Mug Carrot Cake
A spiced carrot cake for one, made with grated carrot, cinnamon and a spoon of cream cheese frosting, microwaved for 2 minutes.
Photograph credit: Ruby Tuesday carrot cupcake by Rachel Kramer Bussel · CC BY 2.0 · Flickr
Mug Carrot Cake: Step by Step
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Mix the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, nutmeg and salt in a large 350 ml mug.
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Stir in the milk and oil until just combined, then fold in the carrot and walnuts.
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Tap the mug on the counter to settle the batter.
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Microwave on high for 90 seconds, then check. Add 10 seconds if the centre is wet.
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Stir the cream cheese and icing sugar together and dollop over the warm cake.
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What Can Go Wrong
- Grate the carrot finely.
- Do not overmix the batter.
- Add the frosting while the cake is warm.
Good to Know About Mug Carrot Cake
Carrot cake in a mug sounds odd until you try it, and then it is difficult to ignore. A heaped tablespoon of grated carrot melts into the batter, providing moisture and sweetness, and brings the cinnamon, nutmeg and brown sugar flavour of the full-size cake in a fraction of the time. The result is soft, spiced and surprisingly cakey.
Grate the carrot finely and squeeze it lightly to remove excess liquid. A coarse shred will not soften in the short cooking time, and wet carrot makes a soggy cake. Use brown sugar for depth and a molasses note. The batter is a mix of flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, oil and milk, with a spoon of chopped walnuts if you have them.
Mix in the mug itself, and stop when just combined. The batter should be thick and lumpy. Overmixing develops gluten, and in a microwave this gives a chewy, rubbery cake. Tap the mug on the counter to settle the batter before cooking.
Microwave for 90 seconds, then check. The cake will rise above the rim and settle as it cools. Stir a spoon of cream cheese with a teaspoon of icing sugar and a drop of vanilla, and dollop it on top while the cake is warm so it melts into a rich frosting. Eat at once.
On the Table Alongside
Coffee · Hot tea · Cold milk · Vanilla ice cream
Keeping Mug Carrot Cake
Best eaten at once.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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