This Keto Chocolate Mug Cake is a quick & easy low carb treat with a brownie texture and rich chocolate flavor. Gluten-free and with built in portion control – it will satisfy your chocolate craving without blowing your carb budget!
This keto chocolate brownie mug cake recipe has been popular here on IBIH for quite a few years now. I decided to dust it off and update the post a bit for those of you that haven’t come across it yet.
The thing I love about keto mug cakes is that they are so easy (and fast!) to make, and that you aren’t committed to an entire bowl or pan of something. Portion control is so much easier when you are only making one or two servings of keto dessert at a time, instead of an entire chocolate cake!
I knew I wanted to do a keto chocolate mug cake, and definitely wanted it to have a brownie-like texture.
It took some experimenting (oh the things I do for you), but I finally hit on the right combination to get both the taste and texture that I wanted. Not too dry, with just the right amount of gooeyness! You could almost call these keto chocolate mug brownies – and you wouldn’t be wrong.
This keto chocolate mug cake was warm and comforting, and perfect with some whipped cream or sugar free vanilla ice cream on top.
In fact you almost need something creamy to break up the richness of the brownie. I used Rebel Natural Vanilla (not sponsored, I just like the brand) for this photo shoot and the results were delicious.
I added walnuts to mine because nuts are a must in brownies as far as I’m concerned. I’m listing them as optional though, because some crazy people out there don’t like nuts in brownies. Oh the humanity!
Keto Mug Cake FAQs and Variations
How do you bake a keto mug cake?
Typically, since mug cakes are all about convenience, they are cooked a microwave oven rather than a traditional bake oven. That being said, you can absolutely bake a mug cake in your regular oven. To do so I recommend a ramekin instead of a mug, a bake temperature of about 375 degrees Fahrenheit, and about 10-12 minutes of baking time.
If using a microwave as this keto mug cake recipe (and many others) call for, please be aware that microwave strengths and mugs vary – I found this out the hard way when testing this keto mug cake recipe out.
I had been using the same microwave-safe mug for several tries with great results, then I made the last one with a thinner walled mug and it was WAY overdone. So I’m giving you the shortest likely time, and if it’s too gooey just throw it back in for another 30 seconds until it’s the consistency you want.
Once you go over it’s trashed, so err on the conservative side if your microwave is really strong, or your mugs are really thin walled.
Same goes on the other side of the coin, if your mugs are really thick or your microwave oven is whimpy, you might need to add a little time to cook them all the way through.
I divided this keto chocolate brownie mug cake into two portions – but you could just as easily make it in one large mug or small bowl and microwave it for a minute and 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
What ingredients are in a keto mug cake?
The ingredients used in a keto mug cake will vary based on the flavor, but typically they are made with almond flour, coconut flour, a sugar free sweetener like erythritol or xylitol, coconut oil or butter for the fat to make it tender, and baking powder to help it rise.
This particular chocolate mug cake also contains vanilla extract, a good quality cocoa powder, sugar free chocolate chips, and either pecans or walnuts.
How many net carbs are in this keto chocolate mug cake recipe?
This keto mug cake contains only 2 grams of net carbs, but a whopping 6 grams of protein. So it’s basically health food – especially if you throw a few berries on there. You’re welcome.
Can this chocolate mug cake be made dairy free and Paleo?
Yes! The only dairy in this mug cake recipe is the butter, so you can replace that with ghee (which is free of milk solids) or coconut oil with great results. To sweeten it, you can replace the erythritol (which is a natural sweetener but highly processed) with either honey or maple syrup for Paleo diets.
Keto Chocolate Brownie Mug Cake – Low Carb – Gluten Free
- Total Time: 6 minutes
- Yield: 2 servings 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Warm and comforting, this keto chocolate mug cake is the quickest way to low carb brownie bliss there is! Gluten free too!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons superfine blanched almond flour
- 1 teaspoon coconut flour
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar substitute
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar free chocolate chipsÂ
- 1 tablespoon chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a small microwave safe bowl (about 30 seconds in microwave).
- Add the remaining ingredients and stir until combined.
- Pour batter into 2 small greased mugs or ramekins.
- Microwave for 1 minute. (add another 30 seconds if necessary).
- Serve with whipped cream or sugar free vanilla ice cream.
Notes
Approximate net carbs per serving = 2g
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 minute
- Category: Keto desserts
- Method: microwave
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 mug cake
- Calories: 216
- Fat: 22g
- Carbohydrates: 4g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 6g
michelle says
I don’t have any coconut flour, can I just use almond flour in place of the coconut flour?
Eli says
Hey there! That brownie mug low carb thingy made my mouth water, and im on a low carb diet! Ive been craving deserts and chocolate is my weakness. Was wondering if you could sell me a batch! I’ll pay for shipping too!
Lisa says
YUMMY IN MY TUMMY!! Thank you sooooo much for this recipe! I had it today for breakfast :) Dessert for breakfast! Before eating LC I would pretty much have sweet things for breakfast. I was getting really bored of savory breakfast. This has saved me from making some pretty bad decisions just in time! Love your recipes, you are making LC easy for me!!
Marcia says
Thank you for sharing your mug cake with the world. I will enjoy making this for my family tonight. I will be using dark chocolate chips in place of the Lindt chocolate. I can see where a scoop of ice cream on the hot cake would be just scrumptious. I’ll have to send the husband for ice cream. Take care!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Hope you guys like it Marcia! :)
Sondy says
I just made your ‘Brownie in a Mug” and OMG! The best lc dessert I’ve ever had. My only tweak was to add 2 tbsp of heavy cream to the batter because I don’t like dry cake. Thanks you so, so much for this one. Love it!!!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks Sondy! I’m flattered that it was the best LC dessert you’ve ever had! :) Thanks for the feedback and comment!
Alie says
Just made this, and so, soooo happy I did. I topped it with some softly whipped cream with vanilla bean. Heaven!
Mellissa Sevigny says
So glad you liked it Alie, I still make it whenever I need a quick chocolate fix! :)
Zibby says
This is so great! When I want a dessert, I just want something small. I don’t want to bake an entire cake or a whole dish of brownies because I suck at portion control. And I’d rather not spend a whole lot of time in the kitchen anyway if I can help it. Thank you so much for this! I just love your recipes!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks so much Zibby! I love this for the same reason – I can make it quick when I want it, but then there aren’t leftovers staring me in the face, tempting me to overeat every time I open the fridge! I have a strawberry version coming up soon so stay tuned! :)
Zibby says
Hi Melissa! I wanted to tell you I tried your mug cake recipe today but I did a lemon version. I just took out all the chocolate stuff and put in 1TBSP of lemon juice. It was delicious! It was a bit tiny, but that *might* be because I accidentally left out the baking powder, LOL. But still freaking delicious! I ate both mug cakes with some whipped cream and it was just what I needed today. Sweet, comforting, fast and easy!
Marge Burkell says
Just one TBSP of bottled or fresh lemon juice Zibby?
Zibby says
I have a little squeeze bottle of RealLemon juice that I used. It’s meant to measure just like real lemon juice, so you could use that or freshly squeezed lemon and get the same results.
Marge Burkell says
thanks Zibby!!!
Momi says
Thank you so much! I’m new to lowcarb (keto) and have been craving just this!!! I just made it for hubby and me! Yummmm!!!! Nomnomnom
Denise says
I just made this and it was so delicious! It was like a dark chocolate cupcake. :) Thank you for the fabulous recipe!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Thanks Denise, glad you liked these! They’ve gotten me through many brownie craving episodes! :)
Marge Burkell says
Hey Mellissa!
I posted this to my Facebook fan page last week in response to a friend that was making a Better Than Sex cake for her grandson and lamenting that she couldn’t eat any… she made my version, which uses this recipe of yours for the base.
My question to you is, if one wanted to make a 9 x 12 of this how would I judge how long to bake your brownie? Everything else goes on top of it…
Thanks!!!
~Marge
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=353652328089940&set=pb.228896187232222.-2207520000.1371594228.&type=3&theater
Mellissa Sevigny says
I would start at 20 minutes and if necessary add time in five minute increments until a toothpick or knife comes out clean in the center. Sounds yummy!
Marge Burkell says
Thx Mellissa! So start at 20 minutes at 350° yes???
The gal that made them the way I posted said they were wonderful!
Not bad for just suggesting how to make them huh? LOL!!!
Mellissa Sevigny says
Yes, let me know how it comes out Marge!