There comes a time in every girl’s life when she needs a chocolate mug cake.
Perhaps it’s one of those days where you just want to curl up on the couch all day and watch bad Lifetime movies about stolen babies (ladies, you know what I’m talking about).
Or maybe you just ran four miles for the first time in your entire life and unless you counteract it immediately with a dessert, the universe will be thrown out of balance and implode, and the entire 2012 apocalypse will be all your fault.
Or maybe it’s your birthday and everyone forgot so there was no cake. Okay, sorry, that last one was kind of depressing. Anyway, my point is, sometimes you just need a bite of cake to make things right. Just a bite.
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Love peanut butter and chocolate? Check out my No-Bake Pretzel Peanut Butter Bars or Peanut Butter Fluff Cups.
What Makes This Mug Cake The Best?
I was never a fan of mug cakes because all of the versions I’ve tried have turned out rubbery and just not at all delightful. Until I found this recipe, which for me is the one. This is why I like it:
- It’s not overly sweet. (If you want it sweeter, add more sugar or some chocolate chips.)
- It’s small. Other recipes I’ve tried have just been too big and they make me feel like I just over indulged. This one is just a few, rich, delightful bites.
- There is no egg. I find that eggs make mug cakes rubbery or spongey and they also mean that you can’t scale the recipe in size. If you want a small cake, you can’t just split an egg in half, right?
- There are a lot of variations. Add chocolate chips, use nutella, jam, or caramel sauce in place of the peanut butter, vegan-ize it by using soy milk in place of cow’s milk… lots of options.
Don’t be tempted to leave out the peanut butter (or jam, or whatever you drop in the center) because it helps keep the cake moist and rich. It simply wouldn’t be the same without it.
Make it a Vegan (Dairy-Free Mug Cake)
With one simple swap, this Chocolate Mug Cake can be made vegan. Simply swap the milk with your favorite non-dairy milk and you’re good to go! Life is good.
So, shout out to Jessie at Made From Scratch for experimenting with mug cakes until finding this perfect mix. You just saved the universe from imploding!
“The One” Chocolate Mug Cake
Servings 1Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour ($0.02)
- 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder ($0.03)
- 2 tsp sugar ($0.01)
- 1/4 tsp baking powder ($0.02)
- a pinch salt ($0.01)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 2 Tbsp milk ($0.04)
- 1 Tbsp peanut butter ($0.13)
Instructions
- In your mug, stir together the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, and a pinch of salt). Make sure there are no clumps.
- Stir in the vegetable oil and milk until the mixture is smooth. Drop a tablespoon of peanut butter into the center and push it down into the batter.
- Microwave on high for one minute and then enjoy!
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Notes
Nutrition
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Love microwave mug cakes? Check out my Funfetti Mug Cake, or Cinnamon Nut Swirl Mug Cake!
How to Make a Chocolate Mug Cake – Step By Step Photos
Add 2 Tbsp flour, 1 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder, 2 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp baking powder, and a pinch of salt to a microwave-safe mug. Stir them together very well.
Add 2 Tbsp milk and 1 Tbsp oil, then stir until it forms a batter.
Drop a dollop of peanut butter (about 1 Tbsp) down into the center of the batter.
Microwave on high for one minute and you’ve got yourself a cake with a melty, peanut butter center! The cake turns out extra light and fluffy and the peanut butter kind of sinks in as the cake rises up around it. So magical!
Every bite has a light cake and a gooey, rich bit of melty peanut butter. Absolutely perfect.
And then five or six delightful bites later, you’re done and you don’t feel like you do when you “accidentally” eat a whole pint of ice cream. …not that that ever happens. 👀
Loved it, the texture was great and it really satisfied my sweet tooth I added an extra 1 1/2 tsp of sugar because it was a little bitter but overall it was something quick, that I would have again to satisfy my sweet tooth
Delicious! I made the healthy version:
– Raw Honey (about 2 tsp) instead of sugar
– Vega chocolate protein powder instead of four
– Vanilla soy milk instead of milk (I added more at the end because the batter was more of a dough)
– No chocolate chips and less peanut butter
It was still really delicious (if a bit uglier than the one above :)
Ok not what I expected. Didnt taste good at all. Something is off. Tried adding a bit of vanilla and didn’t help. Prefer other recipes better. Sorry.
This was so good! Next time I will decrease the cooking time a few seconds, but just what I needed to satisfy my sweet tooth without making an entire cake, eating too much of it, and feeling guilty later.
Delicious. First attempt at a mug cake, tried it with peanut butter and one with strawberry jam- we all sampled- we loved them!
Ashamed to say I still had doubts even after reading all the positive reviews!
The doubts were for nothing, the cake was delicious!
Chocolatey, moist and good size!
Very moist, simple recipe, easy and fast. I would increase the sugar. It was not sweet enough for my taste. Overall I will keep this one on my list.
I used pumpkin puree (from a can) in place of the peanut butter and it was delicious. Chocolate and pumpkin so good together! This recipe is so adaptable.
Wow! Truly the best cake mug recipe out there. I subtracted all of the dry ingredients and used 4 TBSPs of cake mix (any flavor). My favorite flavor was funfetti mix with a dollop of funfetti frosting in the middle and then garnished the top with rainbow sprinkles. Pure heaven if you have a sweet tooth like me
I agree with other commenters that is is hands down the best mug cake out there.
I make it pretty often and it’s very versatile. I always use only 1/2 Tbs oil, 1 Tbs coconut sugar & non-dairy milk but then I vary the filling: PB, chocolate chunks, jam etc… works perfectly all the time.
This was the best mug cake recipe I have come across! All the other recipes make a giant, rubbery cake, and this one was moist and just the right amount. I made a few small changes and it was amazing.
-I used baking soda instead of baking powder because I didn’t read the directions.
-I used half the recommended amount of oil.
-I stirred in the peanut butter to the batter.
-I put a small dollop of blackberry jam in the middle.
-I sprinkled a teaspoon of water over the top of the batter before microwaving. (this is the key to moist cake)
It came out like half baked brownie batter! Yumm!
This was delicious! Thank you! I had white whole wheat flour and that worked well. I picked your recipe to try because of the smaller size and because it didn’t require chocolate chips. If I had peanut butter AND chocolate chips in the house, I would just eat a few bites of them and not bother making myself a tiny cake lol. Next time I might take a few seconds off the cooking time (I did the full minute), and sprinkle some sea salt on top. Thanks again!
I used dark cocoa powder, added a tsp of brown sugar, used cashew milk and crunchy peanut butter. Sprinkled with caramel and sea salt! Absolutely delicious!
OMG so delicious!!
I made this tonight and it was fantastic! Very straightforward and suprisingly moist – this will definately be my go-to sweet fix from now on.