Cake Mix Crockpot Pumpkin Dump Cake

This Fall, make a Crockpot pumpkin dump cake with spice cake mix! Easy with canned or homemade pumpkin puree and evaporated milk topped with a pecan topping. Just one of our favorite dessert Crockpot recipes you can “bake” after dinner.

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Dump Cake

Now we have made several different desserts with this popular Fall flavor over the years. Most of the time we will bake the old fashioned way. Our Pumpkin Crazy Cake is always a hit, and dairy free for those who need it. This version works best cooked low and slow in this handy dandy countertop appliance!

Cake mix hacks are seriously the best. You can tweak and add to the dry mix in that box and make it taste almost like you bought it at a bakery. Adding an extra egg, sweeter milks, butter instead of oil, there are so many things you can do to make it taste so much better. This is just one of those….

Let’s talk a little bit about slow cooking shall we?? First off I have a few different varieties and I love them all. Each one has an occasion to be used like….

1. This is my favorite 6 quart programmable one with a locking lid so it’s great for bringing to a potluck too.
2. I prefer not to use liners, but rather just spray olive oil inside before adding my food for easier cleanups.

Let me give you a peek of my pretty thang I bought recently. It goes with my kitchen so I can just leave it out on the countertop all the time. 😉

The first time we made something similar to this it was our Crockpot apple dump cake recipe. It came out more like a cobbler consistency with canned pie filling. I think this one is more cake like.

Crockpot Dump Cake Ingredients

• 1 can pumpkin 15 oz.
• 3 eggs
• Sugar
• Brown sugar, packed
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• Cinnamon divided
• 1 can evaporated milk 12 oz.
• 1 box cake mix and butter
  • yellow cake mix was used, spice is great for pumpkin desserts or white works too
• 1/2 c chopped pecans is great to add texture and a bit more Fall

With our other traditional spice cake mix pumpkin dump cake recipe we added brown sugar to the topping of the pumpkin mixture. About 1/2 cup works to incorporate with the crushed nuts of your choosing.

Now you can just use a box of mix, melted butter and some pie filling. Believe it or not that totally works. It is denser than this one, more like a flourless chocolate cake texture. Dense but delicious for sure! We have done this super easy version with our Crockpot Lava Cake with Cake Mix. You’ll love that too.

It was time to attempt different flavors this time though. Canned pumpkin is the best alternative to the fruit filling without the chunks of course.

How to Bake a Dump Cake in a Crockpot

• In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon until well combined.
• Add the evaporated milk and stir well.
• Pour the mixture into a large crockpot (4-6 quarts) that has been lightly coated with non-stick cooking spray.
• In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the cake mix with the remaining 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Stir in the melted butter (the mixture will be crumbly).
• Sprinkle this cake mixture all over the top of the pumpkin mix inside the Crockpot.
• Cover and set to low and cook for 4 hours.
• Sprinkle the nuts over the top about halfway through the cooking time if desired. Serve the cobbler warm with ice cream or whipped cream on top

I have added a handful of mini semi sweet chocolate chips into the batter with our Crockpot Pumpkin Bread. I will say a very important step to NOT skip is spraying the inside with some sort of non stick spray. Yes the pot is porcelain and coated but it definitely needs more to slide out or it will stick quite a bit.

Ok so once you make this one you will want to try others in this countertop appliance. For a lighter version you should give our Crockpot Cobbler with Frozen Fruit a whirl too!

How to bake a cake in a pan in a slow cooker

1. Prepare your cake batter according to the recipe you’re using.
2. Grease the cake tin with butter or cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper to prevent the cake from sticking.
3. Preheat the slow cooker on the lowest setting for about 10-15 minutes
4. Pour the prepared cake batter into the greased and lined cake tin.
5. Gently place the cake tin inside the preheated or unheated slow cooker. If your recipe recommends placing a cloth or paper towel under the cake tin to catch moisture, you can do so.
6. Cover the slow cooker with its lid. The cooking time will depend on your specific recipe and the slow cooker’s settings. Most slow cooker cake recipes take around 4 hours on the low setting. You may need to adjust the cooking time based on your slow cooker’s performance and the size of the cake.
7. Use a toothpick or cake tester to check for doneness. Insert it into the center of the cake—if it comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs, the cake is done. If the toothpick comes out with wet batter, continue cooking for a bit longer.
8. Once the cake is done, carefully remove the cake tin from the slow cooker using oven mitts or tongs. Let the cake cool in the tin for a while before removing it from the tin to cool completely on a wire rack.

Once the cake is completely cool, you can frost and decorate it as desired.
Remember that slow cooker baking may result in a denser and moister cake compared to traditional oven baking.