Kirbie's Cravings

Keto Brownie Mug Cake

This single serving brownie is super fudgy and cooks in the microwave. It is also low carb, gluten free and keto-friendly. It is a delicious and easy recipe.
close-up photo of a brownie mug cake

Last month I shared my keto brownies recipe. Since then, I’ve been working on a single serving microwave version so that I can satisfy my brownie cravings without having to bake a whole batch of brownies. This brownie is super fudgy, chocolatey and satisfying.
overhead photo of a keto brownie mug cake

Texture of the Brownie

The brownie has a very fudgy texture. However because there is no egg acting as a binding agent, the crumb is a little loose. You will not be able to remove this brownie in one piece from the mug, so it is best eaten in the mug. I also don’t recommend adding an egg to the recipe as it will change the texture of the brownie and make it less fudgy and more like a cake.

Type of Mug to Use

This can be made in an 8 oz microwave safe mug because it will not rise very high. Like any normal brownie, it is very rich and dense. The brownie will only rise about halfway up the mug when finished. (For photos purposes, the recipe was doubled so that you can clearly see the brownie).

Because this brownie does not rise very high, you can also make this in a microwave-safe ramekin instead of a mug.
photo of a keto brownie mug cake

If you like this brownie mug cake you might like my Keto Nutella Brownie Mug Cake and Keto Blueberry Mug Cake, too.

Keto Brownie Mug Cake

Servings: 1
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 minute
Total Time: 11 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
A single serving brownie that is super fudgy and cooked in the microwave. This brownie is also low carb, gluten free and keto friendly!
4.75 from 36 votes

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp coconut flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 1/2 tbsp Swerve granular sweetener
  • 1 1/2 tbsp heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 tbsp water
  • 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp chopped dark chocolate

Instructions

  • In a microwave-safe mug (that holds at least 8 oz of liquid) add cocoa powder, coconut flour, baking powder and Swerve. Mix with a small whisk to break up any clumps and mix until evenly combined.
  • Add in heavy cream, water and oil. Whisk until batter is smooth. Sprinkle surface with dark chocolate.
  • Cook brownie in the microwave at full power for about 60-80 seconds. I like the brownie to be extra fudgy and slightly underdone, so I cooked mine to 65 seconds. Allow brownie to cool a few minutes before eating. Brownie is best eaten warm.

Notes

  • For the sugar substitute, I used Serve Granular Sweetener.* If you have a favorite keto friendly sugar substitute, it will likely work with this recipe.
  • I used a 1000 watt microwave. You may need to adjust time and/or power if you are using a different wattage.
  • Make sure to only add 2 teaspoons (not tablespoons!) of coconut flour. Coconut flour is highly absorbent which is why you only need a little. Also make sure not to leave out any of the liquid ingredients, otherwise your batter will be too dry.
  • For the dark chocolate, you can use  Lily's dark chocolate bar* which is sugar free or a dark chocolate with at least 80% cocoa. One of my favorite keto friendly chocolates to use right now is Endangered Species 88% Cocoa.*
  • Because there is no egg acting as a binding agent in this recipe, the crumb of the brownie is a little loose. You will not be able to remove this brownie in one piece from the mug so it is best eaten in the mug. I also don't recommend adding an egg to the recipe as it will change the texture of the brownie and make it less fudgy and more like a cake.
  • The heavy cream gives this brownie an extra richness and fudginess. If you do not have any heavy cream, you can substitute with milk and add an additional 1/2 tsp olive oil (so a total of 1 1/2 tsp olive oil in the recipe). The brownie will still work but it won't taste quite the same.
  • The brownie will only rise about halfway up an 8 oz mug when finished. For photos purposes, the recipe was doubled so that you can clearly see the brownie.
  • *Some of the product links contained in this post are affiliate links. Much like referral codes, this means I earn a small commission if you purchase a product I referred (at no extra charge to you).
Estimated Nutrition Information is calculated with Lily's dark chocolate. Nutrition does not include carbs from erythritol

Nutrition

Serving: 1brownie, Calories: 203kcal, Carbohydrates: 13g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 19g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Sodium: 259mg, Fiber: 7g, Sugar: 1g, NET CARBS: 6

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




121 comments on “Keto Brownie Mug Cake”

  1. Something was very off. This tasted like baking soda and was the worst thing I’ve ever tried. I’ve been cooking Keto and low carb for quite sometime.

    • There isn’t any baking soda in the recipe – it calls for baking powder and you only need 1/2 teaspoon.

  2. OMG! You gave me 3 delicious ways to make me feel like I’m cheating! I made the brownie this morning and I realized between slurps of tea, why NOT TO MAKE A WHOLE PAN ! LOL I’d spend my whole morning making all of them, boy would my hubby be fat, exactly why we’ve gone keto ..keep em cumming!

  3. I just made this, and it’s heavenly! It’s as good as any non-Keto brownie, and will definitely satisfy the occasional craving for chocolate. Thank you so much for sharing it!

  4. What if you are allergic to coconut ? can a different flour be used ?

  5. Best keto mug brownie. I like the texture with the small amount of coconut flour.

  6. I just made this using coconut oil instead of olive oil and it was absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe, it was perfect!

  7. Encanto esta receta Muchas gracias Cuántos son las calorías

  8. We just made it and it was so horrible that we couldn’t eat it.we are not blaming you we must of dobe some thing wrong.

  9. My first time making a keto mug brownie. I doubled the recipe. I substituted heavy whipping cream from a can and used Pyure sweetener. I forgot my heavy cream was already artificially sweetened so mine came out too sweet. Next time I’ll use regular heavy cream. Overall, this turned out really well. I used Hershey’s Special dark cocoa powder.

  10. I just made this and loved it!! I used almond milk as we didn’t have cream. I also used special dark unsweetened cocoa as I LOVE dark chocolate. I then put a small piece of chocolate in the center of the batter once in the mug to create a lava cake. Then topped it with 1 tsp of warmed peanut butter. So yummy and satisfy my chocolate cravings. Thank you for sharing!!

    • Love that you added the chocolate in the middle! Thanks so much for letting us know you loved the recipe.

    • Im always hesitant to try mug cakes/brownies because they are such a 50/50 chance at being either terrible or amazing. This is definitely an amazing one! Especially for Keto!! Heck I would eat this even if I wasn’t on keto! 
      I made some minor changes but kept all amounts the same. I used the Lakanto erythritol monk fruit blend sweetener and also added a piece of choc zero chocolate in the middle (but this is chocolately enough it doesn’t need it). I’ve also been obsessed with black cocoa powder and used that, which makes this taste kind of like an Oreo brownie. 
      This is an absolutely amazing recipe and I will make this again and again. Thank you!

  11. Just made this and it is sooooo good! Followed the recipe exactly. I cooked it 75 seconds and it came out perfectly fudgy. I added a few walnuts when done just for the crunch, Wish I had some low carb ice cream!!!

  12. I have been craving brownies so much lately and this really hit the spot. I actually didn’t have a chocolate bar, so I just left it out. I also stirred in 3 pecan halves roughly chopped. It turned out like heaven in a mug. It was so good that I can’t imagine how the candy bar addition could make it better – but I’ll try it again when I get a candy bar. You helped this girl stay keto tonight, and I thank you!

  13. I’m new to Keto and I must have messed this up somehow…it tastes like cocoa powder. Super bitter. I have to try this again…hopefully with better results!

    • We’re sorry to hear about this – are you sure you measured the ingredients accurately? If you added too much cocoa powder or not enough sweetener it won’t turn out right.

    • I had the same experience. I prefer monkfruit, but used the Swerve my mom had bought me as I ran out of my monkfruit and I’m wondering if that’s it. It’s not sweet enough for me and just butter tasting and maybe my baking powder has gone. I’m confused about these raving reviews as I’m not sure I wanna try it again. Maybe I’m just not keto enough yet.

      • If you followed the recipe, it might just be that you’re not a fan of dark chocolate flavor, which is less sweet. We would love for you to try some of our other Keto Recipes!

  14. I swapped out the heavy cream for 2% milk and used less sweetener than suggested… don’t do that haha. It came out super dark chocolatey – a little bitter – which I was not a fan of. But honestly I still liked it. Thank you for this recipe! I’m going to see if I can play with it a little more but I’m sure if I had made it as you made it it would’ve been even better.

  15. Had again this morning with breakfast. So yummy!
    Love you Kirby!

  16. Taste like a real brownie!!!! So good!!!! 

  17. Phenominal!!!

  18. Delicious! It’s crazy how simple this was but how tasty it turned out. I substituted both the heavy cream and olive oil with an avocado oil spread and oat milk and added about 1/2 tbsp of vanilla. I also used some pieces of a dark chocolate mint bar pieces instead of just dark chocolate. Oh and lastly I happened to have some sweetened whipped coconut cream to put on top which made it nonketo but damn delicious. This is such a winner, especially for those who want to stay away from grains and sugar in general. Thanks so much! (Wish I made two at the moment :P)

  19. This was very yummy! However I’ve one question about the nutrition. Trying to work out my net carbs per portion.
    Are the measurements actually based on only 1g?
    Thank you for feeding my sugar craving!

  20. Thank you for sharing this absolutely delicious recipe.  I have seen many mug cake recipes and always wanted to try one.  I am so glad I choose this one to start with.  I do think next time I need to cook it just a tad longer, but that’s on me.  I think I will add some pecans or some Lily’s White Chocolate to the top just to mix things up a little.  Possibilities are endless.  There will definitely be a next time.  

  21. Very good, very rich! I used avocado oil, instead of evoo, and also threw some chopped pecans in there. Wish I had some low carb vanilla ice cream right now. I’d be in hog heaven.

  22. I tried this recipe with and without 1 egg. I think you just forgot to add an egg to your recipe ?

  23. I made this recipe and didn’t have the heavy whipping cream (I used almond milk and extra olive oil) and all I had was 100% unsweetened cocoa chocolate bars. It satisfied my cravings for chocolate but, left a bitter aftertaste that while I could live with it, the family couldn’t and didn’t like it.

    The recipe took me less than five minutes in total to make and was a saving grace that kept me from cheating on my diet and feeling bad about myself. I will definitely play around with the recipe and might substitute a bit of unsalted butter for some of the oil to tweak it to my liking.

  24. Very good thank you so much !!!!!!!! it was plain fudgey goodness also topped with pecans and sf camel syrup

  25. WOW! This the best! Was looking for a recipe without almond flour – this was perfect and wonderfully rich!! A keeper!

  26. How many actual carbs is this? Not net carbs

    • both are given in the nutrition information

      • The nutrition information in the recipe says that there are 13 grams of carbohydrates and 6 grams net carbs for this recipe. This cannot be quite right, though, as Swerve granular sweetener has 4 grams per teaspoon–there are four and one-half teaspoons in 1 1/2 tablespoons–so there are at least 18 grams of carbohydrates in just the Swerve. Are the measurements wrong, or is the initial carb count incorrect?

      • As explained in the notes, I do not include carb from erythritol in the carb count. The reason I do this is because people get confused when they see the high carb count if it includes the carbs from erythritol. There is no separate category in the nutrition label for carbs from erythritol so I exclude them.

      • Yes, you are doing “net carbs”–this person asked for “actual carbs”–and that was not included. So, the actual carbs were not included in the nutritional information, as I was trying to point out (perhaps badly)–this recipe probably will not work for a person with diabetes, which may be why the original question was about “actual carbs.”

        Swerve also contains oligosaccharide, by the way, not just erythritol. I was asking about measurements as a tablespoon and a half is a lot for one cake. Most muffins I make only use about a teaspoon for a muffin. I think I will skip this recipe, as it seems dicey for someone with health issues rather than just someone concerned with weight loss.

      • I’m sorry for any confusion. The recipe provides a carb count but without the erythritol, which I explained is because there is no category for carbs from erythritol in my nutrition label. The recipe is labeled “keto brownie mug cake” so the majority of people reading it are looking for net carbs. I am aware Swerve isn’t just erythritol but all the carbs in Swerve are from erythritol as stated in their nutrition label.

  27. Just made this. One of the best keto mug cakes around. I made the first one by the recipe. It was delicious. I like more cakey texture, so I added two quail eggs and it came out perfect. Great recipe. 

  28. This ya by far the best keto brownie I’ve had. Love it with a little SF whipped cream. Thank you!

  29. Ultra fudgy deliciousness! This saved me! It’s soooo satisfying. Mega craving killer! Thank you so very much! ??

  30. I don’t know what went wrong, but my large mug overflowed goo all over by 30 seconds!!!  Couldn’t get a fudgy/cake texture even by 90 seconds, and lost half the batter on the mic tray!

    • I’m sorry to hear that. The cake should not overflow since it does not rise much. Did you make any changes to the recipe?

  31. How can I convert this recipe to use almond flour instead? 

  32. So Fudgy!! My new fave keto dessert. Thanks!!

  33. Wonderful, thanks for the recipe. I’m a choca alcoholic. This was truly a rescue for me lol….

  34. This was absolutely amazing! I love fudgey brownies. 5hisbtotally hit that sweet spot. Best ever! Thank you for sharing ??

  35. The best Keto brownie recipe I tried! Totally satisfied my craving for a fudgey chocolatey brownie. The texture is moist and dense like a delicious nonketo brownie. I highly recommend this recipe! I used a monk fruit & ethrythritol blend and butter instead of oil. Both subs worked great! 

  36. Me encanto! Me urgia un postre keto y este fue perfecto! Muchas gracias

  37. ZOWIE! This is one RICH dessert! I prob used a cup of whipped cream to top it and cut the richness. Very fudgy though, if you have a chocolate craving! The only thing I changed was using butter in place of the olive oil. Thanks for a great recipe. This one will have to go in the “once in a great while” file. Even though I know it’s keto, I feel fatter eating it! LOL

  38. Lol..i need to read directions better! Just like it stated not to do, I did. I added tablespoons instead of teaspoons for the flour. Tried to save the recipe and just add more cream and water. Flavor was ok, texture not so much. Will make again and follow recipe better!

  39. So friggin good! And I didn’t even feel like I needed to eat more than one serving. Sweet tooth annihilated! Thank you for this! It’s going in my recipe book for keeps.

  40. This was by far the best mug cake I’ve made, and I’ve made a lot! I’d say it was as good as regular brownies. I only microwaved it for 60 seconds because I love a fudgy browny. Absolutely delicious!

  41. Pro tip! Cook it like a chaffle! I added a buttercream frosting using swerve confectioners

  42. Excited to try this because of the no egg! Some mug cakes are too eggy!

  43. Yum! Glad this doesn’t include eggs!! 

  44. Not sure where I went wrong.. I used Lakonto Monk sweetener and it came out very bitter. Texture was great though, just too bitter too eat. 

  45. Super fudgy and sweet.

  46. I didn’t have the chocolate chips on hand but it sure did  satisfy my chocolate craving 

  47. Hands down BEST keto brownie recipe I’ve tried and believe me, I’ve tried a lot!!! Question I really would love to convert this recipe into a full pan. Any suggestions on conversions? I’m hoping to keep the texture EXACTLY how it is but in a full pan to share with hubby and kids. I’m blown away at how fudgy it is! 

  48. 5 Star flavor. 2 star texture. What did I do wrong?! Mine turned out F L A T. I’m talking 1-2 cm flat. And it was like a fugdey pudding texture. Flavor was incredibly good! Almost too rich (but I think that’s bc mine was so flat). I didn’t add chocolate chips and flavor was still very brownie/ chocolate-y! Just wish I knew what went wrong. I put in in the microwave and it was poofy from the baking powder but majorly shrunk. 🙁 Suggestions anyone?

  49. I modified this a bit. 1 Tblsp of butter instead of heavy cream. 1 tsp of coconut oil instead of olive oil. And for the flours I used were 1 tsp of coconut flour and 1 tblsp of almond flour. I thought the bready texture came out really well. If anything, it was too rich. I would decrease the 1.5 tblsp of cocoa next time.

  50. What is the nutritional value? I looked a few times and didn’t see it.

    • Sorry for the inconvenience. There was a bug in the recipe plugin which was causing the nutritional value to not display for my recipes. It is now back.

  51. This mug brownie filled the house with such a rich chocolate aroma! Fudgy and delicious. I love recipes where I have everything on hand. Thank you!