This easy red velvet mug cake is the perfect treat for one! It only takes 5 minutes to make from start to finish, plus you only need 10 ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.
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I love topping my red velvet mug cake with whipped cream, but you could also top it with marshmallows like I did with my hot cocoa mug cake!
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Tell me about this recipe!
- This simple red velvet mug cake can be made straight in the mug, no bowls required. Minimal cleanup and dishwashing is the best!
- All you need to do is whisk your dry ingredients together, then add your wet ingredients.
- It is perfectly portioned for one, but you can easily double the recipe to make a bigger mug cake or make two at the same time.
- Red food gel is added to the batter just before cooking in the microwave to give it that red velvet look.
Ingredients Needed
The printable recipe card with the full list of ingredients and instructions can be found at the bottom of this post.
- Flour: I'm using regular all purpose flour in this recipe
- Oil: make sure you use a neutral oil, like vegetable, canola or rapeseed. This is going to make your mug cake super fluffy and moist.
- Cocoa Powder: this recipe uses a Dutch processed cocoa powder. Not sure what cocoa powder you have? Check the ingredients! If it mentions 'alkali' or 'acidity regulators', then you have dutch process cocoa powder.
- Red Food Dye: I use Americolor food dye as you only need a couple of drops to have an intense color.
How to make this recipe
Step 1: Whisk together all of the dry ingredients until there are no more lumps.
Step 2: Add in your wet ingredients, folding to make sure there are no pockets of flour left.
Step 3: Add in your drops of food dye and mix together until it is evenly distributed. Depending on the brand, you might have to add more to get the color you want.
Step 4: Place in your microwave and cook for 1:30 to 2 minutes. Note, this completely depends on your microwave! It may take less time or longer.
Recipe Tips
- Baking times in the microwave will vary depending on the wattage of your microwave, so please keep that in mind when cooking the mug cake! The higher the watts, the faster it will cook.
- Choose your mug wisely. The batter shouldn't fill up more than half of the mug, otherwise it will overflow when it's cooking. Also make sure your mug is microwave safe!
- Allow your mug cake to cool a bit before adding whipped cream, or it will melt right away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Both red velvet and chocolate cake have cocoa powder, but red velvet has slightly less cocoa powder and also has vinegar in it to give you a fluffy texture.
Yes! Because you're microwaving the batter, you're heat treating the flour making it safe to eat. And since there are no eggs in this recipe, this mug cake is safe to eat.
Add ice cream, whipped cream, sprinkles, chocolate chips, nuts.. there are so many options!
Try these simple recipes next!
Have you made this recipe? Make sure to tag me on Instagram @alpineella and leave a review below if you have! If you want more baking ideas, you can follow me on Pinterest.
Recipe
Red Velvet Mug Cake
Equipment
- 1 mug
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons (25 g) all purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons (25 grams) sugar
- pinch salt
- 3 tablespoons (53 grams) milk
- 1 ½ tablespoons (21 grams) vegetable oil
- ¼ teaspoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- red food coloring
Instructions
- In a jug or small bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Make sure there are no lumps.
- Pour in the wet ingredients and whisk, making sure there are no flour pockets left and the batter is smooth.
- Pour your batter into your mug. You don't want the batter to take up over half of the mug, otherwise it will overflow in the microwave.
- Cook in your microwave for 1-2 minutes, might took about a minute and a half to cook on high but please note that microwaves vary on the wattage.
- Let cool for about 5 minutes then eat!
Save This Recipe! 💌
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Christina says
I'd love to try this but the recipe at the bottom is for a gingerbread mug cake (also looks delicious!) Could you please repost your recipe for your Red Velvet mug cake? Thank you!
Ella says
I am so sorry about that! The correct recipe is now there!