Cake in a Mug

Baking always feels like magic: gather a handful of basic ingredients, hide them away in a hot oven, then watch them emerge, fully metamorphosed into a piping hot, golden brown treat. But baking’s not always practical—you have to be patient, for one, which isn’t always easy when you’ve got a sweet tooth. And while I’m the first person to eat dessert before dinner, I realize it’s not always the wisest thing to have a whole cake at your fingertips unless you have heroic self-control.

Enter the mug cake! Smells like heaven and tastes like a warm, cozy hug? Check. Infinitely adaptable from the base flavor to the add-ins? Check. The tiny format means it cooks quickly—think five minutes, start to finish, without so much as one dirtied mixing bowl—and the single serving means you don’t even have to think about showing restraint. Plus, the microwave is a little more forgiving than the oven, so you can make tweaks: replace 1 tablespoon butter with an extra tablespoon of milk for something a little lighter, swap the sugar for honey or maple syrup, try a gluten-free all-purpose blend (or do the flourless cake) if you have trouble with gluten, and go nuts with all your favorite mix-ins. No matter what you do, warm, gooey cake is only a couple minutes away.

Banana Nutella

1. Combine the butter or oil with the honey in the mug and microwave in short spurts until the butter is melted (if using) and the honey dissolved. Add the banana, milk, and vanilla extract.
2. Use a fork to mix in the flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder until the batter is well incorporated.
3. Drop a spoonful of Nutella into the center of the mug and spoon a bit of the batter over it so it’s “hidden.”
4. Microwave in 30-second increments until the edges are set and the center is soft but not liquid.

Flourless Chocolate

1. If you’re using butter, use the microwave to melt it directly in the mug. Add the milk and vanilla extract. Once the mixture is warm and not hot, add the egg yolk.
2. Use a fork to mix in the cocoa powder, brown sugar, salt, and baking soda until the batter is well incorporated.
3. Stir in the chocolate chips. Microwave in 30-second increments until the edges are set and the center is soft but not liquid.

Funfetti, Chocolate & Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

1. If you’re using butter, use the microwave to melt it directly in the mug. Add the milk and vanilla extract.
2. Use a fork to mix in the flour, cocoa powder (if using), sugar, salt, and baking soda or baking powder until the batter is well incorporated.
3. Stir in your mix-ins—sprinkles, chocolate chips, toasted nuts, fresh berries, a spoonful of Nutella or peanut butter, what have you! Microwave in 30-second increments until the edges are set and the center is soft but not liquid. (It’s better to undercook, especially since these don’t have any egg.)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

• 2 tablespoons butter or oil (like canola, vegetable, or coconut)
• 3 tablespoons milk (dairy or non-dairy)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 tablespoons chocolate chips

Thank you to CLAIRE BANGSER for her beautiful photos! We highly recommend checking out her website for more stunning photography, including her NOLAbeings photo stories, at clairebangser.com.

Rémy Robert

(it rhymes with Amy Snowbear) is a born and raised New Orleanian who was thrilled to move home after a few years of living in New York and New England. Like most New Orleanians, she is food-obsessed and always thinking about her next meal. She works at NOCHI, New Orleans’ first culinary institute, and is also a professional recipe tester for cookbooks. You’ll find her feeding loved ones or marching with the Krewe of Wonder Women at Mardi Gras.