The Delectable 3-Ingredient Dessert That Starts With Store-Bought Chocolate Cake Mix

Fruit and boxed cake mix are a match made in culinary heaven; there's no arguing about it. We've discussed why you should add applesauce to your next cake mix (it ups the sweetness and moisture in your finished cake), and there's a long tradition of incorporating canned fruit into boxed cakes. Today, we're drooling over a dump cake that calls to mind the chocolate-cherry combination of Black Forest cake, only with way less work involved.

All you need are a trio of easily-accessible ingredients: chocolate cake mix, some canned cherries in syrup, and a stick of butter. There's no need to add anything else to the powdered cake mix, as the butter and the syrup from the cherries will provide all the liquid and fat you need. This scrumptiously oozy, chocolatey, fruity treat that goes swimmingly with ice cream or fresh whipped cream. Spoon it into bowls and absolutely delight your loved ones on a busy weeknight when a fresh-baked dessert normally isn't in the cards! Similar to this three-ingredient cobbler made with store-bought cake mix.

This dessert is absolutely delectable and indulgent as-is, but you could easily take it over the top with any one of a few easy additions. Remember when we talked about mixing marshmallows into boxed cake mix? For a sticky, extra-sweet treat, how about throwing a handful of mini marshmallows in with the dump cake ingredients? For that matter, some chocolate syrup or jarred hot fudge topping squeezed over the top of this dessert would elevate it to chocoholic nirvana!

A traditional black forest cake, which requires a long time in the kitchen and a ton of ingredients, gets a lot of its richness from a German cherry liqueur called kirsch. How about splashing a bit into your cherries before baking the dump cake as usual? For a kick of freshness that also derives its inspiration from the European cake, you can also serve fresh halved cherries alongside your bowls.