Mug Cake Mix Recipe From Scratch

This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through links on this site, I may earn a commission.
Read my Privacy Policy.

Mug cake mix is always something I love to keep on hand for those moments when you just want a little something sweet, but you don’t want a whole dang cake sitting in your fridge starring at you every time you open the fridge door.

Why Are Mug Cakes So Popular?

Portion control is the first benefit of these types of little cakes. But beyond that, they are just super fast and easy to make.

They are most often made in 2 minutes in a microwave. You can certainly bake them, and I give you the instructions for that below.

But if you want a quick treat that’s easy to throw together, few desserts can top a mug cake for speed and convenience.

Are Mug Cakes Any Good?

Absolutely! They are just like regular cake if you make them right. This particular recipe is for chocolate mug cake mix. I hope to make a vanilla version soon and will post it here when I do.

Are Your Mug Cakes Chewy?

The short answer is, they shouldn’t be. They should have the texture of regular cake. So if you end up with chewy mug cake, here are a couple of things you can adjust with future mug cakes.

• Try a little less oil, or make sure you are measuring the oil exactly. Too much oil can create a chewy or rubbery texture in a mug cake.
• Don’t overcook a mug cake. This can also lead to textures you might not care for. It’s just as important to not overcook as it is to not undercook.

Gluten Free Mug Cake

This chocolate mug cake mix recipe is naturally gluten free. That being said, make sure you use gluten free ingredients.

This recipe uses oat flour which can easily be found as gluten free. I believe Bob’s Red Mill has the most widely available version.

You can also grind your own gluten free oats into flour with a grinder. Just be sure you get it super fine like the store-bought stuff.

Vegan Mug Cake

If you want to make a vegan version of this, try using a flax egg instead of regular egg.

What is a flax egg?

It’s 1 tbsp. ground flaxseed (or flax meal) mixed with 3 tbsp. water. You let that sit for about 15 minutes or until it’s “goopy”, and then you use that in place of egg. This entire mixture will replace one egg.

For the milk, I recommend either unsweetened almond milk or oat milk. They will work best here, but any non–dairy milk will work. The only one to be careful with is full-fat coconut milk. It may be too thick for this, though I have not tried it myself.

Cake In A Mug Ingredients

Oat Flour – This is a basic oat flour that many stores carry. If you can’t find it locally, Amazon typically carries it. I have found it at Whole foods, Publix and sometimes even Food Lion. (1 cup)

Sweetener – I personally used Xylitol for this recipe because it’s what works best for my blood sugar. But you can easily replace that with equal amounts of Sucanat, coconut sugar, monk fruit or maple sugar. Pretty much any unprocessed sugar will work here as long as it’s a dry sugar. (1 ½ cups)

Cocoa Powder – Use an unsweetened cocoa powder. Whatever brand or variety you prefer is fine, so long as it’s unsweetened. (½ cup)

Baking Powder – Make sure your baking powder is fresh and active. Older baking powder loses its potency over time. (1 tbsp.)

Salt – I used Himalayan pink salt. But most any salt you have on hand will work here. (½ tsp.)

The Mug

Make sure your mug cake is microwave and oven safe. If you don’t have one, find a small, single serving bowl that is. You don’t HAVE to make this in a mug. A mug is just a convenient way to make these small cakes.

Need Storage Jars?

SUBSCRIBE:
Remember to subscribe to my free, Gracious Pantry Newsletter to receive all my latest recipes in your inbox! Click here to sign up!

More Mug Cake Recipes:

• Chocolate Mug Cake – Single serving
• Blueberry Lemon Mug Cake – Single serving

Chocolate Mug Cake Recipe