-I'm Mary Beth Albright with The Washington Post.
There has never been a better time in human history
to make and eat a mug cake.
It is a cake made entirely in a mug
that comes together in two minutes,
and you can make them
in any kind of variation for picky eaters.
It's a party in a mug!
We all like different things.
That is the beauty of being human.
So I've made one base mug cake recipe with infinite variations.
You can turn it into a chocolate cake,
a chocolate and peanut butter cake,
peanut butter-jelly cake, chocolate chip cake,
strawberry cake, blueberry muffin -- It's insane!
-- because sometimes you just want hot cake now.
First thing you need -- a mug.
It's best to have one that is one shape all the way down.
If it's smaller at the bottom or at the top,
the cake won't cook evenly.
Today I'm making two mug cakes -- one for me and one for you.
This is my kind of baking because none of it
has to be really exact.
I'm just doing 1/4 cup of flour in each mug.
And now we're putting in a tablespoon of sugar.
This morning I couldn't find my tablespoon measure,
so I'm doing 3 teaspoons, which equals a tablespoon,
which blows some people's minds.
It's like, "Whoa!"
And you notice I'm not doing, like,
exact measuring like people do usually for baking
'cause this is a very loosey-goosey,
easy-breezy kind of thing.
So now we're doing 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder in each mug.
Now look.
Baking powder helps the cake rise,
so if your baking powder's a little old,
maybe your cake won't rise as much,
but it's still gonna be great.
And 1/4 teaspoon of salt in each mug.
The measurements I'm giving you right now are for one mug cake.
You could make a dozen of these at once or just set up a bar.
So, what we have here are two vanilla cakes.
This is your base recipe.
But maybe you feel like chocolate tonight,
or this morning if you're eating chocolate cake in the morning.
No judgment.
So you just put 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa
powder into the mug that you want to be a chocolate cake.
And now you whisk it right in the mug.
I have a small whisk that fits in the mug,
but if you don't, a fork is fine.
And you just want to combine them.
You know, doesn't need to be perfect.
And now we get to the wet ingredients.
This is 1/4 cup of just regular milk that you pour into each mug
and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract in each mug.
Now, look, if you don't have this around the house,
don't worry about it,
but it does give the cake a nice smell and great flavor.
And a tablespoon of melted butter into each.
Now, look, if you don't have butter, you can use oil,
but butter really does it a really good flavor.
This time when you stir it, you want to use a spoon
because you want to get all the flour
around the sides of the mug.
You know I'm gonna lick the spoon,
and I know you are, too,
and, like, let's just be authentic, okay?
♪ Now comes the fun part ♪
The creative part, which is setting up a mix-ins bar.
You know, one thing that I have done is put a splash of vinegar
and some red food coloring into the chocolate one,
and all of a sudden, it's a red velvet cake.
You can put a little cream cheese in the middle.
I have some great black raspberry jam and peanut butter
that you can put right in the middle
and it turns into a peanut butter and jelly cake.
I'm gonna do sprinkles in this one.
Ooh!
That was a heavy pour.
And you can leave it on top, or you can stir it in.
I like the way it looks, so I'm gonna leave them on top.
Oh, I want to do a chocolate surprise in this one,
and I'm feeling dark chocolate today,
so I'm gonna put a couple of these little dark
chocolate disks right in the middle.
So, this one's chocolate, dark chocolate, funfetti.
That's -- I'm good with that.
This one -- I'm gonna make this one peanut butter and jelly --
chocolate, peanut butter, and jelly.
I just put stuff on top, but, remember, you can stir stuff in.
If you're in a fruity mood, go for the blueberries.
Go for the strawberries. Go for both.
And now you put the mug in the microwave for one minute.
Hot cake now.
Ohh.
Mm.
Now you put this mug in the microwave for a minute.
The great thing about this is everybody gets what they want.
There's no whining!
Let's meet our cake.
Ooh!
Hello, cake!
When you want warm cake at home right now,
it has to be quick and it has to be exactly the way you want it.
I like the peanut butter and jelly chocolate cake
exactly the way it is,
but I feel like this needs more of a party on it.
Alright.
I'm gonna put some whipped cream on top of my funfetti cake.
And since this is for an adult,
I've got my vodka-soaked cherries
that I've been soaking since Christmas.
Oh, come on.
Right on top. Boop!
I know I said one of these is for you,
and in my heart, it is, but right now
I'm gonna take a bite of each.
Mmm. Oh, my gosh.
The whipped cream on top is inspired!
And I'm gonna dig a little deeper
for our chocolate surprise.
Oh, there it is.
Here's peanut butter and jelly.
The salt is really good in this one, too.
You don't notice it as much in the vanilla,
but in the chocolate, you really notice it.
Warm cake now -- delicious, satisfying,
and exactly what I wanted.
Very little cleanup.
Everyone gets their own.
I'm Mary Beth Albright with The Washington Post,
reminding us that there's always something to celebrate.