Lemon pineapple dump cake is one of the easiest, but most delicious cake recipes you will ever make! It’s full of lemon flavor from the curd and has a tangy zing from the pineapple chunks. This easy dessert is ready in less than one hour and is great to serve when feeding crowds.

You almost can’t think of summertime without thinking of tropical vibes and lemons. So obviously with the weather heating up, I was inspired to make a cake recipe that you can literally dump and go.
While some like to use a lemon cake mix, I prefer to go with my homemade lemon curd for the citrus flavor and stick with a yellow cake mix. The lemon flavor isn’t overpowering and you still have that bright yellow color to make it festive.
Can’t get enough pineapple dessert ideas? Try our pineapple coconut cake – you can even use the pineapple curd filling we use in that cake and sub it in for the lemon curd in this dump cake recipe.
This lemon pineapple dump cake is perfect for your next backyard BBQ or served with grilled lemon chicken and grilled baked potatoes. But, the only thing you really *need* to serve with this is a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Trust me…it takes it to a whole new level! You can also add a dollop of Cool Whip or homemade whipped cream if you prefer.

Jump to:
🍍 Ingredients:

- crushed pineapple (juice included) – this makes up the fruit base
- pineapple tidbits or diced pineapple chunks – this adds some texture to the fruit filling portion of the dump cake
- lemon curd – you can also purchase jarred lemon curd from almost any supermarket, but man, homemade is so good.
- yellow cake mix – substitute white cake mix or even lemon cake mix, you can use a gluten-free cake mix to make this dessert gluten-free.
- salted butter
Substitutions and Variations:
- For more of a pineapple upside down cake vibe, add pineapple rings to the top with cherries in the middle before baking.
- If you would rather use store-bought lemon curd or lemon pie filling instead of making creamy lemon curd that should work as well. I find the lemon pie filling to have a bit of an off-putting flavor, but that could just be me. You could also make homemade lemon pie filling like you would for a lemon meringue pie. Yum!
- To make this a blueberry dump cake, use fresh blueberries in place of the pineapple. Layer the blueberry pie filling on, then follow the remaining instructions.
How to Make the Best Lemon Pineapple Dump Cake

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the crushed pineapple and tidbits so they cover the bottom of your 9×13 baking pan.

Step 2: Spread the lemon curd over the pineapple fruit base.

Step 3: Sprinkle the cake mix over the lemon filling layer so it’s even.

Step 4: Cover the top of the cake mix layer with thin slices of butter.

Step 5: Bake for about 40 minutes until the filling is bubbling and the topping has browned. Let the dump cake cool for 15 minutes before serving.
Recipe Tips for Lemon Pineapple Dump Cake
- Letting the cake rest ensures that it will not be super runny when you scoop it out.
- You can serve this lemon pineapple dump cake recipe warm or cold.
- If you can’t find pineapple tidbits, cut canned chunks into smaller pieces or used fresh pineapple instead. You can also you the prepackaged fruit cups, just be sure to drain the extra juice. Two fruit cups equal 1 cup of tidbits.
- Cover the cake mix with as many butter slices as possible. Check the cake at the 30-minute mark to see if there are dry spots. If so, add a few more pieces to cover.
- The butter pats need to be sliced VERY thin. If you end up with some dry patches on top of your baked dessert, that is pretty typical and nothing to worry about. You can check on your dump cake about 10 minutes before it’s done baking and add some additional slices of butter or drizzle over some melted butter so that every inch is cooked up crisp, but this isn’t necessary.

Recipe FAQs
Typically, there is no mixing involved. You really are just dumping your ingredients into a dish and baking it.
Keep the dump cake covered in the fridge for 5-7 days. To freeze, wrap the pan in plastic wrap, then in foil. Freeze for up to 1 month. Allow the cake to thaw overnight the in refrigerator. Reheat before serving.
If you can’t find pineapple tidbits, cut canned chunks into smaller pieces or used fresh pineapple instead. You can also you the prepackaged fruit cups, just be sure to drain the extra juice. Two fruit cups equal 1 cup of tidbits.
You can easily make this with any flavor of fruit! Use canned pie filling for the truly easiest version of a dump cake! Strawberry, cherry, blueberry, and blackberry are all delicious options.
MORE RECIPES FOR LEMON LOVERS
If you try this Lemon Pineapple Dump Cake or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.

Lemon Pineapple Dump Cake
Ingredients
- 20 oz. can crushed pineapple juiced included
- 1 cup pineapple tidbits or diced pineapple chunks no juices
- 12 oz. jar lemon curd
- 1 package of yellow cake mix
- ½ cup salted butter cold
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Spread the crushed pineapple and pineapple tidbits into the bottom of a 9”x13” baking dish.
- Spoon lemon curd over the pineapple mixture. Spread gently to cover the pineapple.
- Sprinkle the cake mix evenly over the first two layers.
- Slice very thin pats of butter and spread over the entire top of the dry cake mix. Cover as much of the cake mix as possible. Hint: cold butter is much easier to slice and to maintain square pats for covering the top of the dump cake.
- Bake for 40 minutes or until the topping is browned and the filling is bubbling around the edges.
- Allow dump cake to rest for 15 minutes before scooping into it to serve.
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Notes
- Letting the cake rest ensures that it will not be super runny when you scoop it out.
- You can serve this pineapple dump cake recipe warm or cold.
- If you can’t find pineapple tidbits, cut canned chunks into smaller pieces or used fresh pineapple instead. You can also you the prepackaged fruit cups, just be sure to drain the extra juice. Two fruit cups equal 1 cup of tidbits.
- Cover the cake mix with as many butter slices as possible. Check the cake at the 30-minute mark to see if there are dry spots. If so, add a few more pieces to cover.
- The butter pats need to be sliced VERY thin.
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
Mara Baker says
Sounds like a nice recipe, but way too much butter.
Susan Candelas says
Anything with pineapple is “thumbs up” for me! Thanks for making it easy. I take these cakes to work for lunch dessert. It’s a hit!