This banana mug cake has the perfect balance of banana flavor and sweetness. The trick? Using a VERY ripe banana.
The cake requires just a few ingredients and a couple of minutes in the microwave. It’s one of the most convenient single-serving desserts you’ll ever make.
It has a warm, comforting, banana bread-inspired flavor. And you’ll love the moisture in every bite.
The hardest thing about this recipe? Keeping everyone else out of your mug!
Why You’ll Love This Banana Mug Cake
Fantastic Flavor: This cake combines sweet bananas, warm spices, and melted chocolate chips. The flavor combo is truly hard to beat.
Quick and Easy: Like most mug cakes, this one has a delightfully decadent flavor. But you can whip it up in mere minutes with minimal ingredients. It’s perfect for satisfying sweet cravings almost instantly.
Perfectly Portioned: This cake’s single-serving size is perfect for snacking alone. It also eliminates the temptation of overeating for a guilt-free dessert.
100% Stress-Free: No need for complicated techniques or fancy equipment! This mug cake recipe is totally hassle-free. It’s ideal for novice bakers or those short on time.
Ingredients
- Ripe Banana: The crucial component for getting this right is using a seriously ripe banana. It’ll give you maximum sweetness and flavor.
- All-Purpose Flour & Baking Powder: The flour provides structure, and the baking powder helps the cake rise. Be sure to measure both accurately.
- Egg: For the fluffy, cake-like texture we all know and love. Set it out early to let it warm to room temperature. It’ll mix better that way.
- Butter: Melt it first. If using salted, eliminate the extra pinch of salt.
- Milk: I like whole milk, but any will suffice. It adds moisture and helps the cake develop a tender crumb.
- Vanilla Extract: It enhances the cake’s flavor and aroma.
- Brown Sugar: You can use light or dark, as you prefer. Both give the cake a rich, molasses-like flavor and soften its texture.
- Cinnamon: Just a little will complement the banana spectacularly.
- Salt: For enhancing all the other flavors.
- Chocolate Chips: For extra indulgence. I use mini chocolate chips, but you can use full-size if you prefer.
How to Make Banana Mug Cake
Like all mug cakes, this one requires a microwave and a mug. As long as you have those things, this recipe is pretty straightforward.
1. Mash the banana. Mash it directly in the mug. Use a fork for the best results.
2. Add the wet ingredients. Add the egg, melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Mix well.
3. Add the dry ingredients. Stir in the sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Mix until smooth.
4. Add the chocolate. Finally, fold in the chocolate chips, reserving a few to sprinkle on top.
5. Microwave. Microwave the mug on high for 90 seconds to 2 minutes. Once it rises and the top looks set, it’s likely done.
6. Cool and serve. Let the cake cool for 1 to 2 minutes before serving. Then, top it with the reserved chocolate chips, and enjoy!
Tips for the Best Banana Mug Cake
These are my favorite tips for making mug cakes, specifically this one:
- The bigger, the better. Avoid any mug smaller than 12 ounces. A 14-ounce mug works great.
- The riper the banana, the better. Seriously. I really can’t stress this enough. The darker and more spotted your banana is, the better it will taste.
- Mash it up well! Before adding the other ingredients, you want it as lump-free as possible. A lumpy banana will make your cake’s texture less soft and smooth.
- Don’t overcook! It’s okay if the center of your cake is still slightly underdone. As long as the top is set, the middle will firm up while the cake is cooling.
- Add mix-ins. Chocolate chips are great. You can also use chopped nuts, coconut, raisins, dried cranberries, or even cocoa powder!
- Top it off. Toppings are a plus, too! Extra banana slices are always nice. You can add Nutella, chopped nuts, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, and more.
How to Store
You probably won’t have leftovers, but here’s how to preserve them if you do.
To Store: Place the cooled mug cake in an air-tight container or wrap it tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 3 days. You can also refrigerate the uncooked batter for up to 24 hours.
Banana Mug Cake
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kcalThis 5-minute banana mug cake is the perfect pick-me-up! With a ripe banana and a few simple baking ingredients, you can whip up this delicious treat so fast.
Ingredients
1/2 ripe banana, mashed (about 1/3 cup)
1 egg
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch salt
2 tablespoons chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a microwave-safe mug, mash the ripe banana with a fork until smooth.
- Add the egg, melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
- Stir in the brown sugar, flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Mix until you have a smooth batter.
- Gently stir in the chocolate chips, reserving a few to sprinkle on top.
- Microwave on high for 1 minute 30 seconds to 2 minutes, until the cake rises and the top looks set. It’s okay if it’s slightly undercooked in the center as it will continue cooking as it cools.
- Let the cake cool for a minute or two before enjoying. Top with the reserved chocolate chips.
