1. Preheat Oven and Prepare Pan:

• Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
• Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan.

2. Prepare the Cake Mix Base/Crumble:

• In a large bowl, combine the dry yellow (or lemon) cake mix and the melted butter.
• Mix with a fork or spoon until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is evenly distributed throughout the cake mix.

3. Layer the Crust Base:

• Spread about half of this crumbly cake mix mixture evenly over the bottom of the prepared 9×13 inch baking dish.
• Gently press it down lightly with your fingers or the back of a spoon to create a base layer.

4. Add the Lemon Filling:

• Spoon the lemon pie filling (use 1.5 or 2 cans, depending on how much lemon filling you like) evenly over the cake mix base layer. Spread it out gently.

5. Make the Cream Cheese Layer:

• In a separate medium bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese and granulated sugar until smooth (using an electric mixer makes this easiest).
• Beat in the egg, vanilla extract, and lemon zest until fully combined and smooth.

6. Layer the Cream Cheese Mixture:

• Spoon dollops of the cream cheese mixture evenly over the lemon pie filling layer.
• Gently spread the cream cheese mixture to cover the lemon filling as much as possible (it doesn’t have to be perfectly even).

7. Add Topping Crumble:

• Sprinkle the remaining half of the cake mix/butter crumble mixture evenly over the cream cheese layer. It’s okay if some cream cheese peeks through – this creates the rustic crumble effect.

8. Bake:

• Place the baking pan in the preheated oven.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes. The cake is done when the topping is golden brown and slightly crispy, and the cream cheese layer appears set and is no longer overly jiggly in the center.

9. Cool and Serve:

• Allow the Lemon Cream Cheese Dump Cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 45 minutes before slicing and serving. It needs time to set properly as it cools.
• Optionally, dust the cooled cake with powdered sugar just before serving.
• Serve warm or at room temperature. It’s delicious on its own or paired with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.