnamon Ricotta Toast
Easy and delicious!
★★★★★