This Sugar-Free Chocolate Mug Cake is perfect for two people to share on Valentine's Day! Made in minutes in a mug! Keto, Nut Free, low carb, sugar-free, grain free, gluten free and guilt free!
Best Chocolate Mug Cake
When I think of special desserts for special occasions, chocolate and peanut butter is usually the combo I crave. Special occasions don't always have to mean difficult and labor intensive desserts to show your loved ones how much you love them. This moist, easy chocolate mug cake with peanut butter buttercream is what low carb dreams are made of!
What is a Mug Cake?
My weapon of choice when it comes to easy " but never looks it" desserts are mug cakes! I believe the first invented mug cake was obviously made all in a coffee mug! But as it has grown in popularity, you can make it in anything you like. The whole point is you can have a mini version or a single serving of cake within minutes. I've got many mug cake options for you to choose if chocolate and peanut butter isn't your favorite thing. You might also enjoy my Red Velvet Couple's Mug Cake, Cannoli Mug Cake, Tiramisu Mug Cake or my Lemon Mug Cake.
The man in my life is a peanut butter lover for sure. And he's also finally after many many years of pleading with him, eating low-er carb for the first time in his life. He's all ready lost 10 pounds since the new year so for that I am grateful. Making him a special treat on occasion is one way to make sure he can make this life style change sustainable.
You certainly don't even need to get all fancy with this cake. No need to layer one on top of the other if you don't want to. You can simply make each cake and share the frosting for each. Just as tasty!But the little extra effort to make it look pretty too, makes me happy. I want it to look like I spent a long time making a dessert when that is farthest from the reality. This cake could be eaten just for two, but really one fourth the cake is plenty as a serving. It's rich, chocolatey and peanut buttery!
Tools to Make Mug Cakes
Bowls Having a set of glass bowls in a variety of sizes is always a good idea.
Whisk- I have whisks of different sizes for different recipes and having a set like this is great for all sorts of my recipes.
Shallow ramekins- These are more or less quiche or creme brûlée ramekins. I like shallow ones like this to make layered mug cakes.
Meal Planning
If you love recipes like this for yourself and family, you will love my meal planning membership. Weekly low carb and/or keto meal plan sent to your inbox every Friday with shopping list. The best part about my meal planning feature is that if you aren't interested in one of the dinner meals you can swap it out for something else! You can even change serving sizes and the shopping list will adjust! It pretty amazing software and I hope you'll take advantage of it. You can have a sustainable low carb/keto lifestyle when you're well prepared and planning meals is the key! LEARN MORE TODAY!
Sugar Free Chocolate Mug Cake
Sugar-Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon ground flaxseed meal
- ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk for nut free
- 1 teaspoon chocolate liquid stevia
Peanut Butter Frosting
- ¼ cup unsweetened peanut butter or sunflower seed butter for nut free
- ¼ cup Swerve confectioners sweetener
- ¼ cup butter softened
Instructions
- Whisk the first 4 ingredients together in a bowl.
- In another bowl whisk the eggs, milk and stevia.
- Stir the wet into the dry and combine well.
- Grease two shallow ramekins, I used 5 ounce quiche ramekins.
- Evenly pour the batter into each ramekin.
- Microwave one at a time for 1 minute. May need 30 seconds more in center is still wet.
- Allow to cool completely before removing to a serving platter.
- Once cooled, make the peanut butter frosting in a stand mixer.
- Spread half the frosting on the top of one cake.
- Lay the second cake over the first cake and cover with the rest of the frosting.
- Shave some sugar-free chocolate bar over the frosting if desired.
- Enjoy with your sweetheart!
Notes
Nutrition
About Brenda
Brenda Bennett is a certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, certified Sugar Detox Coach, certified Keto Coach and certified Life Coach. She has been Sugar Free & Refined carb free for 17 years and has written 2 cookbooks, Sugar-Free Mom, and Naturally Keto and her 3rd book The 30-Day Sugar Elimination Diet, is a four part program to help you detox from sugar, eliminate cravings, balance blood sugar and lose weight all while eating a delicious, nutrient dense whole foods. Meal plan offers two tracks to follow, low carb or keto. She is the founder of the Sugar Free Fresh Start course and Sugar Free Tribe weight loss membership. Learn more.
Denise
At least twice, you say at the top this is nut free but it has peanut butter frosting and almond milk. Please remove the nut free tags on this recipe.
Brenda
The cake is nut free, the frosting is not but I have many other nut free frosting options.Also you can swap the peanut butter with sunflower seed butter to make it nut free.
Kimberlee
No almond flour or coconut flour? So this is an egg base cake?
Brenda
The flax and cocoa powder are in place of using any almond or coconut flour.
Aimee
Oh my goodness THANK YOU!! Haven't had cake in 6 weeks since I started keto IF, and this completely hit the SPOT! I made them in silicone baking cups and microwaved for 20 seconds each cupcake...ate 2, and shared the rest with my 3 boys! The pb frosting is to DIE FOR! 🙂 Thankfully it only makes a small batch so i won't be tempted to eat them again tomorow! Saving this recipe for my bday in 2weeks! Many thanks! I'm going to try making some of your other delicious looking recipes! That carrot cake is calling me!
Brenda
So happy you loved it!
Terrin
Can you use something instead of flax meal if I don’t have that?
bonnie
hi, thanks for recipe. i didn’t have flax on hand so used almond flour. seemed like an ok substitution.i hate the stevia i bought ( now liquid stevia) so used 1/2 t erythritol ( i prefer less sweetness than the taste of artifiscual sweetness. seemed ok. wasn’t very very obviously but at least didn’t have fake sugar sweet, lol. i did not have shallow ramekins so i had to play with cooking times. i don’t like microwave either, but works really well for mug cakes. i used cream cheese instead of butter and added a little almond milk as my peanut butter is natural and kind of stiff. i only used 1 t erythritol . again because i don’t like fake sugar taste. over all still pretty cute and yummy and enjoyable. thanks so much. i’m curious if u have triad the almond flour and if it has different taste and texture than flax. i will get flax and try next time.?
Brenda
I've not tried almond flour to compare, but I will definitely update when I do.
Laura S.
oh, another question, what size ramekin do you use for the mug cakes? I tried 2- 8 ounce sized and both were tall enough to split into layers. I then tried 2- 12 ounce sized ramekins.
Thanks for your help 🙂
Brenda
Mine were quiche ramekins 7 ounces and nice and shallow.
Laura S.
I'm a new reader, thank you for your great site!
can you tell me if the nutritional information is just for the cake or if it for the cake and frosting together?
Brenda
The nutrition info includes the frosting as well.
Joy
Same question as Darlene and gwen, i do not have a microwave but i would looove to make this for my son, is there anyway to bake in a conventional oven?? TIA
Brenda
I've added oven instructions above.
Bonnie
Yum! Made this in heart shaped ramekins and it was delicious!
Carrie
I just made this this morning - everything turned out great, & made in the microwave. Both ramekins took the full 1 min 30 seconds. My only issue is that it is too salty. I used peanutbutter that has salt in it, and butter w/salt in it. I would either say, use those without salt, or, if those ingredients are both salted, may want to either eliminate the added salt, or cut the added salt in half. LOVE IT, definitely will be making this again & again & again. I think I would love it w/a peanutbutter cream cheese frosting as well. (also, I don't generally bake in the microwave either, but turned out perfectly, so, why not for that mere min & a half?)
Brenda
Thanks for sharing! Happy you liked it!
Hilva
Wish I'd read this first. The frosting was great, but the cake WAS salty.
Loren
I'd rather use a little sugar than Stevia, because of how processed it is. Would the substition work? http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/04/25/stevia-food-babe-investigates/
Brenda
I've read the article and Food Babe recommends Sweetleaf stevia that I use.
Loren
So is that a no on my substitution question? I just prefer more natural sweeteners, and was wondering if you think substituting would work. I would like to try the recipe, but prefer to feed my family something less processed. It looks very tasty!
Brenda
You didn't specify what sugar you would use, honey? maple syrup? white refined sugar? Here's my conversion chart that might help in the future:
https://www.sugarfreemom.com/recipes/stevia-differences-in-liquid-packets-powdered-pure-a-stevia-conversion-chart/
If you're using white refined sugar my 1 teaspoon of stevia is about 1/2 cup of sugar. If using maple syrup I would only use 1/4 cup. If using honey I would use 1/3 cup.
Darlene
Same question as Gwen, I try not to use a microwave and would love to know how to cook in a conventional oven.
Hilva
Is 1/4 t. salt the correct amount? My cake was salty. I guess I made a mistake when I doubled the recipe, but 1/4 t. for such a small cake... Just want to confirm the amount, otherwise great recipe!
Brenda
Yes that is what I used but if you're sensitive to salt, maybe a pinch is all you need.
Gwen
I don't like to cook in the microwave, can this be cooked in the over? If so, what temp you think? Thanks you. This looks too good to pass up.