Kirbie's Cravings

Donut Mug Cake

photo of two Donut Mug Cakes
This single serving mug cake tastes just like baked old fashioned donuts or the baked donut muffins that became popular a few years ago. But instead of having to make an entire batch, you can make an individual one in just minutes.

I had a lot of fun making these. Can you tell?
overhead photo of two Donut Mug Cakes
Donut muffins are of my favorite desserts to make. I often make them as mini muffins or as mini donuts. I’ve been wanting to make a mug cake version for a very long time, but never got around to it until now. After a few tries, I got exactly what I was looking for.close-up photo of a Donut Mug Cake

At first, I was just going to add some chocolate ganache and sprinkles on top. And then, I decided to have some fun. Using a cupcake corer, I cut into the tops of my donut cakes so that they look like donuts. I didn’t actually remove the entire center as I wanted to keep as much cake in there as possible. So I stopped my corer about halfway down. The hole in the middle is deep enough to make it look like a donut, but you don’t actually lose too much precious cake.

photo of the mug cake with a hole punch out of the center with a cupcake corer

I bought this cupcake corer years ago, convinced I was going to make fancy stuffed cupcakes. Which never happened. Who knew it would come in handy for making donut mug cakes?
photo of two Donut Mug Cakes

Of course, if you are just making this for yourself, you don’t need to bother with all the decorations. You can also do a simple cinnamon sugar topping, which is what I usually do for my donut muffins.

Now updated with video!

Donut Mug Cake

Servings: 1 mug cake
Prep Time: 4 minutes
Cook Time: 1 minute
Total Time: 5 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
This single serving mug cake tastes just like baked old fashioned donuts or the baked donut muffins that became popular a few years ago. But instead of having to make an entire batch, you can make an individual one in just minutes.
4.75 from 4 votes

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp granulated white sugar
  • 6 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/16 tsp ground nutmeg this looks like a very small amount, but please do not omit this!
  • 1 3/4 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 3 tbsp low fat or fat free milk
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate ganache frosting (optional)

  • 1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 2 tbsp boiling heavy cream

Instructions

  • In a microwave-safe mug (at least 8 oz or more. I used 8 oz mugs and the cakes rose exactly to the top), add all ingredients. Mix with a mini whisk until batter is smooth. Cook cake in microwave at full power about 1 minute 30 seconds or until top of cake is done. Let cake cool a few minutes before eating or decorating. Cake is best consumed soon after it is cooked or it will start to dry out, so if you are planning on decorating, do not wait too long.
  • If desired, use a cupcake corer to remove some of the center of your cake, creating a donut appearance. I only cored out half rather than having the hole go straight to the bottom. For a cinnamon sugar finish, lightly brush the surface with butter and then sprinkle sugar and cinnamon.
  • To make ganache frosting, add boiling heavy cream to chocolate chips and whisk until smooth and glossy. If your chocolate is not completely melted, microwave briefly for about 10 seconds and then try to whisk again until smooth and glossy. The chocolate ganache should be thick but slightly running, making it easy to spread on the donut cake.

The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.

Did you make this recipe?I'd love to see it! Mention @KirbieCravings and tag #kirbiecravings!

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Recipe Rating




19 comments on “Donut Mug Cake”

  1. this is so good! great recipe 🙂

  2. Flavor was great, but I’m not sure I measured everything right. It boiled over and was undercooked, so maybe my mug was too small.

  3. Delicious! And so quick and easy to make! Thank you!

  4. I did a google search for an easy way to satisfying my 3am sweet tooth because I didn’t want to wake anyone baking and I found this mug cake — boy did it hit the spot! I can’t wait to try more of your mug cakes, you have got a mug cake paradise here. question, what should the contisistency of the finished batter be like? mine was very dense and hard to mix. I don’t have one of those little round tablespoon measuring cups so I just used a regular tablespoon and because of that think I may have used too much flour. I also doubled the serving size, maybe that had something to do with it. none the less, it was still d e l i c i o u s ! thanks!

    • Doubling the recipe and too much flour could be why the batter was hard to mix. You can get a better idea of what the batter should be like from the video for the recipe. Glad it still worked out for you

  5. Yum. Made it GF so I should use s tad more oil or milk next time. I added chocolate chips to the middle when I cooked it. So good!!

  6. wow! That’s AMAZING!
    Love this new idea…

  7. What is it about things in mugs that I just can’t resist!? They’re so cute, so easy, and SO tasty. And they get me every time. Can’t wait to add this one to the must-try mug list!

  8. Saw this pop up on my Instagram feed today and was admiring hard. You and your mug cakes are AMAZING!! 😀 

  9. I ran into your blog a few days ago while I tried making my first ever mug cake and it turned so good I came back for more! 😀 I’m definitely trying this recipe asap and I’ll also try to get your book! 

  10. This is super cute… I love it! Pinning!