Cooking can be an Adventure: Dumping can be Yummy!

This is sort of an interesting blog because it didn't initially happen Out N About in New York, but rather in Atlanta. I was supposed to go apple picking this weekend in the orchards upstate and blog about that, but it rained, and I had to postpone until next weekend (let me know if you are interested in coming with me apple picking). What came out of the initial encounter has followed me to every city I have lived in. Yesterday I found myself using it to impress Jose. It is the most AMAZING yet simple recipe that I have ever come across. It is so AMAZING that I have decided to include it in a cook book that Quinta and I are in the process of writing (hint hint Quinta, we need to finish the book). Today, I will share with you the story of how I came to be in possession of this recipe and give it to you to try at home. You will not believe how easy and how delicious it is. Its so delicious, that my last two boyfriends who I have made it for have both insisted they wouldn't like the flavor combination, then would proceeded to eat the whole pan till they were sick. It has always been a hit at potlucks, and with the holiday parties coming up, you can be the hit of your parties if you use it. I will not take credit for the recipe, and there are several versions of it floating around. I will share with you the recipe as I learned it that one afternoon in Atlanta.

My friend Tisza is one of the most beautiful and fit girls I have ever met. The thing I love about Tisza is that this girl can eat. She knows food, and she knows whats good. If a meal is good, Tisza will sometimes take out her camera, ask the chef to come out, and have his or her picture taken to go into Tisza's food hall of fame. Whenever we go to dinner, if someone is not sure what to order, I always suggest to get what Tisza is having- It never fails to satisfy. In fact, whenever I go out with Tisza, it usually is to catch up and have dinner, and I ALWAYS let her choose the restaurant. Amazingly, this girl is a size 6! I met her while working on a children's theatre tour out of Atlanta: The Emperor's New Clothes.

One weekend in Atlanta, we were both invited to a potluck party at Dewayne and Derek's house. When I got to the party, I was immediately greeted by Tisza with a pan of some sort of cobbler that didn't look all that great, but smelled wonderful. She said to me "William, you have to try this it is so delicious". She handed me a fork and I put a scoop out of the pan into my mouth. It was HEAVEN. It had this amazing rich flavor, full of butter and other flavors I couldn't identify. It had cherries in it, but it wasn't just cherry, and I couldn't put my finger on it. I am NOT a fan of cherry pie, yet this was too good to put down. We both sat on the couch and refused to share the rest of the pan with anyone. Toward the end of the party, while fighting with others about sharing this "food from the gods" giving away only small scoops here and there, we finally asked the crowd who was responsible for this dessert.

I don't remember his name, but a young college boy stood up and said he made it. "what is it?" we asked. "It's DUMP CAKE" he replied. DUMP CAKE. How could something so good have a name that sounded like something you do in the bathroom. Tisza and I immediately assumed he was lying. He was just a kid who knew the dish was a hit, and he wanted to take credit.

"How do you make it?" we coyly asked. Simple he said, you take the ingredients and just dump it into the pan, bake it for about 50-55 minutes and its done. No mixing. That's why it's called DUMP cake, you just DUMP it into the pan and bake". "YOU ARE LYING!" I said to him. "Dewayne, get me a piece of paper".

I wrote the 4-- yes 4 ingredients and the simple directions down. Even Tisza didn't beleive this kid. This was way to simple for something that tasted so complicated. I immediately left the Party explaining to Tisza I was going to the grocery store to purchase the stuff to make this so called DUMP CAKE and go home and try this recipe out. "Call me when you are done and tell me if what the kid said is true" Tisza said to me.

As the cake was baking, the smell in my house was celestial. It smelled like the cake at the party. 55 minutes later, I pulled the DUMP CAKE out of the oven, golden brown on top just like the one at the party. I let it cool about 20 minutes as I didn't want to burn my mouth. As it cooled, the crust got harder and crumblier. I dug into the pan. THE KID WASN'T LYING!! I couldn't believe it. I quickly called Tisza and told her that the kid was telling the truth.

For the next 6 months, I think I baked a DUMP CAKE every other week. Any function that I needed to bring a dish for, I brought DUMP CAKE. I would be met with puzzled disgusted looks because of its name, but would leave the party as the culinary star. The same happened for Tisza. Every where we went, we did not hesitate to share the recipe because it was so simple, no one believed us anyway. Those who did try it, went on to become culinary stars amongst their own circles of friends. The Recipe and Directions are here for you now. Try it, and let me know your results.

The four ingredients are
1 Box of Yellow Cake Mix
1 Can of CRUSHED pineapple
1 can of pitted dark sweet cherries in juice (not the pie filling)
and 1 stick of Butter.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

DUMP the can of Crushed Pineapple (juice and all) into a 9 X 13 inch pan. You do not have to grease the pan. (I know the pan in the picture is not 9 X 13- I was making 2 square pans. 9 X 13 works best)

DUMP the can of Pitted Cherries into the pan with the Pineapple. I like to break up the cherries with a fork (I also mix the pineapple and cherries a little, but it is not necessary).







DUMP the DRY cake mix over the fruit. Try to cover the fruit evenly with all of the cake mix.

DUMP the stick of butter (cut into little pats) onto the DRY cake mix, so that when it goes into the oven, it evenly melts over the top of the cake.

Place the cake into the oven and bake at 350 degrees for about 50 to 55 minutes, checking it periodically after the first 30 minutes (watch that it doesn't burn-not all ovens are the same) until the top of the cake is golden brown in patches (it wont be uniformly brown). Cool for about 20 minutes to let the crust harden. It will not look like the most appetizing cake, but I guarantee you, it tastes great.

What happens is the juices from the fruit bubble up into the cake mix, and the butter bubbles down into the cake mix, and turns the cake mix into the most delicious crust you have ever tasted.

I like to serve my DUMP CAKE with a scoop of vanilla Ice Cream.



Go ahead, I invite you all to try it. My roommates love it, my boyfriends have loved it, my co-workers have loved it, and YOU will love it.