Last week, a friend of mine from elementary school planned to move to Southern California to finish her nursing degree, so I stopped by her mom’s house the night before she and her dad drove a U-Haul down the coast to move everything into her new apartment. I brought along my mom, seeing as our mothers stayed friends over all of these years, as well as my new Healthier Chocolate Treats cookbook as a gift. My friend loves baking as much as I do!
Although we hadn’t met up for years, there were big hugs all around as soon as we walked through the front door. My friend showed me through to the kitchen, where she packed up a few freshly baked pumpkin cheesecake muffins (yum!) for us to take home; then we all settled into the comfy chairs and sofas in their living room.
Mom and I planned to stay for only a few minutes, but somehow an entire hour flew by while we chatted! My friend and her mom had stayed just as sweet as ever, and with the same sense of humor and plenty of interesting stories to tell, we spent most of the time laughing. People like that are so fun to be around—and really reenergizing, too!
While we visited, my friend slowly flipped through every page in my cookbook, admiring the photos and mentally bookmarking everything that she wanted to make. (Such a sweetheart!) We talked a little more about baking while our moms exchanged stories about the holiday season, and before we left, my friend asked if I had any mug cake recipes on my blog.
“I do!” I replied and mentioned both my spice cake and chocolate cake (← umm that one is SO fudgy and to die for) recipes, but when she inquired about a vanilla version, I responded, “Not quite, but it’s on my to do list!”
So in honor of her, I started working on developing the recipe the next day, and here it is: this Skinny Single-Serving Vanilla Mug Cake! It’s perfectly sweet and tender, with the same exact texture as regular cupcake you’d bake in the oven, but it’s ready in just a fraction of the time. And there are no leftovers tempting you to overindulge, either!
Pure bliss.
This healthy dessert recipe begins with white whole wheat flour. White whole wheat flour is made from finely grinding a special kind of white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from red wheat. This gives the white whole wheat flour a much lighter taste and texture. It’s very close to that of all-purpose flour, but it still has the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour! Whole wheat pastry flour would be a great substitute, if you prefer.
Note: My favorite gluten-free flour blend is included in the Notes section beneath the recipe!
Because this is a single-serving recipe, it’s very important that you measure the flour correctly. Too much flour will quickly dry out your cake batter and make your cake crumbly! While the spoon-and-level method will work, it’s a little tedious with tablespoons instead of cups, so I highly recommend a kitchen scale. This is the inexpensive one that I own, and I use it for every recipe that I make for this blog because it ensures my treats turn out with the perfect taste and texture every time.
Unlike traditional mug cake recipes that include 2 tablespoons of butter and an egg yolk (that’s 260 calories right there!), this easy one requires just ¼ teaspoon of butter. Yes, that’s right! The rest of the perfectly moist and tender texture comes from my favorite ingredient in healthy baking… Greek yogurt! It provides the same moisture as extra butter or oil for a fraction of the calories, and it gives your baked goods a little protein boost, too!
The warm vanilla flavor comes from two sources: vanilla extract and vanilla crème stevia (my new favorite sweetener!). Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly. It’s very concentrated, so a little goes a long way! I usually buy SweetLeaf, both for the powdered version and the vanilla crème stevia. The former is sold in a plastic shaker, while the latter comes in a small bottle with an eyedropper. You can find both at many health-oriented grocery stores, as well as online. (And you’ll use them in all of these recipes of mine, as well!)
This healthy mug cake recipe differs from traditional ones in another way: you’ll cook the mug cake on 30% power instead of on HIGH. Reducing the power and cooking the mug cake for longer better simulates how a regular oven bakes treats. This trick prevents the mug cake from turning gummy and ensures it turns out with a perfectly tender texture!
If you open the microwave door as soon as the timer goes off, you may see that the center looks a tiny bit underdone. That’s okay! It’ll continue to cook through as you let the mug cake rest, so a few minutes later when you dig in your fork, it’ll be just right.
Oh my yum… ♥
I’ve made one of these nearly every single night for the past week… Because it’s the BEST vanilla mug cake recipe I’ve ever eaten!
| Skinny Single-Serving Vanilla Mug Cake | | Print |
- 3 tbsp (23g) white whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
- ⅜ tsp powdered stevia
- ⅛ tsp baking powder
- 1/16 tsp salt
- ¼ tsp unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted
- 1 tbsp (15g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 ½ tbsp (23mL) nonfat milk
- ¼ tsp vanilla extract
- 18 drops vanilla crème stevia, or to taste
- Lightly coat a 1-cup ramekin with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, powdered stevia, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, stir together the butter, Greek yogurt, and milk.* Stir in the vanilla and vanilla crème stevia. Gradually mix in the flour mixture, about 1 tablespoon at a time, until just incorporated.
- Spread the batter into the prepared ramekin. Microwave on 30% POWER for 2 minutes 40 seconds (2:40). Let the mug cake cool for at least 2 minutes to allow the center to finish cooking through before enjoying.
Whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the white whole wheat flour.
Any milk may be substituted in place of the nonfat milk.
You’ll use two types of stevia because too much of either type results in a very bitter aftertaste to the mug cake. Other sweeteners may be substituted in place of both the powdered stevia and vanilla crème stevia, but you may need to adjust the amount of flour or milk depending on the type of sweetener that you use. You’ll need the equivalent of 2 ½ tablespoons of granulated sugar.
If the yogurt and milk are cold, they will immediately re-solidify the melted butter. If this happens, microwave on HIGH for 6-8 seconds or until the butter re-melts; then proceed with the rest of the instructions.
It’s VERY important to microwave the mug cake on 30% power. This is set differently depending on the brand of microwave that you own. If microwaved on HIGH (full power) for a shorter time, the cake will be gummy, and the top may be overdone while the insides stay raw.
Microwave times may vary, depending on the wattage of your microwave oven. I used a 1000-watt microwave.
To bake the mug cake in a regular oven, bake at 350°F until the top feels firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. I haven’t cooked the mug cake this way myself and can’t guarantee how long it will take, but check for doneness after about 12-14 minutes to start.
{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, low calorie, high protein}
Oh my word YUM! I couldn’t tell 100% what this was going to be based on Snapchat so I’ve been patiently waiting! Sounds divine and something I need to make tonight! I might add some chocolate chips on top Gotta have that chocolate! 😉
You’re the cutest Lindsay — I ♥ you!! I definitely want to see a Snap of your mug cake with chocolate chips on top… You KNOW how much of a chocoholic I am!! 🙂
This looks fluffy, delicious, and not super bad for you. I love how you replaced so much of the butter with Greek yogurt. I reminder the last time I tried to do that, I got a really squishy, spongy mug cake. I’d love to try this.
I hope you enjoy this mug cake if you try it Elaine! 🙂
This cake looks so cute and tasty, I love the video as well, it is so good! Happy New Year (I know I am 11 days late, oh well!) Also, this cake can be easily adapted for people with dairy intolerances!
I’m still typing “2015” more than “2016,” so… I still think that the phrase “Happy New Year” applies at my house! 😉 Thanks for your sweet words about the recipe and video Eve!
I’d love to try this (small batch and single serve desserts are great!) but I’ve found the hard way that I really don’t like the taste of Stevia, even the vanilla creme one. Do you have any recommendations for other sweetners (apart from sugar) that I could use? I like using Agave in many recipes, but I don’t think I can add that much liquid for a cake like this.
If you’d prefer to use agave, simply decrease the amount of milk by the same amount of agave that you add. Since agave tends to be sweeter than stevia, I don’t think you’ll need to use more than the 1½ tablespoons of milk called for by the recipe. If you do prefer to add more agave than that, try microwaving the cake for longer (still at 30% power) to compensate. I hope you enjoy the mug cake Krithika!
Ok, you’ve sold me… I haven’t had great results with mug cakes, but I’m going to have to try this one once I get my hands on some vanilla creme stevia! (I might be a child and add sprinkles to mine, though…) 😉
There is NOTHING wrong with adding sprinkles! Or chocolate chips, for that matter… 😉 Check out Nugget or Whole Foods — those are the easiest places to find the vanilla creme stevia up where you are!
I love microwave desserts(including mug cakes!), they’re just so much easier and quicker too! I might add a few sprinkles to mine for a little color, also, love that you turned it into a skinny mug cake. I’ve made regular(full fat) mug desserts but those make me feel kinda guilty. SO many calories and loads of sugar and fat! No guilt here!!
Thanks Madeline! I love the idea of sprinkles — they always make everything so cute! 🙂 I hope you enjoy the mug cake!
It’s great when you can catch up with old friends – & yours are so lucky because you can create special personal treats for them! I love this cute cake 🙂
Thanks Megan! So true about old friends — it’s really fun catching up!
Great idea to use the lower power to mimic oven baking. I made this yesterday with bobs red milk gluten free flour mix and it turned out well! I’m going to try this microwaving method for other things to prevent the rubbery-ness effect that microwaving usually gives! Another great recipe Amy 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed the mug cake Fran! I hope the lower power microwaving trick works for the other recipes, too! 🙂
You can never have too many skinny single-serving cake recipes in your arsenal! Definitely pinning this one 🙂
SO true Nicola — I have lots more flavor that I want to try making! 🙂 Thanks for pinning!
I can’t wait to make this! I just ran out of my vanilla stevia a few days ago unfortunately – so I will have to wait a little. I love how you explain your recipes and what is replacing what! Very good blog!
Thank you so much for your kind words about my blog Shawna! I’m so glad that you appreciate the recipe explanations. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of this mug cake when you get more vanilla creme stevia!