This chocolate pumpkin mug cake is rich, chocolatey, loaded with pumpkin flavor - and ready in 5 minutes! Oh, and it's vegan friendly and oil free too.
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I debated whether to call this recipe a chocolate pumpkin mug cake or a pumpkin mug brownie. I landed on mug cake, but you can call it whatever you like. 😉
I had been obsessed with the Instructables eggless mug brownie for a few weeks, but with two tablespoons of oil in each serving, I just had to break up with it.
In the spirit of Fall, I thought a pumpkin inspired mug cake would be delicious, and wondered if maybe I could shave some calories off of that brownie recipe by using pumpkin instead of oil.
Well, after a few tries it finally worked!
But I wouldn't exactly call this a healthy recipe. It's a dessert, after all. But it is healthy-ish, which means it's at least a little healthier than a traditional brownies.
This pumpkin dessert is both vegan and oil-free. But you won't miss any of the flavor - the richness is replaced with pumpkiny-ness. (Sure, that's a word now!)
And if that's not good enough for you, well, I threw in some dark chocolate chips for you too.
What You'll Need
Alright, let's make a delicious pumpkin mug brownie! You will need the following ingredients - all simple things that you probably have in the pantry:
- sugar
- flour
- pumpkin puree
- non-dairy milk
- cocoa powder
- dark chocolate chips
- pumpkin pie spice
- salt
Making the Pumpkin Mug Cake - Step by Step
Then it's time to get baking! Do we still call it baking, if it's done in the microwave? Let's pretend we do.
Combine all the ingredients in a big oversized mug. I used a latte mug, because they tend to be really big.
If you don't have, one you can use a small bowl instead. I won't tell anyone that you made your mug cake in a bowl.
Unlike traditional mug cakes, this one doesn't rise very much, so it won't make a mess in the microwave.
Stir the ingredients together. It will be thick and a little bit hard to stir, but be persistent and stir until everything is well combined.
Microwave the mug cake until the top is dry. It takes a minute and a half in my microwave, but I'd check after one minute and cook 15 seconds at a time after that.
At this point, your chocolate pumpkin mug cake is ready to eat. But it's not the prettiest thing, I admit. So I topped with some dairy free vanilla ice cream and a sprinkle of extra pumpkin pie spice!
That's better, right?
This pumpkin mug brownie is best shared. It's pretty decadent, y'all. If you don't share it, you'll probably regret it in a few minutes. Believe me, I speak from experience.
Tips & Tricks
I've used both vanilla soymilk and unflavored Silk coconut milk in this recipe, with good results. Of course, if you are not concerned with keeping the recipe vegan, regular milk works just fine.
You can also replace the dark chocolate chips with caramel chips or white chocolate chips for a new spin on this mug cake.
If you prefer a sugar-free version, you can use stevia or a bit of agave syrup instead.
I topped mine with ice cream, but you can also try topping your mug cake with coconut flakes or chopped nuts. Yum!
More Mug Cakes
And if you love this pumpkin mug cake, be sure to check out these other tasty ideas:
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- ¼ cup white sugar (organic for vegan-friendly)
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoon pumpkin puree, either homemade or canned
- 2 tablespoon non-dairy milk, such as almond milk
- 1 tablespoon dark chocolate chips
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, plus extra for garnish
- a pinch of salt
- vanilla ice cream, optional, for serving
Instructions
- Stir together all ingredients in a latte mug or small bowl.
- Microwave for 1 minute; continue to microwave at 15 second intervals until top of brownie is dry.
- Top with ice cream and extra pumpkin pie spice before serving, if desired.
Kiran @ KiranTarun.com says
Oh my, it looks so delish! I need to add pumpkin puree in my mug cake recipe. Love the illustrations, so cute 🙂
Kiersten says
I love pumpkin puree! I'm always trying to think of new things to do with it and this is definitely my current favorite. 🙂
Jennifer H says
that looks so good!
Nicole says
Eating this right now--so good!!
Kiersten says
Yay, I'm so glad you like it!
Stephanie @ henry happened says
I have been wanting to try a mug brownie - and of course pumpkin makes it so much better!! 🙂 I pinned this last night and CANNOT wait to try it
Kiersten says
I hope you like it! I made it again last night. Chris isn't usually a fan of the whole mug dessert thing, but he loves this one too.
Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen says
Instant gratification, who doesn't love that!
Alaine @ My GF & DF Living says
It doesn't get much better than this! yum, yum!
Carolyn says
Okay, brilliant. I think I need to come up with a low carb pumpkin mug brownie (mine will inevitably include butter, though). Because I want. Bad.
Kiersten says
Ooh, I want to see it--you need to post that! 😀
edina says
oh, this looks so delicious! great recipe. i will have to try it, as my mouth waters just by looking at the pics. yet, wanted to check quickly with you, if you can do these in the oven? i do not use a microwave. any suggestions on how long they have to bake in the oven? thanks 🙂
Kiersten says
I haven't done these in the oven, so I can't say for sure. I can't see any reason why it wouldn't work, though. I'd try baking at 350 degrees and cook for maybe 8-15 minutes (watching closely, of course!).
Genevieve says
I tried a mug cake once but I didn't really like the texture. I'll have to give them another shot because I still like the idea of them, especially a pumpkin version! This one sounds like a decadent dessert and would be great with the ice cream on top...I'm not a big fan of brownies though, so if you come up with a non-chocolate version, I'd give that a try!
Kiersten says
This one definitely has a different texture too, although I think it's more from the fact that it uses pumpkin instead of oil! I was actually thinking of giving it a try without the cocoa. Maybe it would be like pumpkin cake?
Genevieve says
Sounds good to me - I would take pumpkin cake over chocolate cake any day!
Mary @ Fit and Fed says
Wow, nice graphics, and color and text coordinated with the photos, very pro! I have to admit I haven't tried the whole microwave baking thing, and probably won't until I get a microwave that rotates the food properly-- everything's a little dicey with it until then. But I have had the experience you describe of trying to get a baked good just a little more healthy and then having to back off. I was sort of infamous in the family for that-- only took me about a decade's worth of meh birthday cakes to learn when to try to make it healthier and when to just go with it.
Kiersten says
Thank you! I am more of a cook than a baker, so I have difficulty making baked goods healthier too. With cooking, you can operate more on instinct, so I'm comfortable with that. Baking requires precision! I have to say, the healthier brownie did taste good, but the texture was strange and the appearance was even worse!
Shirley says
Must . . . stay . . . away. Any brownie that can be microwaved and ready to eat in a flash is just bad news for me and my goal to keep fitting in my pants. Tempting, though! And the addition of pumpkin is intriguing.
Kiersten says
Yeah, it's definitely dangerous. Pretty much the only thing that keeps me eating brownies everyday is laziness. But now that I can microwave them? Game-changer. And not in a good way.
Kelly @ Texas Type A Mom says
This looks so simple and I never would have thought to pair pumpkin and chocolate! Trying this as soon as I buy some chocolate. I usually avoid keeping the stuff on hand because I don't handle temptation very well.
Kiersten says
Yeah, I have to do that too. I have a bad day and eat a handful of chocolate chips from the pantry. I have terrible coping skills. Terrible!
Laura (GotChocolate) says
OMG, YUUUUUM!!! I want this NOW!!! BTW, I love all the new things you're adding to your site and how you present the instructions. Eye-catching and FANTASTIC.
😀
Kiersten says
Thank you! I'm trying to post tutorials and informational things on Tuesdays now. People seem to really like them and it's a nice change of pace from the recipe posts!
Lauren says
This was really good! I left out the cocoa powder. Next time I'll use less sugar. Maybe 2 tbsp agave nectar instead of 4 tbsp sugar.
Kiersten says
I'm glad you enjoyed it! Without the cocoa powder (which is a little bit bitter unsweetened), I definitely think that you could get away with less sugar.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
This looks wonderful! I love mug cakes/brownies. I think it's probably impossible to make a truly healthy one but this looks perfect to me!
Kiersten says
I figure as long as I eat healthy most of the time, I can eat things like this some of the time. Right?! 😀
Kimmie says
I made this even healthier by using 1/2 the amount of sugar and a couple packets of stevia... still very good! Do you have an approximate calorie count for the whole thing? I DID share it (thank goodness!) and my 6 year old son loved it too 🙂
I think next time instead of pumpkin/(spice) I'll try it with coconut oil (still very healthy) and coconut flakes just for a fun variation !!!
Kiersten says
I love the idea of using coconut oil! I've also heard from people who have used mashed banana and applesauce instead of the pumpkin, with good results. I'm sorry, I don't have a calorie count, though. But it's definitely not a low cal dessert!
Ericka says
This was so good! Instead of 4 T of sugar, I used 2 T of agave nectar. This makes it a bit healthier without sacrificing much sweetness. Also, the agave nectar added a nice hint of molasses.
Kiersten says
Thanks for the tip! 🙂
mrsblocko says
I made this and wrote about it here. It was super good! I really love mug cakes, particularly ones that don't call for eggs. I'm playing around with the recipe to make a lower sugar version, and one with white chocolate instead of cocoa powder. This has become my go to version of a mug cake. Thank you so much for sharing the recipe!
Kiersten says
I'm glad you enjoyed it--thanks for sharing! 🙂
Daria says
I think that my microwave is a rebel! I made everything as instructed, put it in a microvawe for 1,5 minute, looked - still not dry. One more time to the microvawe for 1 minute - bottom burned, top stil wet! No idea what went wrong? Any ideas?
Kiersten says
With a mug cake like this, it cooks so quickly that microwaving it for an additional minute was probably to much. Next time, microwave it in 15 second increments after the first minute and a half until it's dry on top.
Alexa says
I've been on the hunt for cute ceramic measuring spoons - where did you get yours? They're adorable!
Kiersten says
They were on clearance at Anthropologie last year, so I'm afraid they probably don't sell them anymore!
Krystal says
Can I substitute the sugar with agave nectar?
Kiersten Frase says
I have no idea - I haven't made it like that!
Lily says
I love microwave mug brownies. They're so easy when I want something sweet but don't have anything on hand. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and use full fat and sugar...when you try to make it too healthy, it's just not a brownie any more! Everything in moderation.
Nora says
Oh wow, this seems to be super easy to do! I love chocolate brownies but I don't do them often because I don't want to a lot of them. I'll definitely save this recipe. 🙂