My pecan pie dump cake with condensed milk recipe is easy and delicious! Made with sweetened condensed milk, yellow cake mix, and toasted pecans, this old-fashioned dessert has no corn syrup or eggs. Instead, canned milk cooks down into a dulce de leche-like caramel that surrounds the nuts, creating a praline-like fudge that is full of flavor. Above the pecans is a soft, gooey layer of yellow cake that blends with the caramel, followed by a buttery, golden-brown crumble topping that’s crispy around the edges, the three layers giving this dessert a phenomenal combination of both flavors and textures. This 9×13 pecan cobbler is easy to make, so it’d be perfect for a beginner cook who needs to feed a crowd on a fall holiday like Thanksgiving, or even Christmas, Easter, Mother’s Day—or any day!
Pecan Pie Dump Cake with Condensed Milk
Ingredients
- 16 oz chopped pecans (454g)
- 2 14 oz cans sweetened condensed milk
- 1 12 oz can evaporated milk
- 1 13.25 oz box yellow (or white) cake mix (**a 15.25 oz box is totally fine)
- 2 sticks butter (I used unsalted) (113g)
- *Optional:
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F (180C).
- Optional: Toast the chopped pecans by spreading them out in a single layer on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 350F, uncovered, for 3 minutes, remove the pan and stir the nuts, then return the pan to the oven for an additional 3 minutes. Once the chopped pecans are toasted, set them aside to cool.
- Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with butter.
- Spread the toasted pecans evenly across the bottom of the baking dish.
- Pour the sweetened condensed milk evenly over the pecans, drizzling it into different areas of the dish so that it covers as much of the pecan layer as possible.
- Sprinkle the salt over the condensed milk, if using.
- Mix the vanilla extract into the evaporated milk, then pour it evenly over the pecan and condensed milk layer.
- Sprinkle the dry yellow cake mix evenly over the top. Do not mix it into the milk. If there are any large clumps, gently drag a fork across the surface to break them up and distribute the cake mix without disturbing the layers underneath.
- Cut the cold butter into thin slices and arrange them evenly over the cake mix, placing them about 1/8 inch apart.
- Bake uncovered at 350°F for about 50 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and caramel is bubbling around the edges and through the topping.
- Allow the dump cake to cool for at least 15 minutes—but preferably 30 to 45—before serving so the gooey caramel and pecan layer has time to settle.
Recipe Review
I really liked how this old-fashioned pecan pie dump cake with condensed milk turned out. The flavor was excellent, with the toasted pecans taking center stage and the caramel-like filling adding plenty of sweetness and richness. I particularly liked how the sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk cooked down into a dulce de leche-like caramel that coated the nuts. Since the recipe has no eggs or corn syrup, the filling was different from traditional pecan pie, reminding me more of Southern pecan pralines. It had a rich, fudgy consistency with plenty of pecan flavor, and the sweetness was just right. Overall, I thought the combination of caramel and toasted pecans worked really well.
Speaking of which, the texture was another highlight. One of my favorite things about this recipe was how it developed three distinct layers. The pecans were surrounded by a thick, gooey caramel that blended into a soft, fudgy yellow cake layer. Above that, the cake mix and butter baked into a golden-brown crumble topping that was crispy and buttery. I really liked the contrast between the soft, chewy filling and the crunchy topping. The caramel also bubbled up around the edges and through the topping as the dump cake baked, giving it a really nice appearance.
I also liked how easy this recipe was to put together. Unlike some pecan pie dump cake recipes that require mixing eggs, corn syrup, and other filling ingredients together, this version is a true dump cake—all you have to do is layer the pecans, canned milk, cake mix, and butter directly in the baking dish before putting it in the oven. There’s no separate filling to prepare, and you don’t even have to mix the cake batter. Just make sure to distribute the ingredients as evenly as possible so that every serving has a good balance of pecans, caramel, and cake topping.
One thing I particularly recommend is toasting the pecans before adding them to the baking dish. Although it’s optional, I think the extra step is worth it because it brings out their natural nuttiness and gives the finished dessert a richer flavor. I also recommend using chopped pecans rather than whole ones. Not only are they easier to distribute evenly across the bottom of the dish, but they also make the dump cake easier to slice and serve. You don’t have to worry about cutting through large whole pecans or ending up with some slices that have more nuts than others.
Another important detail is how you arrange the butter over the cake mix. I recommend keeping the butter cold and cutting it into thin slices rather than melting it and pouring it over the top. This makes it easier to distribute the butter evenly across the dry cake mix, helping the topping bake into a more consistent crumble. Try to arrange the slices close together without allowing them to touch, covering as much of the surface as possible. Also, let the dump cake cool for about 30–45 minutes before serving. The caramel filling will be very gooey when hot, so giving it time to settle makes it easier to serve.
Honestly, there isn’t much I’d change about this recipe. I think the combination of sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk works really well. However, if you want to experiment, a tablespoon of molasses could add a deeper, brown sugar-like flavor to the caramel. You could also increase the salt slightly for more of a salted caramel flavor or try using butter pecan or chocolate cake mix instead of yellow cake mix.
Overall, this pecan pie dump cake with condensed milk was a big success! It had a rich, praline-like pecan filling, a soft and gooey cake layer, and a crispy, buttery crumble topping. Best of all, it’s incredibly easy to make because you simply layer the ingredients in a baking dish without having to prepare a separate filling or mix any batter. It’s a great dessert for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any other occasion when you’re craving something sweet and nutty. If you love pecan pie but want something with a twist, this recipe is well worth trying!
Pecan Pie Dump Cake with Condensed Milk FAQs
Although it tastes very similar to traditional pecan pie, it’s not exactly the same—instead of suspending the pecans in a corn syrup and egg custard, this recipe uses cans of sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk to make a dulce de leche-like caramel that forms a fudge similar to pecan pralines.
Yes—because this pecan pie dump cake is made with no corn syrup or eggs, the nut layer isn’t as sweet or as “puffy” or “airy” like a baked custard. Instead, the nuts take center stage, accentuated by a milk caramel that brings out their nuttiness even more.
Make pecan pie dump cake with condensed milk by dumping 16 oz of chopped pecans—preferably toasted—into the bottom of a 9×13 casserole dish, then pouring over sweetened condensed and evaporated milk. Sprinkle over a box of yellow or white cake mix, smooth out the top, then lay thin slices of butter across the top before baking at 350F for 50 minutes.
Sweetened condensed milk provides the sweetness and creamy consistency needed to create the caramel-like filling. When baked with evaporated milk, it cooks down into a thick, dulce de leche-like sauce that coats the pecans and creates the soft, fudgy layer between the pecans and the crispy cake topping.
Yellow cake mix adds a sweet, buttery flavor that complements the caramel and pecans. But honestly, white cake mix would be totally fine to use in this recipe as well.
For a deeper flavor, drizzle about 1 tablespoon of molasses over the sweetened condensed milk before adding the evaporated milk—this will give the caramel layer hints of molasses reminiscent of brown sugar. You can also increase the salt to 1/4–1/2 teaspoon for more of a salted caramel flavor, or even use butter pecan or chocolate cake mix.
No, toasting the pecans is optional, but I recommend it because toasting brings out their natural nutty flavor and makes the pecan layer taste richer. While there are many ways to toast pecans, I used the oven: 6 minutes at 350F, stirring halfway.
No, you don’t have to use chopped pecans—but I highly recommend it. Whole nuts have an irregular shape, so they can make slicing the dump cake difficult; additionally, you might have some bites with a whole pecan and others with none, making the eating experience less enjoyable.
Yes—Although this recipe doesn’t contain eggs, it does contain sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk. So, be sure to refrigerate any leftovers within 2 hours of baking.
When covered and refrigerated, pecan pie dump cake will keep for about 3–4 days. The crumble topping may soften as it sits, but you can reheat individual portions in the oven to help crisp it up again.
Other Dump Cake Recipes
If you liked this dessert, be sure to take a look at other dump cakes on my site:
Peach Dump Cake with Cake Mix and Canned Peaches – A crispy, buttery crumble is the perfect topping for peach slices flavored with brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
Pumpkin Dump Cake with 3 Ingredients – Spice cake mix, pumpkin pie filling and butter gives this fall-themed dessert a ton of flavor.
Blackberry Dump Cake with Frozen Berries – Use frozen blackberries straight from the freezer without thawing to make a delicious 9×13 cobbler.
Key Lime Dump Cake – For something sweet, tangy, and totally tropical, this would be the perfect dessert for a summer barbecue or pool party.
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