Guys, back at it today with more to bake. We have the time, right? Today we’re talking about mug cakes, and I know it might feel a little silly, but if you can throw together a warm, chocolatey, cake that takes literally one minute to cook, why aren’t you? Well today we are.
I have gone through a few phases of obsession with mug cakes over the years. I think I still probs have some old dry mixes to make a mug cake packed away in the back of my pantry. But if I’m being honest, they’ve always been a bit of a disappointment, not nearly as good as a normal cake. So today I’m trying to change that with some easy, but a little more homemade, and super delicious.
How to Make Chocolate Mug Cake
Alright. This is a no milk, butter, or eggs cake btw, so it’s all pantry ingredients. We’re starting off by measuring and mixing a few dry ingredients into our mug. A note on the mug- you need to do this in at least a standard 10-12 oz mug so there’s enough space for the cake to cook. Anyways, start by stirring together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. If you feel like throwing in a few chocolate chips, I support that decision and you should add them now.
Then we’re measuring out the wet ingredients and adding them in. You don’t have to mix these before adding them, but just wait to stir everything until all the wet items are added to your mug. We’re using water, oil, vanilla extract (or bourbon if you don’t have any, no joke) and white vinegar.
Mix everything together with a fork until it’s all smooth and cake-battery. Then, you just microwave it until the top looks dry, which should take about 1 minute, depending on your microwave. In mine, it takes about 1 minute and 10 seconds.
I like to top mine with some ice cream so you get that whole warm-cake-cold-melting-ice-cream thing happening, but that’s optional. I mean, highly recommended though. I topped this one with a little bit of coffee chocolate chip ice cream.
Tips & Tricks for Chocolate Mug Cake
This is a super simple Chocolate Mug Cake recipe, but I’ve got a few tips to help along the way!
- Is this cake vegan? It is a vegan recipe, but you’d never know it! That’s part of why it’s so easy to turn this cake into a mug cake- you don’t need to fuss with eggs here.
- Can I make the Chocolate Mug Cake in the oven instead? You can, but I would recommend baking them in ramekin dishes instead of a mug so it’s not so deep. It should take 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees in an oven.
- Can I add mix-ins to the cake batter? Yes, absolutely! When you add in the flour add in your mix ins along with it to prevent them from falling to the bottom of the cake. Chocolate chips, walnuts, pecans, peanut butter chips- all great choices!
- Can I frost my mug cake? You can, but this is the perfect cake to enjoy warm, so I like to use ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream instead!
- I’m at about 5,000 ft above sea level, and I find that my recipes work for most people between 3,000 and 7,000 ft above sea level without further adjustment.
Anyways, eat the cake warm, enjoy life, and make dessert in five minutes. It’s gonna be okay.
Chocolate Mug Cake
Ingredients
- 4 tbs. all-purpose flour
- 2 tbs. sugar
- 2 tsp. dark cocoa powder
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- 1/8 tsp. baking soda
- 3 tbs. water
- 2 tsp. neutral oil
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp. white vinegar
Instructions
-
In a microwave safe, 10-12 oz (or larger) mug, stir together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda with a fork. Add in the water, oil, vanilla extract, and white vinegar, and stir together with the fork until smooth.
-
Microwave for about 1 minute, depending on your microwave, or until the top of the cake no longer looks wet. For me this takes 1 minute and 10 seconds, and I just give it a quick check at 1 minute to make sure. Top with a scoop of ice cream and enjoy!
Hello and welcome! My name is Nicole, and Dough-eyed is a food blog for people who want to bake for their family and friends in high-altitude areas. Think of me as a friendly voice there with you in the kitchen, here to give you confidence when you’re baking, and to help you with the struggles of baking at high-altitude. Come back every week for new recipes, tips, and advice on high-altitude baking!
Best mug cake I've had…evenly cooked, fluffy, tasty. I'm thinking because you got around the typical mug cake 'egg dilemma'? 🙂 Took about 55 seconds for mine. Do you have a vanilla version? Thanks for the recipe!
So glad you liked it!! Yes, this is developed from a vegan recipe actually!!
Incredible! Best mug cake recipe i’ve ever made. Does not have a typical mug cane texture, but tastes like an expensive bakery cake. I will always follow this recipe now!
Yay!! I love this one too- glad you like it!!
This is the fourth of four mug cakes I’ve attempted today, as my husband’s bday is Thursday and I wanted to make him something small and tasty.
Of the four recipes I tried, this one is hands-down the winner. Not only did he not make a sad face upon putting that initial bite into his mouth, but he also ate almost the entire thing (ok, fine, I helped a little).
Given we live in Colorado, making baked goods of any sort is a quick path to tears for me. I am beyond ecstatic that this turned out so well, and am looking forward to trying her other recipes.
Hi there! I'm so happy to hear you loved this recipe!! And happy that your husband enjoyed it as well! Hope you enjoy the other recipes too, I'm happy to help!
???? I loved this cake! Super tasty and it came out perfect the first time! ????
Thank you so much for the recipe, Nicole. We just recently moved to above 7,000ft. elevation; I needed a chocolate fix, but knew my old favorite recipe wouldn’t work at this altitude. Now I’m trying to figure out if I’ll be able to adapt your recipe for lower altitudes if we ever move again! ❤️
I'm so glad you loved this one!! It's a scaled version of one of my fav chocolate cake recipes. So glad you found my blog!!
This was great I ran out of vanilla extract and used maple syrup instead it was sublime! Will use again!