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Vegan Apple Cider Doughnut Mug Cake

Filed Under: quick and easy, recipe, sweet treats Written By Leanne September 28, 2020

Jump to Recipe

This vegan mug cake allows the flavors of fall to shine! It’s reminiscent of apple cider doughnuts in a fast and convenient single serving option. All you need are a few simple pantry staples and less than two minutes cook time.

spoon in mug cake

Is there anything more delicious than a fresh apple cider doughnut in October? I can’t think of anything that rivals it. It’s always a great day when we make it to an orchard in the fall. Picking the apples is fun but that warm doughnut… let’s be honest, that’s what we’re really there for!

If you’re as big a fan of these as I am, you’re in luck because I went ahead and made you a single serving, make-at-home version. Best of all, it’s ready in five minutes flat and features mostly pantry staples.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make it:

  • Ground flax (to make a flax “egg”)
  • Apple cider (such as Simply Apple)
  • Coconut oil
  • Brown sugar
  • Cane sugar
  • White whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)
  • Baking powder
  • Cinnamon
  • Sea salt

You’ll start by making a flax “egg” by combining the ground flax and cider. This is one of my favorite hacks for vegan baking, or in cases when you don’t have any eggs left. It’s also perfect when making a small batch recipe. You can’t really divide an egg into thirds, so using flax + liquid allows you to make a much smaller amount and use it as a binder.

Once all of your ingredients are mixed together, it should resemble a cake batter. This only needs 75 seconds in the microwave and the result is a moist and perfectly sweet single serving vegan mug cake.

Substitutions

Flours

I tried this with varying amounts of almond flour and while it was delicious, it was a bit “mushy” and not cake-like at all. However if you want to make this gluten-free, you can certainly make it this way. You may just want to cut down on the liquid slightly.

Fat

Butter should work just fine in place of the coconut oil here. I wouldn’t, however, recommend any sort of liquid oil. I tried both olive (flavor was too strong) and canola (texture wasn’t quite right) without success.

Sugar

I found the combination of white and brown sugar to yield the best flavor, but feel free to sub coconut sugar for the brown or use just one type. Liquid sweetener likely won’t work here though since the sugar is important for the volume of the cake and would provide extra moisture.

vegan mug cake with an apple and cinnamon sticks

Don’t forget to finish it with an extra dusting of cinnamon and sugar. This is probably the most important part in getting that authentic apple cider doughnut vibe.

Now who wants one?

You might also like:

  • Breakfast-Worthy Apple Crisp
  • Vegan Oatmeal Cookies with Vanilla, Dates & Almond Butter
  • Salted Tahini Brownies (small batch)
Print

Vegan Apple Cider Doughnut Mug Cake

Print Recipe

★★★

3 from 2 reviews

This vegan mug cake allows the flavors of fall to shine! It’s reminiscent of apple cider doughnuts in a fast and convenient single serving option. All you need are a few simple pantry staples and less than two minutes cook time.

  • Author: Leanne Ray, MS, RDN
  • Prep Time: 3 minutes
  • Cook Time: 1 minute
  • Total Time: 5 minutes
  • Yield: 1 mug cake 1x
  • Category: Sweet
  • Method: Microwave
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 tsp ground flax 
  • 3 Tbsp apple cider
  • 2 tsp coconut oil
  • 1 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tsp cane sugar
  • 3 Tbsp white whole wheat flour
  • 1/8 tsp baking powder
  • 1/8 tsp cinnamon
  • pinch of sea salt

Instructions

  1. Prepare your mug with a spritz of cooking spray.
  2. Make a flax egg: in a small dish, mix flax with cider and let stand for two minutes. 
  3. Meanwhile, add coconut oil and sugars to the mug and use the back of a spoon to “cream” them together. Add the flax egg and stir to combine.
  4. Next add flours, baking powder, salt and cinnamon to the mug. Mix until fully incorporated and it resembles a cake batter. 
  5. Microwave on high for 75 seconds. Dust the top with additional cinnamon and sugar.

Equipment

measuring spoons

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Notes

  • The equipment section above includes affiliate links to things I use often in my kitchen and recommend.
  • This works best if you use a shallow mug. Be sure it’s microwave-safe!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 mug cake
  • Calories: 275 calories
  • Fat: 10 grams
  • Carbohydrates: 44 grams
  • Fiber: 2 grams
  • Protein: 3 grams

Keywords: vegan mug cake, healthy treat, healthy dessert, mug cakes, single serving desserts, almond flour

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Emily Flynn says

    January 9, 2021 at 2:05 am

    Came out great! I left out the cooking spray, and it worked fine. Very tasty!

    ★★★★★

    Reply
    • Leanne says

      January 9, 2021 at 9:01 pm

      That’s so great to hear Emily! And thanks for including that you didn’t need the cooking spray for others who may have that question. Really appreciate you taking the time to leave a rating and review!

      Reply
  2. Briana says

    December 19, 2020 at 2:23 am

    Two thumbs down! Way to much ACV. I thought that when making it but followed the instructions. Yikes so sour!

    ★

    Reply
    • Leanne says

      December 19, 2020 at 1:57 pm

      Hi Briana, there’s no apple cider vinegar in this recipe. It’s apple cider, such as Simply Apple. Sorry for the misunderstanding and I hope you’ll give it another try!

      Reply

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