Easy Microwave Brownie in a Mug
When we’re craving something chocolatey, but just don’t have the patience to bake, this brownie in a mug recipe is where we turn. Within five minutes, you’re in chocolate brownie heaven. One mug is usually enough for the two of us to share — especially when we top it with a big spoonful of ice cream or whipped cream. Jump to the Brownie in a Mug Recipe
Chocolate Brownie Quick Fix: How to Make a Brownie in a Mug
There are lots of mug cakes, mug brownies and mug cookies around the internet, so I guess we’re not the only ones who need a quick fix every once in a while. This recipe for chocolate brownie in a mug is our favorite. It’s easy, quick and while it doesn’t rival our absolute favorite brownie recipe, it does quench our chocolate cravings.
Making a mug brownie only takes 5 minutes. You can mix everything in the mug itself, but we’ve found that doing everything in separate bowls keeps things less messy when it comes to the sides of the mug. It’s up to you, though!
We start by sifting flour and cocoa powder together — you can whisk them, but sifting really is best. Cocoa powder often has a bunch of lumps and sifting breaks them up.
In another bowl, we mix melted coconut oil, brown sugar, coffee and a little vanilla extract together. We love the flavor coconut oil adds to the brownie, but you can just as easily use butter or other oil. Keep whatever you use light in flavor, though.
Coffee and chocolate work so nicely together — the coffee seems to make the chocolate taste more chocolatey. If you don’t have any on hand, simply use water or milk (dairy or non-dairy).
We love how versatile the recipe is, you really can change it to your liking. If you don’t have unsweetened cocoa powder, you can try hot chocolate mix. Just keep in mind, you may need to reduce the sugar a little.
We whisk everything together until a batter forms then carefully pour it into the mug. Try your best not to drip the batter down the sides of the mug — they overcook in the microwave and make things hard to clean when you are done.
If you do drip, just wipe it clean before microwaving.
We microwave the brownie (without peeking) for 1 minute and 30 seconds. We’ve found any longer just dries the brownie out. You may find you need to tweak timing a little since all microwaves and mugs are going to be a little different.
How to Serve Your Microwave Brownie
You can serve it immediately and eat straight from the mug (just be careful it is really, really hot at first). Or, turn it upside down and place it onto a plate. The brownie is best enjoyed warm and is absolutely amazing when topped with a little salt and ice cream!
Recipe updated, originally posted June 2015. Since posting this in 2015, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear and added a quick recipe video. – Adam and Joanne
Easy Microwave Brownie in a Mug
- PREP
This recipe makes one pretty generous brownie. Adam and I will often split one and enjoy it with a big scoop of ice cream on top. We love the added flavor of coconut oil in our brownie, but you can certainly use something else. Try a lightly flavored, fruity olive oil, grapeseed oil or other neutral flavored oil. Melted butter will work, too. If using coconut oil or butter, we melt them in 10 second bursts in the microwave — and actually use the mug we plan to use for the brownie. Once it is melted, let it cool for 30 seconds before mixing with the egg.
1 generous mug brownie
Watch Us Make the Recipe
You Will Need
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted and not hot (melted butter, lightly flavored olive oil or neutral oil like grapeseed also work)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons coffee, at room temperature (water or milk — dairy or non-dairy)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg (leave out for extra fudgy brownie, see notes below)
Salt, optional
Directions
Sift the flour and cocoa powder together over a bowl.
In another bowl, whisk the melted coconut oil, brown sugar, coffee, egg, vanilla and a very small pinch of salt together until blended then pour into the bowl with sifted flour and cocoa powder. Whisk until combined then carefully pour into the mug.
Clean any drips around the edges of the mug then microwave for 1 minute and 30 seconds to 1 minute and 45 seconds. Serve with a sprinkle of salt on top, if you like. Top with your favorite brownie topping — ice cream is always a good choice.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Egg-Free Mug Brownie: We really enjoy the structure the egg provides, but if you’re looking for a fudgy, more molten brownie or don’t eat eggs, you can eliminate it from the recipe. Instead of an egg, increase the liquid to 4 tablespoons (this can be coffee, water or milk).
- Brown Sugar vs. Granulated Sugar: We use brown sugar in our brownie recipe since it makes the brownie more moist. Granulated sugar will still work well, in fact, the brownie will likely rise a little more in the mug.
- What Mug to Use? Specialty or glazed mugs aren’t your best option when it comes to this recipe. Use a plain, microwave-safe coffee cup that holds at least 12 ounces. We have also noticed the thinner and taller the mug is, the better the brownie rises (like our photos). Don’t worry though, even if your brownie doesn’t rise above the rim of the cup, it should still taste great!
- A note about our microwave: Our microwave is a 1000-Watt microwave. If you have a more powerful microwave, you may want to consider reducing the cook time or power setting.
- Nutrition facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA Supertracker recipe calculator to calculate approximate values.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
Nutrition Per Serving: Serving Size: 1 Mug brownie / Calories 582 / Protein 12 g / Carbohydrate 66 g / Dietary Fiber 4 g / Total Sugars 36 g / Total Fat 34 g / Saturated Fat 26 g / Cholesterol 186 mg
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It was very good, the only critique I have is that you should use more cocoa power or even melt some chocolate for a stronger chocolate-y flavor
Me and my mom were just looking for an easy chocolate recipe.we tried this and it turned out to be absolutely amazing!Thank you Adam and Joanne!
Used the eggless recipe for the more fudgey brownie and it was absolutely delicious!!
Just wondering, I only have self-raising flour, no all-purpose/plain flour, will the recipe still work (just rise more?)
Hi Jane, We’ve never tried self-raising flour in place of the all-purpose. You can try it, but yes, I’d expect that the brownie might rise a little more and be more cake-like in texture.
I used self rising and skipped the egg and it was perfect!
I made this but substituted ingredients to make healthier. It was delicious. I use quest protein powder,coconut sugar, egg whites,almond milk,vanilla & cocoa powder. I left out the oil or butter. Loved it. Next time I will add more liquids. I tried this with coffee it also was great.
This was amazing:)
one of the best “mug” desserts ive ever found! followed the advice of not using the egg, definitely made it so much fudgier! i also have (annoyingly) bland cocoa powder so i chopped up like, a tiny bit of baking chocolate, just one square, and melted it with the coconut oil, and it really made it perfect! thanks for sharing!
This was absolutely delightful!!! I took the advise of sifting, I used an egg, and just kind of eye balled all the other ingredients to your measurements. HOLY COW! I could eat this every day– wishing I had a scoop of vanilla ice cream on hand though… next time!
I truly love it. I made it just a few moments ago as a quick after dinner dessert and it turned out amazing!, I expected it to be like the other mug cakes I’ve tried but this one is truly one to remember. It was soft and flavourful. I substituted for a non-egg version as we don’t eat egg and added extra milk (instead of coffee) which I think made it softer. I definitely recommend this to anyone especially because this is better than all real brownie attempts I’ve made due to its ease. In fact, I’m going to make this as a surprise for my brother tomorrow.
I tried the coffee instead of eggs version and it came out rather good. Sadly, though, it didn’t rise above the rim and I think it needed a bit more than a pinch of salt to really standout.
I made it it was rich and lovely. Will definitely make it again soon.
This is amazing dessert quick and easy to make. Thank you for sharing this brownie in a mug recipe with us.
It WAS SWAGALIOUS
Delicious! I microwaved this for 80 seconds. My microwave is kind of weird though. The top of the brownie was cooked perfectly, but there was still raw batter at the bottom of the mug. Next time I will try a skinnier mug. Five stars!
Wow, I’m pregnant and this was just what I was craving last night. For a microwave brownie, it was perfect. Like a cross between a brownie and a molten chocolate cake. I only made few substitutions. Milk instead of coffee. And honey instead of brown sugar. I halved the honey (because it usually tastes sweeter than sugar) and it was still more than sweet enough. I also used whole wheat flour but the texture was perfect- probably since I had extra moisture from the honey.I made two, one for me and one for my husband but next time we will share. I probably shouldn’t have eaten the whole thing myself!Five stars!
I did the fudgy version of this (eliminating the egg) and its soooooo good in the matter of fact Im eating it right now
Thankyou very much for sharing this