Chocolate Oat Mug Cake (Vegan + GF)

Rich, fluffy, and delicious, this Chocolate Oat Mug Cake ​is an awesome 5 minute vegan and gluten-free dessert. You probably already have all the ingredients to make this delicious and healthy mug cake that's great for dessert, breakfast, or a quick snack.​

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Hey Internet, I love making mug cakes. They're SO much easier than traditional baking and you can easily make a warm single serving dessert in only a few minutes!

Even though there's a little baking powder IN this recipe, I still feel that it qualifies as no-bake, since we're just mixing dry ingredients and wet ingredients in a mug and microwaving them. I love no bake vegan desserts! I really want to figure out a no bake apple pie next.

I also already have a lot of vegan mug desserts, such as a vegan mug brownie, vegan protein mug cake, vegan matcha mug cake, vegan mug cookie, and a vegan vanilla mug cake. I'm excited to add this gluten-free oat mug cake to my collection.

This chocolate oat flour mug cake is rich yet light and fluffy but with no oil or egg whites. How? Peanut butter! It's honestly the best part because the peanut butter (though ANY nut or seed butter will work instead, as will unsweetened apple sauce though slightly less rich and fluffy), serves as the fat but it also makes the oat cake fluffy and delicious with a light nutty flavor. 

Plus I just love chocolate and peanut butter together, like in my chocolate peanut butter chia pudding. But if you have a peanut allergy, almond butter, sunflower seed butter, and cashew butter all work well too.

You're going to love this healthy mug cake recipe. It also uses no refined sugar and simple ingredients! Did I mention it's naturally gluten-free? No complicated substitutions needed. (Just make sure you buy certified gluten-free oats or gluten-free oat flour.)

This oat flour cake makes an excellent dessert, but you can totally eat it for breakfast if you have a sweet tooth like me or as a snack when you need your chocolate fix or a mid-week pick-me-up any time of the day.

Why You'll Love This Chocolate Oat Mug Cake

• Wholesome and Simple Ingredients:​ This delicious oat flour mug cake has a short list of ingredients and is free of oil or refined sugar. This makes it a great option for breakfast with less sugar and more nutrients than most cereal products (which can have as much sugar as chocolate chip cookies!).
• Great for Portion Control: If you don't want to make a whole cake (or you don't trust yourself around one), this single-serve cake is perfect for portion control. It's also a healthy dessert, especially if you forego the vegan ice cream on top and maybe serve it with some fresh berries instead.
• Naturally Gluten-Free: As long as you purchase certified gluten-free oat flour OR make your own homemade oat flour (I'll tell you how in a bit, it's so fast and easy!) from certified gluten-free rolled oats, you're good to go with this oatmeal mug cake recipe. If you have a real allergy, make sure all the other ingredients are certified gluten-free as well, but you know the drill.
• Easy Recipe:​ You don't have to be a confident baker to make this quick dessert. This is also the perfect way to experiment with baking if you're a complete beginner.

Ingredients

Grab these simple and healthy ingredients the next you’re at the supermarket. See the recipe card at the bottom of this post for full recipe, instructions, and accurate nutritional information (to the best of my ability; please consult your physician or healthcare professional if you have specific dietary needs). I give substitutions as many of the ingredients as possible below, so most people can still make this recipe!

• 1 Tablespoon Peanut Butter: I recommend using a creamy peanut butter that's a little runny, like natural peanut butter. We buy our peanut butter from Costco and it's excellent. If your nut butter is not runny and won't mix well, an easy way to loosen it up is by sticking it in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds. See next section for substitutions.
• 3 Tablespoons Plain Unsweetened Non-Dairy Milk: You can use any plant-based milk you like such as soy milk, almond milk, oat milk, etc. In my opinion, soy milk is the best nut-free milk and it has a higher protein content than many plant-based milks which helps ensure a fluffy cake. Coconut milk would be a very rich and decadent option.
• 2 Tablespoons Pure Maple Syrup:​ This is what takes the place of cane sugar or brown sugar in this recipe. It works quite well and is delicious!
• ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract: This adds a lovely cake flavor to the recipe and really brings out the chocolate flavor.
• 4 Rounded Tablespoons Oat Flour: You can make your own homemade oat flour (I'll teach you how in the instructions section below) or use store bought, either will work. Make sure to buy certified gluten-free oats or oat flour if you are gluten-free.
• ¼ Scant Teaspoon Baking Powder: Especially if you're using a smaller mug (mine has a 14-ounce capacity) or microwave-safe ramekin, go for just under a quarter teaspoon of baking powder (taller mugs might be better for this recipe!). This helps our cake rise though, so it's an important ingredient.
• Tiny Pinch of Salt:​ This brings out the flavor in the oats and the chocolate but you only need a tiny pinch, not even an eighth of a teaspoon.
• 1 + ½ Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder:​ For our chocolaty flavor!
• ¼ Cup Mini Vegan Chocolate Chips + a Few More for Sprinkling on Top: Optional, but so delicious and highly recommended for rich chocolate flavor! If you're making this for breakfast you could totally add less and just sprinkle a few on top, but I wrote this as a dessert so I use a decent amount mixed through the cake.
• Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream For Serving, OPTIONAL:​ Speaking of dessert, I highly recommend topping this with a small scoop (I used 2 tablespoon cookie scoop) of vegan vanilla ice cream. The way it starts to melt into the still-warm cake? Perfection.

Substitutions

• Peanut Butter: Any other nut or seed butter such as almond butter, sunflower seed butter, cashew butter, etc. will work well. Tahini might be a little thin for this recipe, but if you try it just pay attention to the batter. It should be thick. If it's very thin, try adding just a quarter to a half teaspoon extra oat flour or cocoa powder. If you want to use oil, you can try using the same amount of coconut oil (or another oil like avocado oil or olive oil). If you want a low fat option, try 1 tablespoon of unsweetened applesauce or mashed overripe banana.
• Pure Maple Syrup: If you don't have maple syrup, agave, date syrup, or vegan honey will work. For another unrefined sugar option, try coconut sugar. Cane sugar or brown sugar should also work. These might make the batter too thick to stir (since maple syrup is a liquid), so you might need to add a splash more non-dairy milk.
• Vanilla Extract:​ Vanilla powder also works and has a stronger flavor than vanilla extract; I recommend starting with a quarter teaspoon vanilla powder.
• Oat Flour:​ I have not tested this particular recipe with all purpose flour (not gluten-free), but I reckon it would work. If you want to use something like almond flour or coconut flour, you might need a different recipe, or if you're comfortable playing around, you can experiment and make this recipe into an almond flour mug cake (or coconut flour or whatever!).
• Baking Powder:​ While you CAN use baking soda, you'll need a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar (or another vinegar) to activate it. I recommend sticking with baking powder.
• Salt:​ It's optional; if you're watching your sodium intake you can just leave the salt out.
• Unsweetened Cocoa Powder: I don't recommend substituting Dutch-processed cocoa. If you want to use cacao powder, you're welcome to. Just keep in mind that it's a little more bitter and you may want more sweetener. You could also try chocolate protein powder instead.
• Mini Vegan Chocolate Chips: You can also use regular sized dairy-free chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips for this recipe or another mix-in like chopped nuts (or raw pumpkin seeds or hemp seeds) or vegan sprinkles! Or leave it out if you prefer!
• Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream For Serving: That's an optional ingredient so feel free to skip it! You can also top your oat flour mug cake with a drizzle of melted peanut butter, vegan chocolate sauce, vegan caramel sauce, or fresh berries.
• Other Ingredients: You can add other ingredients like spices to flavor your oat mug cake in different ways. Try a pinch of ground cinnamon, chili powder for some spice, or pumpkin spice.

How to Make a Chocolate Oat Mug Cake

1. How to make oat flour: To make your own oat flour, add 1-2 cups rolled oats or quick oats to your blender (a high-speed blender works the best, but other blenders may work for this) and blend on high until the oats become a fine powder. Scoop out what you need for the recipe and store the rest in a jar in the fridge or freezer for later!
2. Mix the wet ingredients: Add the peanut butter, non-dairy milk of choice, pure maple syrup, vanilla extract in a microwave-safe mug (taller mugs work better, by the way). Mix well with a fork or tiny whisk. If your peanut butter won't mix well (like it's very thick), you can microwave it for 20-30 seconds and it should get easier to stir.
3. Add the dry ingredients: Add the oat flour, baking powder, pinch of salt, and cocoa powder to the mug and stir well, this time with a fork or small spatula. Mix until you have a smooth batter and no visible specks of flour remaining, but don't over mix. Taste the mixture (it's ok because there's no raw flour; it's oats!) and adjust sweetener if needed.
4. Add the mini chocolate chips, optional: If using, add in the quarter cup (or less) of mini chocolate chips. Fold the chocolate chips into the oatmeal mug cake batter briefly, then sprinkle a few more on top if you like.
5. Microwave Method: All microwaves differ, so you may need more or less cooking time than I did. My chocolate oat mug cake was perfect after 1 minute and 20 seconds (on high power), but you may need less, so start with a minute. Note that if the cake looks like it's about to spill out of the top, you can stop the microwave and let it go down for a few seconds before trying another 10 seconds and cooking in intervals until it's cooked (and next time use a taller mug). If the cake looks wet when it comes out, try it for 10 more seconds. You can try the toothpick test if you like, but I typically go by the top starting to dry out just a tiny bit.
6. Oven Method: Mix the ingredients in an oven safe ramekin or oven safe mug and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius) for 15-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean (or with tiny crumbs, not wet batter) or until the top looks like it's beginning to dry out. Be careful when removing your oat flour mug cake from the oven.
7. Serve: Add a small scoop of vegan vanilla ice cream, a little vegan whipped cream, or some fresh berries on top and serve. You could also do a drizzle of vegan chocolate sauce or melted peanut butter.

​Expert Tips

• Follow the Recipe: Unless you're a professional baker, I recommend making the recipe once or twice as written before experimenting for best results. After your first time making it, you can experiment a little if you like.
• Measure the Ingredients: Don’t be tempted to measure half-heartedly. This recipe is all about the ratios! Use standard measuring spoons.
• Ingredient Substitutions: I offered substitutions in the ingredients and notes section of this recipe, but keep in mind I chose the ingredients I did for a reason. That reason was to create the best tasting oat mug cake.
• Enjoy immediately: For best results, I recommend eating your chocolate oat mug cake relatively soon after making. It won’t taste as good in my opinion if you refrigerate it and eat it later.
• Protein Mug Cake: Use your favorite vegan chocolate protein powder instead of cocoa powder for a few extra grams of protein in this recipe.
• Banana Mug Cake: To make a banana oatmeal mug cake, you can replace the peanut butter with a bit of mashed banana (spotty overripe bananas are best) if you like. You can also use a bit more to replace the sweetener (if replacing both, I'd use a quarter cup of mashed banana).

Frequently Asked Questions

​More Easy Vegan Dessert Recipes to Try

• Vegan Chocolate Bliss Balls
• Vegan Chocolate Covered Pretzels
• Date-Based Vegan Snickers Bites
• Vegan Puppy Chow / Muddy Buddies
• Vegan Rice Crispy Treats
• The Best Vegan Chocolate Pudding
• Vegan Coconut Balls (Bolitas de Coco)
• Vegan Ice Cream Cake

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