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Easy Vanilla Mug Cake - Ready in 90 seconds! This mug cake is moist, delicious and topped with a lovely vanilla icing that soaks into the cake and infuses it with sweetness!
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So, eating healthier and getting in shape are part of my goals each year. . .mine and a bazillion other people's no doubt. It has to be the reason I'm craving sweetness now more than ever. You always want what you can't or shouldn't have, right?
Well, to satisfy my sweet tooth but keep the portion size in check, I made this yummy and easy Vanilla Mug Cake.
This little cake is moist, delicious and topped with a lovely vanilla icing that soaks into the cake and infuses it with sweetness! Pretty smart, right?
I've never really "trusted" mug cakes. So many have turned out dry and tasteless. It took a little experimenting until I achieved the sweetness I was looking for.
And in my opinion, cake isn't really cake if you eat it out of a mug. Cake out of a mason jar, now that's a different story. You can "see" through a mason jar so it can still be "pretty." You following me?
So, this is usually my hot chocolate mug from which I drink the most wonderful hot chocolate in the world. Alright, so I'm a little biased, but you can't get much better than ice cream AND white chocolate.
Oh, man. I need to make more of that this winter. . .
What were we talking about again? Oh yes. This mug cake. . .
All it takes is 90 seconds in the microwave, and you'll have a little "mug" o' heaven. Classic vanilla cake is just the best. In fact, vanilla truly IS our favorite cake flavor here in the house.
One of the most important tips I can offer if you're going to make this cake is to make sure that your mug is at least 14 ounces or it may "bubble" over while baking in the microwave.
Watch that mug closely!! If you use a big enough mug there's nothing to worry about. My cake took up about ¾ of the cup, which was perfect.
I made sure to spray the mug generously with cooking spray before adding the batter and baking it. That way, when it was done, I just ran a butter knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it from the mug and flipped it over!
Here's the disclaimer. This is not about perfection. It may not look "perfect" when you flip it out of the mug. But in my opinion, it looks much prettier out of the mug than in it.
Top it with some sprinkles and you'll begin to fall in love.
Add some sweet icing, and you'll forget the cake was ever even in a mug. What mug? See.
I let the icing soak in a little bit while I filled a glass of milk. . .AND. . .put a few more sprinkles on top.
Just look at how moist this is. Drag the cake right through that little pool of icing. Holy moly. Seriously now. Promise me you'll try this. Believe it or not, the cake is fairly sweet without the icing.
If you wanted to switch out the icing for some whipped cream, you could do that, too. Heck, next time I may add some sprinkles to the actual cake batter!
So, yeah. There you have it. An easy vanilla mug cake perfect for one. . .or two, if you really wanted to share. But when it comes to cake is that even a consideration?
I'm going to go and grab an extra mug just to be safe. I'll make you your own. Do you have 90 seconds to spare? After that, we'll do PiYo in my basement. You in?
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Easy Vanilla Mug Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 4 Tablespoons flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- ½ Tablespoon butter (softened)
- 4 Tablespoons milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
For the Icing
- 3 Tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon butter. softened
- 1 Tablespoon milk
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the Cake
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
- Pour into greased mug (at least 16 ounces).
- Microwave on high for 1 minute 30 seconds (or 90 seconds).
For the Icing
- Mix all ingredients together and drizzle over cake either inside the mug or pop cake out of mug onto plate.
Notes
- Mind the Mug Size: Use a mug that is at least 16 ounces in size to allow for the cake to rise without overflowing during microwaving. Using a smaller mug may result in the batter spilling over and creating a mess in the microwave.
- Check for Doneness: Microwave cooking times can vary depending on the wattage of your microwave oven. After microwaving the cake for the recommended time of 1 minute and 30 seconds, check the cake's doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center. If it comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, the cake is ready. If not, microwave in 10-second intervals until done to avoid overcooking.
- Customize Your Icing: Adjust the consistency of the icing to your liking by varying the amount of milk added. For a thicker icing, use less milk, and for a thinner drizzle, add more milk. Additionally, feel free to add a drop of food coloring to the icing for a pop of color or swap vanilla extract for other flavor extracts like almond or lemon for a different flavor profile.
Samantha
Cream the butter and sugar before adding everything else but everything else is great
Yamina Marlow
So delicious and super easy. It even works substituting to make it diary free. So instead of butter I use coconut oil, and I use almond milk. I’m playing around with different extracts to see what happens. And get different flavor combinations. Today I tried kalhua instead of vanilla. 🙂
Sara
What a great idea with the Kahlua!
Anonymous
i had to microwave mine for 145 seconds. it also was very bland.
sharon root
this is a very good mug cake.
Anavi
I loved the cake.It turned out very soft and moist. I just had to add more milk in the batter as it was very dry with only 4 tablespoons milk. The cake tasted awesome though. Thank for the recipe!!:) I will definitely make it again.
Sara
Mug cakes can vary based on the size of mug you choose to use, etc. I'm so glad you found the right amount of milk to achieve the consistency you were looking for!
Dana
Very moist and rich mug cake! For a coconut twist, I replaced the milk with coconut creme coffee creamer, and the vanilla flavoring with coconut flavoring in both the cake and frosting. Next time I will try a lime glaze instead of the frosting to cut the sweetness a bit.
Sara
Ooh, I love your coconut twist to the mug cake!
Charley
Didnt work out?!!!
Charley
Could you put nutella in the middle of the cake?
Sara
I've never tried it, but let me know if you do. I suppose you could always put a dollop of Nutella over the warm finished cake also if you didn't want to put it in the actual batter.
Anonymous
Love.
Sarah
I skipped the icing and instead topped the cake with sliced banana, hot fudge, and vanilla ice cream. So yummy! I was nervous because the batter seemed thin, but I trusted the recipe and stuck to the measurements. I’m glad I did, because the cake was perfect! I had to cook it for 20 seconds extra because I have a low-watt microwave.
Sara
This sounds delicious, Sarah!!
I.B
Had some left over icing, didn't want it to go to waste. One of the best recipes I've tried.
Sara
I'm so glad! Thanks for your comment!
Anonymous
This mug cake is AMAZING. When I’ve had a stressful day, I come home and make this!
Sara
It can definitely help out with a "not so great" day!
Kendra Brazos
This recipe works great! I've tried many before and I was starting to think mug cakes were only for the professionals. This tastes soooo good!
Michelle
We didnt have anything fun to snack on in the house tonight but had these ingredients, so we tried this... and I'm so glad! I've tried other mug cake recipes before but this was hands down the best.
Green Trees
Delicious, thank you! Made with Vegan butter and coconut milk. ?