Learn how to make the best and most delicious Healthy Chocolate Mug Cake that is so rich and decadent, moist and fluffy, that you’d never know it is low-fat, oil-free, vegan, gluten-free and much healthier than traditional mug cakes made with oil and eggs! It is truly divine and only 8 ingredients!
HEALTHY CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
Don’t let the fact that this Vegan Healthy Chocolate Mug Cake is low-fat fool you! It is fluffy, moist, rich and incredibly delicious! It does not taste low-fat at all. I already have a really popular chocolate vegan mug cake on the blog that has all 5 star reviews from readers, but I’ve had requests for a nut-free version over time since that one relies on almond flour.
My reader, Estee, specifically requested one recently and what can I say, my family and I loved this one even more! It is so soft and fluffy, but rich and moist. The best part is it contains no nuts, no coconut, no gluten, no eggs and no oil, so nearly everybody should be able to make it!
Compare this to all those mug cakes out there, including vegan ones, they have 30-40 grams of fat. This one is much lower in fat but so good, we moaned the whole way through eating them.
This mug cake is seriously a showstopper too, if you can say that about a mug cake, haha. This baby rises SO much, like a chocolate souffle’, which you can see in these pics! It is a beauty.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED
- Superfine oat flour: I always use Bob’s Red Mill oat flour, as it is superfine and not gritty and produces perfectly fluffy results. I find this is better than homemade oat flour, which tends to be gritty. Oat flour is healthy, fiber-rich and so much healthier than white flour.
- Tapioca starch: This helps to bind and make the cake fluffy. All oat flour would make it a bit too dense. Tapioca starch is one of my favorite replacement for eggs.
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- Baking soda
- Unsweetened applesauce: Applesauce instead of oil is not only much lower in calories, it has nutritional benefits.
- Pure maple syrup: Natural sweetener instead of refined sugar. Maple syrup also helps make this cake moist.
- Vanilla extract
- Dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips: I used the Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips.
HOW TO MAKE HEALTHY CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
Step 1: Add the oat flour, starch, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt to a bowl and whisk very well.
Step 2: Add the water, applesauce, syrup, vanilla and ONLY 1 tablespoon (15g) of the chocolate chips. Stir until well mixed and moistened. Don’t overmix once it comes together.
The batter will be on the thick side, as you can see, it’s like a muffin batter, not a runny cake batter.
Step 3: Add the batter to a mug and top with the remaining chocolate chips (1 tablespoon).
Step 4: Cook the mug until the top is dry and no longer wet batter. See details on recipe card below for times and extra details.
Step 5: Cool the mug cake 4-5 minutes before eating. As it will be very hot and will finish cooking as it sits a few minutes. Enjoy!
Check out all those melty chocolate chips. OMG. SO good!
HOW TO MAKE THIS MUG CAKE IN AN OVEN
I know some people may not own a microwave, so to bake this in the oven, it will yield 3 tall muffins. Divide the batter into 3 nonstick muffin liners in a muffin pan. Place extra chocolate chips on the top of each. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 15-20 minutes until risen really high and a toothpick is basically clean. Mine were perfect at 18 minutes.
MORE VEGAN CAKE RECIPES
- Vegan Toffee Mug Cake
- Easy Vegan Lemon Cake (6 Ingredients)
- Vegan Funfetti Birthday Cake
- Vegan White Wedding Cake
- Vegan Gluten-free and Grain-free Vanilla Cake
- Vegan Almond Butter Cake
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Cake
- Vegan Pumpkin Cake
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If you make this recipe, be sure to leave feedback below and share your pic on Instagram or Facebook and tag me @thevegan8 #thevegan8!
Healthy Chocolate Mug Cake (Low-fat!)
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons (48g) superfine oat flour (I always use Bob's Red Mill)
- 2 teaspoons (5g) tapioca starch
- 2 tablespoons (12g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda (NOT baking powder)
- 1/8 heaping teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons (40g) pure maple syrup
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (38g) unsweetened applesauce
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (38g) room temperature water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (30g) dairy-free semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life mini ones) DO NOT OMIT THESE
NOTE
- As always, I recommend a scale for accuracy so your results turn out as mine do and you have success! Just use a bowl and the scale, do not get out measuring cups to compare to grams. Just use the grams listed for accurate results
- I use this scale.
Instructions
- Add the oat flour, starch, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt to a bowl and whisk very well.
- Add the water, applesauce, syrup, vanilla and ONLY 1 1/2 tablespoons (23g) of the chocolate chips. Stir until well mixed and moistened, making sure to get the flour from the bottom but don't overmix. The batter will be on the thicker side, but should be smooth. Do not be tempted to add water. It is the consistency similar to a muffin batter. This is what will yield a fluffy mug cake. Adding too much water to oat based cakes results in gummy desserts.
- Spoon the batter into a large tall mug, as this mug cake will rise A LOT!! Don't use a short 8 oz mug. If you prefer, you can divide the batter into 2 normal 8 oz mugs. For reference, the mugs pictured each hold 1 3/4 cup water and I did a full mug cake in each one. They tower just above the mug beautifully. Give the mug a side to side shake and smooth out the top.
- Top with the other tablespoon of chocolate chips on top of the batter.
- FOR REFERENCE, my microwave is 1000 watts. Of course microwaves can vary, so yours may need 10 seconds less or more. If doing 1 tall mug (all the batter in one mug) microwave 1 minute 25 seconds. The top should look dry across (the batter, not the chips obviously). If it still looks really wet, microwave 5-10 more seconds.
- If doing 2 standard mugs (with the batter divided between the two mugs) then microwave one mug cake at a time for 1 minute 15 seconds for each, separately. I found these times to produce a perfect cake. Fluffy and cooked, but wonderfully soft and moist. Of course microwaves can vary. The key is the top looking dry and not wet batter.
- Cool 4-5 minutes before eating. It will be extremely hot and it finishes cooking a bit while sitting. This makes quite a hefty mug cake that easily serves 2 people.
Notes
- OVEN VERSION: I know some people may not own a microwave, so to bake this in the oven, it will yield 3 tall muffins. Divide the batter into 3 nonstick muffin liners in a muffin pan. Smooth out the tops with the back of a spoon. Place extra chocolate chips on the top of each. Bake at 350°F (177°C) for 15-20 minutes until risen really hill and a toothpick is basically clean. Mine were perfect at 18 minutes.
Nutrition
Made these last night and they were perfect and delicious!!! Subbed raw cacao but everything else was as written. Best low fat dessert I have made and my chocaholic husband loved!
Awesome feedback, thanks Shellene!
Brandi, you are the best!
This was fabulous! So easy…I ate the whole fluffy, chocolate mug cake!
All your recipes are the best. So much flavor! Thank you! Enjoy the holiday!
Brandi, how in the world did you “one up” your original chocolate mug cake recipe?! This was PHENOMENAL! Fluffy, chocolatey, moist and SO simple to make! My husband is currently (and annoyingly;) scraping every last crumb of his half out of mug! 😆 He keeps saying, “So fluffy! So good! I don’t think we should have to share!”
Thank you for this scrumpdilicious dessert, Brandi!
Wondering if there’s a sub for the oat flour? Unfortunately, I can’t have oats.
And could you use arrowroot starch fo the tapioca start?
The question about the tapioca starch.. Im ha i g trouble finding it but I do have arrowroot.. Can we use this?
No, I wouldn’t suggest it, as I am not a fan of the texture that arrowroot gives, tends to be very gummy and an aftertaste. Cornstarch would be a better sub and that can be found at any store easily!
I answered this question in length and now don’t see it, so weird. Sorry about that. For this recipe, no I would not sub the oat flour. I’d suggest making this other mug cake instead and subbing the oat with brown rice flour. Since it has almond flour also, it may work better. Although, I haven’t tried it personally. As far as subbing with tapioca with arrowroot, I wouldn’t suggest it, as I am not a fan of the texture that arrowroot gives, tends to be very gummy and an aftertaste, cornstarch would be a better sub. https://thevegan8.com/vegan-chocolate-mug-cake-gluten-free/
Another amazing recipe! My husband and I love that this mug cake is low fat. It’s delicious and fluffy! Perfect as always 🙂
So thrilled to hear that Aly, thank you!!
I used the oven method and made three small cupcakes. I’m happy to forego the chocolate chips on top but don’t forget them in the filling! Will definitely make these again.
This was wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing!
So so good! Can’t wait to make this with my 3 year old 🙂
I want to talk about this mug cake. I’ve made it 3 days in a row and we really do think this one really blows it out of the park. James was literally licking the inside of the mug..that was a sight 😂. This baby rises like no other mug cake we’ve had and is super light and fluffy. Thank you for another fabulous dessert Brandi!
Thank you so much for requesting the recipe Estee! I’m so happy you and James love it so much! You know how much I love hearing that!
I made this tonight after supper. Super delicious with a bit of vanilla ice cream. It was easy to make and was the perfect amount for 2 people.
Amazing to hear that, thank you so much Christine!
Lately, I’ve been obsessed with nailing the science of a good mug cake – great timing! And also I KNOW this is a great recipe given what I’ve learned in my trials. Eggs ruin a good mug cake. I look forward to trying yours!
Interesting! But that actually makes sense because I would imagine using a whole egg in a tiny mug cake would make it gross and rubbery!
I made this tonight and it was perfection! A dream come true!
Yay!!
Made this tonight. It was amazing! I followed the recipe exactly as written and it turned out perfectly. Probably one of the best tasting healthy desserts I have made since becoming vegan.
That is so fantastic to hear Christine, thank you for the review!
Can I omit maple syrup? Thanks
No, it would be very very bitter and dry. You need sweetener to offset the bitterness of cocoa powder and of course, maple syrup is liquid so it creates a liquid batter and a moist cake.
❤️👏🏻Made this for our dessert tonight…OH.MY!!! It’s our New Fav! Thank You so much 😊🍫❤️😋
That is so awesome to hear Melanie, thank you so much for making it!
Absolutely delicious! Perfect for a cruelty-free chocolate fix! Not only did the cake actually rise (I’ve tried many that didn’t even make it halfway up the mug), but it was fluffy and very filling. Excellent. Thank you!! ❤️
That is fabulous to hear Katie! It was so perfect on IG, thank you so much for making it and leaving feedback!
I absolutely LOVE this chocolate mug cake!!! I have 2 kids that won’t touch chocolate (they don’t get that from me) so we rarely make anything chocolate. Not only is this perfect taste, texture and serving size, but is also super fast and healthy!!! Thank you Brandi! We love your recipes!
That is so amazing to hear Kelli! Thank you for the wonderful review!
Oh my gosh!!! You are one of my favorite food bloggers! You can make healthy and oil free taste AMAZING! This mug cake is delicious (eating it now)! It is rich and decadent and chocolatey! My only bit of sadness is that the recipe is “2 servings” but I plan on being person 1 and 2 tonight. 🙂 So so so good! Thank you for creating this and posting it!
Oh wow, you are awesome for making it so quickly! I’m so glad you loved it so much! Haha, yes, if it’s just you, you get both servings! It is so much though to eat all at once, it is the equivalent of 3 muffins, lol!
Would a 16 oz. wide mouth ball jar work instead of a mug?
Thanks!
I think so, I don’t know what a ball jar is, but I suppose! As long as the top isn’t too narrow?? If you have a 10 oz mug that’ll easily work too.
can i sub yoghurt/banana for the applesauce? thank you :))
Hi Angela, applesauce is super wet (lots of natural water), so I really do not think either of those would provide enough moisture here since they are drier. You could try banana puree, but maybe an extra tablespoon? That is just a guess though.
This was so delicious and easy to make. My husband took a few bites of mine, then wanted me to make another one right away. It’s so good you’ll want it all to your self. This definitely hits that chocolate craving!
Could I use AP flour? Or make flour from rolled oats?
All-purpose might make cake more chewy and too dry. If you can make the oats superfine, you can try that. Do you have a vitamix? If the oat flour isn’t fine, then the cake will be more dense and not as fluffy. It should be fine like a standard flour without flakes left.
Can you substitute potato starch instead of tapioca starch?
Cornstarch would be better. Potato starch makes things drier, so if that’s all you have, you can try that, but the cake texture will be a bit drier.
Hi! How can I replace apple sauce? Can I just omit it ?
Hi Paula, no, you can’t just omit it. Ingredients are always listed because they serve a purpose for flavor and texture. Without the applesauce, the mug cake will be dry as a bone. It replaces any oil or butter. It needs the applesauce.
Hi PAULA and BRANDI . . . . I read your comment, Paula, about the apple sauce. I don’t know what your reasons may be for not wanting to use apple sauce, but, just in case this might help you, I thought I’d put in my 2 cents, for what it’s worth, from my personal experience as a healthier & low fat vegan recipe developer.
Over the past decades (I’m VERY old…haha!), I have used applesauce to replace fat in MANY of my recipes for all kinds of cakes/brownies/etc., and it always works great as a fat-replacer! HOWEVER, sometimes, for ME, the apple sauce taste gets in the way of whatever flavors I’m trying to achieve, especially with cakes & brownies, etc. Several years ago, I discovered a trick which works even BETTER for me, taste-wise, than apple sauce (but works pretty much the same as far as texture goes!). The taste issue with apple sauce doesn’t always bother me, ESPECIALLY with stronger flavored cakes such as Brandi’s low-fat chocolate mug cake recipe here. (I haven’t made it yet Brandi, but I DEFINITELY intend to, VERY SOOOOOOON, cuz it looks SPLENDIFOROUSLY WONDERFUL!). But SOMETIMES, in some recipes, the flavor stands out just a bit too much and bugs me, and that “flavor thingy issue” drove me to experiment and find an alternative “trick”. . . .
So, my “trick” is to use canned (or bottled) PEAR HALVES IN 100% JUICE (no sugar added at all!)…..I just drain (but DO NOT RINSE!) the juice completely off, then blot the pear halves (on both sides) very well with paper towels. Next, I puree the pear halves until VERY smooth & “creamy”. Personally, I use an immersion blender as it’s faster & cleaner. You can do it in a run-of-the-mill blender too, but you’ll have to scrape down the sides of the container once or twice to make sure there aren’t any “chunks” of pear left. And depending on the particular variety if pear (they’re usually Bartlett unless otherwise specified), as well as the RIPENESS of the pears when canned/bottled, sometimes there can be a bit of “gritty” bits, so that’s why I make sure I puree them until VERY ULTRA-SMOOTH. And besides that, in my opinion, I find that the extra-smooth puree helps to “mimic” the texture that oil or other fats create in a recipe. Anyway, then I use the same amount of that “homemade pear sauce” that I would normally use of applesauce. I find that the milder flavor of the pear sauce does NOT interfere with the other flavors as much as apple sauce can sometimes do, and yet the “rich texture” is the same.
Anyway, for what it’s worth, Paula, I hope maybe my little tip helps with whatever issues you may have with using apple sauce as a fat-replacer.
love the mugs – can you share where you got them
Terri
Thank you Terri! Yes, I purchased these at Kroger! Not sure if they still sell them as it has been awhile since I bought them.
Could you cook these in the oven? Don’t have a microwave 😣
Oh my word I’m so sorry, I missed the whole section about cooking it in the oven 😒 I’m the twit this time! Sorry
Oh no, it’s totally okay! I added it a few minutes after posting this, so you may have just missed it! It’s ok 🙂