Emergency chocolate mug cake

Some days, I find myself in a chocolate emergency, where I have a deep, sudden craving for chocolaty goodness. I want just a little something that is sweet, richly chocolaty, and warm but I don’t want to go to the store and I don’t have time (or can’t be bothered) to bake something. This 5-minute chocolate cake is the answer to all of your chocolate emergencies.

Chocolate mug cakes are all over the internet so this is certainly not a brand new concept. But finding just the right mug cake to deliver exactly what you’re hoping and dreaming for during a chocolate emergency is more of a challenge. These were my criteria for creating the ultimate single serving chocolate mug cake:

• Perfect single serving: Many chocolate mug cake recipes I stumbled upon made massive single-serving cakes that filled an entire mug. For me, I want just enough cake to feel satisfied but not so much that you walk away feeling sick. For years, I have made the Budget Bytes chocolate mug cake, which I find is the perfect quantity. I used this as the basis of my recipe and tweaked from there.
• Not too sweet: This should come as no surprise because I say this for every recipe, but while I want enough sweetness to counteract the bitterness from the cocoa powder, I don’t want a cake that feels cloyingly sweet.
• Rich chocolate flavor: I find that the flavor of some chocolate mug cakes falls a little flat for me. By adding a hint of instant espresso or coffee powder and blooming the cocoa powder briefly in the warm milk, this mug cake achieves a deeper chocolate flavor.
• Can’t feel like a sad pantry dessert: I have had some moments where I’m eating a very mediocre mug cake and the scene just feels a little bit sad. There’s a feeling of regret around the cake, like you settled for something a little gross out of desperation but will eat the whole thing anyway. I’ve tried to avoid this by not only making a tasty cake but adding a couple of basic ingredients (still common pantry items) to make it feel a little bit more like you’re treating yourself and putting some care into your quick cake. A dash of cardamom and a swirl of tahini go a long way in making this feel more special and adding more dimensions of flavor.

I hope this recipe comes to your rescue the next time you’re at home and find yourself in desperate need of a chocolate fix!

Emergency chocolate mug cake

Recipe by MoniqueCourse: Cakes and custardsDifficulty: Quick bake

Yields

1

serving

Prep time

4

minutes

Cooking time

1

minute

This chocolate mug cake with tahini is intensely chocolaty, moist, and not too sweet. It is the perfect single serving cake to satisfy your chocolate emergency. Feel free to make this in a mug or a ramekin.

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp milk (dairy milk, oat milk or a nut milk)

• 2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder

• 1/8 tsp instant espresso or coffee powder

• 1 Tbsp granulated sugar

• 1/8 tsp baking powder

• 1/8 tsp baking soda

• Pinch of salt

• Pinch of ground cardamom

• 1 Tbsp oil (olive oil or vegetable oil)

• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

• 1 tsp tahini

Instructions

• Add the milk to a mug or ramekin and microwave for about 10-15 seconds until the milk is warm to the touch. Then stir in the cocoa powder and instant coffee powder to dissolve. Let sit for about 2 minutes to allow the cocoa powder to develop more flavor.
• Stir in the remaining ingredients, except for the tahini. Mix until well combined and you don’t see any visible flour streaks.
• Dollop the tahini on top and using a toothpick or chopstick, swirl it around the top of the cake. Microwave for 1 minute. You can insert a knife or toothpick and to make sure the cake is fully cooked. If the toothpick does not come out clean, microwave for additional 10 second intervals until fully cooked.
• Let cool slightly before enjoying.

Notes

• Feel free to add chocolate chips as well if you have them on hand. You can also swirl a runny peanut butter instead of the tahini.

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