The vanilla version to my chocolate mug cake is this very vanilla mug cake! It’s just as easy to make as her chocolate friend and just as light and fluffy! Still has no eggs and fully customizable!
A very vanilla mug cake to rule the land!
If you have been hanging around the blog for a few years now, you’ll know that my chocolate mug cake has been such a hit.
But not everyone is a fan of chocolate, which is quite shocking.
That’s always the age-old question, right? “Chocolate or vanilla?”
So if you are a vanilla lover, here is the vanilla mug cake version of the chocolate mug cake!
Honestly, several of people asked for one and honestly, it wasn’t a bad idea.
It’s like having chocolate and vanilla ice cream flavors to choose from.
Sometimes you’re wanting chocolate, some days you’re wanting vanilla. Same deal for mug cakes, right?
What is a mug cake?
I still seem to get this question a lot and a mug cake is literally as it sounds. A cake that is made in a mug!
It’s great because you don’t need to whip out a bunch of tools to make this simple mug cake.
This vanilla mug cake is made without eggs. Why?
Okay, I get asked this a lot too and the reason why this mug cake is made without any eggs is because that is what makes it have a spongey texture!
If you think about it, it makes sense. Why would you put an entire egg into a mug cake when a regular full-sized cake often asks for one or two eggs?
This isn’t a full-sized cake. And of course I’m not going to ask you to divide an egg in half.
Just omit it! Best texture, ever!
Can I make this with self-raising flour?
You can, but I tested it with self-raising flour and it just came out spongey and not the texture I wanted.
I like my cakes light, fluffy, and moist and with the self-raising flour, it just didn’t yield the results I wanted.
There have been many people who have used self-raising flour in this recipe and didn’t notice a difference so if you’re up for the challenge, I say go for it.
Can this mug cake be made in the oven?
No, this was solely developed for the microwave. I have had readers who have baked this but I honestly recall how it turned out and/or what temperature or time.
What is different about this vanilla mug cake vs. your chocolate mug cake?
Well, for one, the most obvious: this is vanilla, not chocolate!
Additionally, this mug cake takes slightly longer to “bake” since the batter is thicker than the chocolate mug cake one.
Also, this vanilla version is easier to be built upon (or at least I think so) – add chocolate chips to it, a dollop of peanut butter, a dollop of nutella, anything!
I mean, what you can put on a cupcake, I’m sure you could put in this :)
If you love mug cakes, you may like these different variations on my vanilla mug cake:
This is basically vanilla cake in a mug! Grab your mug and get the recipe below!
The Moistest Very Vanilla Mug Cake
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.
- In a measuring cup, whisk together milk, vanilla bean paste, and vanilla extract.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients then pour the milk mixture into the center, followed by the melted butter.
- Whisk until no lumps remain and batter is smooth and well combined.
- Pour into a 16-ounce microwave-safe mug.
- Microwave on high for 130 seconds or 2 minutes and 10 seconds.
- Carefully remove and enjoy!
Thank you for this recipe. I made it exactly as written and it was delicious!!!
I would like to make several other flavors ‘ like apple — peach— maybe pineapple — or red cake — I guess I could just add red coloring to the white cake– but need help with the others– thanks
help!! i made it exactly as said, but it’s a spongey mess that didn’t rise at all.
I’m surprised there is no need for egg! I don’t know what wattage my microwave is,so I assumed it was really high and stopped the microwaving at 80 seconds. I think the key is to not overmicrowave it. I took it out when the top wa separating from the sides.Mine was soft and only slightly fluffy but not at all spongey. Tastes like a super soft underbaked fluffy sugar cookie but without eggs! The bottom is definitely more dense. I could have left it in for another 10 seconds. Super yummy.
Is the vanilla bean paste necessary (or could you sub something)? I always have everything else on hand, and they don’t sell it at any grocery store around me.
Thanks!
Becca
Hi, I address this in the recipe notes below.
This recipe is amazing! Five stars from me! I double double this recipe, and instead of butter, I used melted coconut oil. Works better than I thought XD I recommend this recipe. I also used spelt flour instead of AP flour, and it worked out great. So spongey!
It dose not work I whisked for 3 mins and still found flour at the bottom
That’s not the recipe not working; that’s you not whisking/mixing correctly.
Hm… I did everything as instructed and ended up with a dense and gelatinus result… I wouldn’t even call is spongy… It was almost a gummy texture. Like vanilla flavored gummy bears… How on Earth did that happen???
What Could you substitute for vinilla paste?
Please read the recipe notes. I have this specific question answered already in there.
I used Mexican vanilla extract. I didnt have vanilla bean paste, but that mexican vanilla made up for it! So so good! Oh and I added dark chocolate chips. I mean. Yeah. This is dangerous…
Made this during a commercial break and it tastes soooooo good! Thank you so much!!
Thanks for the recipee, followed to the T
Dint work for me, well I alwz taste the batter before putting it to bake, & this tasted like flour & I somehow felt may b after microwaving it would definitely acquire the magical taste, but unfortunately ended up with a not at all spongy, bland , grumpy looking cake in the mug which tasted under baked
Could be my fault in the whisking techniques though
I made this rexipe today and it was amazing. Very sponge and delicious, I really recommend it, thanks for sharing.
this is my go to recipe. however i did change a few things. I only had bisquick so I used tht instead of flour i didnt add the vanilla bean paste I stopped adding the vanilla extract I just put in French Vanilla creamer 2 tbs along with milk 4 tbs . and I add chocolate chips at the end and I put it in thw microwave at 2 min. it comes out delicious . I have been using this recipe for 2 years
I am eating my mug cake right now, and it actually turned out alright! Super fluffy, light, classic sponge cake texture. I didn’t have vanilla bean paste so I just used extra vanilla extract. My only fault was that it wasn’t sweet enough, I definitely added the right amount of sugar but it’s probably just my sweet tooth. I topped it with a scoop of Nutella to compensate :) I will definitely be trying this again with extra sugar. Thank you for this recipe! I loved it :D
Not too bad. It’s a nice sweet treat, albiet a little doughy(not like raw dough, more like a gooey pancake). I did the 1T vanilla as I didnt have paste. I also used oil instead of butter. I also added a packet of stevia and 1t of cinnamon to the recipe.
This was a mediocre rice pudding at best. It did not taste good. It’s way too moist and the milk is excessive. I did not enjoy eating this.
Mmmmm oh goooodness!!!!! Soooo yummy!!!!
Oh my gosh this cake was the best tasting thing I’ve had all week!! It was so easy to make and was cute with a couple of sprinkles.
I made this recipe and I followed it exactly, but it turned out really floury & had a weird texture.
I absolutely love this vanilla mug cake recipe. It is so easy to make and incredibly delicious. I’ve made this recipe countless times and it always turns out amazing. This mug cake far exceeds a box mix any day. Thank you for this super quick and yummy recipe. FYI..The chocolate mug cake is outstanding too!
Man I really enjoyed this! I substituted almond milk for dairy and used a butter substitute as I’m lactose intolerant, and it turned out wonderfully! Thanks for putting this out there
Can you multiply the dry ingredients so you can just put 1/4 cup in a mug and add the milk, butter, oil? Adding all of these for one mug as you need it is as much trouble and time consuming as if you made a whole cake.
The mug cake was delicious but it took a long time to get the lumps out But it was still delicious but I would recommend to my friends
So happy to find this recipe – THANK YOU!! I am a vanilla girl…not a chocolate fan. This cake is so light and yummy; very easy to make. I used almond milk (because that’s all we have in the house) and added 2 Tbsp of some fresh blueberries I had stashed in my freezer (just dropped them on top of the batter before microwaving and gave a light swirl with a knife). 😊
this was perfect!
I really doubted this recipe, but i tried it because i love cake and i dont like waiting for the cake to bake. I made the batter which only took about 5 minutes! I put it in the microwave and i thought it wouldnt work. I took it out and i was so shocked it worked!! I ate it with hersheys syrup, This recipe tastes better than oven baked cake and extremly easy! I will definitely do it again also I recommend this recipe for everyone.
The texture of this mug cake was incredible! It was so fluffy and soft. The only thing that could be improved for me is a little more sugar! I am one of those people with a crazy sweet tooth, so next time I make it I will add a bit more!
I enjoyed mi e and liked the flavor. I could not wait I didn’t add any frosting or powder suger on the top.
I heard some comnwnts it wasnt fluffy or a glumoy mess so in their cases either over or under cooked. But, for me thank you, it was perfect!!🌷
The texture was doughy and the cake was tastless.It just tasted like flour and baking soda
Surprising it tasted like baking soda when baking soda isn’t even part of the ingredient list…
Baking powder added not soda
Oof!
No where near enough flour in this recipe. Crepe batter that turned into slimy, gummy hockey puck. I knew it was a fail before I even put it in the microwave, but hoped for it to work out. It didn’t.
Far, far too high flour to sugar ratio. The texture was fine, and if it had any flavor other than just flour I’m certain it would’ve been lovely. I think next time I’ll work this general concept around a different recipe with the flour to sugar ratio you find in most cakes.
HO MY GOD You are not kidding THIS MUG CAKE IS FANTASTIC!!!! Best mug cake texture EVER!! Thank you for this recipe. I will definitely keep this one forever for those random mug cake cravings. Thank you!!
It was sooo good
I really wanted to love this recipe, as I LOVE your chocolate cake mug, but this came out super doughy and dense despite following the directions to a T. A lot of people have seemed to get theirs to either be amazing, or spectacularly fail like mine. I wonder what’s causing the difference?
Microwave differences, mixing (how much or little you are mixing the batter)?
Very good turned out better then all the other mug cakes I’ve tried
Delish! I used homemade vanilla, and tossed in peanut butter. So good!
I have made a tender white cake with 4 egg whites and buttermilk for years and this mug cake is every bit as tender and delicious! Thanks for a great recipe! We had amazing fresh local strawberries and no cake and this white cake was perfect! I used a tsp of 4 fruit jam instead of the vanilla bean paste. It came out great!
I’ve made this recipe and the chocolate version multiple times. It’s my go to whenever I’m craving something sweet and it always comes out perfect. My favorite addition is pb2 and topping with chocolate syrup after it’s cooked. Amazing!
This was really good and easy thanks for sharing
The recipe was a little spongy/doughy but I melted some chocolate chips on top and added milk over it once it was cooked and it tasted really good!
delicious 🥰 i used olive oil (reduced to 1.5 tbsp) and added cinnamon and some chocolate chips
This is a very dangerously delicious recipe…no longer is there a reason to not eat the whole cake! Why did I not know about this before? My very old 600 watt microwave probably needed an extra 10-15 seconds to cook through 100%- but at 70 seconds the top 80% was amazing and the very bottom was still raw batter. I will tweak it a bit and perhaps try a different mug. Thanks so much for the recipe. I will try the vanilla one very soon.
My microwave is 750 watts and I couldn’t get the cake to rise. It’s delicious flavor, but a spongey mess.
I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out completely flavorless and way too spongy. Honestly do not try this.
Well, that was a bust. I’m a huge fan of your moistest chocolate mug cake, so I thought I’d try this out. This batter was not heavy as it was described, but runny. That’s probably why it turned out as wet and undercooked as it did. The microwave is a 1000W oven, so it shouldn’t have been the cooking time. Even with increasing the time, the batter never got past the wet sponge consistency. Bummer. I’ll have to try again with less milk, maybe, and see what happens. (the chocolate recipe, though…that is a keepr!)
Hi!
Please don’t be offended as I love your recipes and have recreated them successfully. But even when I followed the instructions to the T my cake was a rubbery gelatinous gummy lump ☹️ It remained wet and sticky no matter how much I tried to dry it out by microwaving.
I really want this recipe to work.
So could you tell me what are the pressure points where I could have gone wrong?
Does the over whisking cause this?
If so how much to whisk?
Will be highly obliged if you reply back
Thanks & regards.
Hi, definitely not offended. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you. Over-whisking could cause this. It’s honestly so incredibly hard to diagnose what went wrong because there are so many factors that could cause this and since I’m not really there with you, I can’t say for certain. Maybe try less liquid if it’s remaining wet.
Great recipe! I didn’t have vanilla bean paste, but it was still a great recipe than all the other ones I’ve made. Tip***for a frosting type thing, I melted choc chips with peanut butter for a Reese’s frosting type thing!
I just made this for strawberry shortcake tonight and was very impressed. I mixed it a bowl and divided it into 2 custard cups and nuked it for the 2 min 10 secs..it came right out of the cups and we loved it. Thank you for your recipe.
I have made countless mug cakes but never a vanilla one. I found this online, and based on reviews it looks promising. I assure you, it is not! I attempted the recipe exactly as described, more than one time. Each time, the 16 ounce mug was way too small to accommodate the ingredients and the mug cake was liquefied after over two minutes and 30 seconds in a very powerful microwave. I highly recommend against this cake as you will ultimately just waste ingredients and end up with nothing savory or delicious to eat.