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Close-up of freshly baked pecan dump cake with a golden, gooey texture, crunchy pecans, and a rich caramelized layer in a glass baking dish.
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5 from 3 votes

Pecan Dump Cake Recipe

Easy Pecan Dump Cake with buttery cake mix, gooey pecan filling, and caramel flavor — a simple Southern dessert everyone will love!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 12
Calories: 822kcal
Author: Shauna

Ingredients

  • 2 ¾ cups dark brown sugar packed and divided into 2 cups and ¾ cup
  • 1 cup dark corn syrup I used dark Karo syrup
  • 1 ¼ cup salted butter melted and cooled, divided into ½ cup and ¾ cup
  • 3 large eggs room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 4 cups pecan halves divided into 3 cups and 1 cup
  • 15.25 ounces white cake mix I used Duncan Hines Classic White Cake mix
  • 1 cup hot water
  • Caramel Topping optional

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously spray a 9×13 (or 13×9) baking dish with nonstick cooking spray.
  • Add 2 cups of the 2 ¾ cups dark brown sugarset remaining brown sugar aside), 1 cup dark corn syrup, ½ cup of the 1 ¼ cup salted butter (set the remaining butter aside), 3 large eggs, and 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract to a medium-sized mixing bowl (2-3 quarts). Whisk to combine.
    2 ¾ cups dark brown sugar, 1 cup dark corn syrup, 1 ¼ cup salted butter, 3 large eggs, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
    Glass mixing bowl filled with brown sugar, eggs, corn syrup, butter, and vanilla on a white marble countertop, with pecans and a whisk nearby, showing the first step in making pecan dump cake.
  • Stir in the 3 cups of the 4 cups pecan halves (set the remaining pecan halves aside), Evenly spread the pecan mixture into the sprayed baking dish.
    4 cups pecan halves
    Glass baking dish filled with unbaked pecan dump cake mixture, showing a brown sugar, butter, and pecan filling spread evenly before baking.
  • Sprinkle the 15.25 ounces white cake mix over the pecan filling.
    15.25 ounces white cake mix
    Sprinkling dry yellow cake mix evenly over a pecan filling mixture in a glass baking dish to make pecan dump cake.
  • Drizzle the remaining ¾ cup of melted butter over the dry cake mix.
    Sprinkling dry yellow cake mix evenly over a pecan filling mixture in a glass baking dish to make pecan dump cake.
  • Sprinkle the remaining ¾ cup dark brown sugar over the butter layer.
    Top-down view of an unbaked pecan dump cake in a glass dish with visible swirls of melted butter, cake mix, and pecan halves before baking.
  • Pour1 cup hot water over the top of the dry cake mix and butter. Do not mix. You can carefully tilt the cake pan to distribute the water over the cake mix.
    1 cup hot water
  • Sprinkle the remaining 1 cup pecan halves over the cake and water layer.
  • Bake for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Because all ovens bake differently, check on the cake at the 30-minute mark. Also, it will be a bit jiggly in the center, but it will firm up as it cools. It will not be solid like a cake center. Allow the cake to cool completely before serving. Drizzle Caramel Topping on the top before serving.
    Caramel Topping
    A freshly baked pecan dump cake in a glass dish, golden brown with bubbling caramelized edges and toasted pecans on top, ready to serve.

Notes

  • Be very careful when placing the cake in the oven due to the hot water on top of the cake.
  • At 40 minutes, this dump cake still had a slight jiggle in the middle. I went ahead and took it out, and it firmed up as it cooled.

Nutrition

Calories: 822kcal | Carbohydrates: 106g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 19g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 92mg | Sodium: 477mg | Potassium: 259mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 88g | Vitamin A: 669IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 161mg | Iron: 2mg