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If you like chocolate mug cake but are looking for a vanilla version, you’ll love this keto vanilla mug cake. It has all the rich flavors of my sugar-free vanilla pudding, but in cake form. It’s sweet and fluffy, with a delicate crumb and burst of vanilla flavor — perfect for any occasion. Whenever you have a craving for a quick, sweet low carb snack, it takes just minutes to prepare a vanilla cake in a mug!
Why You’ll Love This Vanilla Mug Cake Recipe
- Sweet vanilla taste
- Rich and moist cake texture
- Ready in 5 minutes (no oven needed, but there’s an oven option!)
- Sugar-free, gluten-free, grain-free, and keto, with dairy-free and paleo options
- Just 5g net carbs per serving
- The perfect single-serving treat
Ingredients make the difference between moist and delicate mug cakes and dry, rubbery ones. I use Wholesome Yum Blanched Almond Flour and Wholesome Yum Coconut Flour because they both have a super fine consistency, and together create a better texture than one of them alone.
I use Besti Monk Fruit Allulose Blend to sweeten, because it naturally creates super moist cakes. Besti also works the same way in larger baked recipes (like a full-size keto cake) and other keto desserts!
Ingredients & Substitutions
This section explains how to choose the best ingredients for this vanilla cake in a mug recipe, what each one does in the recipe, and substitution options. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
- Coconut Oil – Be sure to measure the oil solid and then melt it. You can also use unsalted butter or ghee.
- Unsweetened Almond Milk – To keep this recipe dairy free, I use homemade almond milk, but you can use store-bought or any other keto milk you prefer.
- Vanilla Bean – I highly recommend using fresh vanilla — I use it sometimes in my almond flour pancakes and it takes the flavor over the top! Vanilla bean paste will also work, but make sure there is no added sugar. If you don’t have either of these, you can use 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract instead. This will be less vanilla flavor than using the bean directly, but adding any more extract would result in an aftertaste from the alcohol in the extract.
- Wholesome Yum Flours – You will need both Wholesome Yum Almond Flour and Wholesome Yum Coconut Flour for this recipe. The blend of these flours together improves the texture. If you’re allergic to one of these, you can just use 6 tablespoons almond flour total or just use 2 tablespoons coconut flour total, but the texture is much better using the combination.
- Besti Monk Fruit Allulose Blend – Makes the cake soft and moist, while tasting just like sugar. If you need a different sugar substitute, use my comprehensive sweetener conversion chart to use the right amounts, but keep in mind that most other options would turn out more dry. Coconut sugar is fine to substitute if you want a paleo mug cake.
- Baking Powder – Make sure it’s fresh so that your cake rises well, and if it’s important to you, double check that it’s gluten-free.
- Sea Salt
- Egg – Use a room temperature egg for the best results. I haven’t tried using an egg substitute, but it would probably work.
How To Make Vanilla Mug Cake
This section shows how to make vanilla cake in a mug, with step-by-step photos and details about the technique, to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
- Melt the coconut oil. Heat the coconut oil in a microwave-safe mug, small bowl, or ramekin in the microwave.
- Add wet ingredients. Stir in almond milk and scraped vanilla bean seeds.
- Add dry ingredients and egg. Add the almond flour, coconut flour, Besti, baking powder, sea salt, and egg. Stir batter until well combined. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon.
- Microwave. Heat in microwave until firm. Serve vanilla microwave cake in a mug with sugar-free whipped cream (or coconut whipped cream for paleo), or frost with your favorite frosting (see ideas below).
VARIATION: Bake in the oven instead.
Make sure to use an oven-safe ramekin or mug, and simply bake at 350 degrees F for 10-15 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Storage Instructions
- Store: Vanilla keto mug cake can store uncovered at room temperature for one day, or in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
- Reheat: Eat cold or at room temperature, or reheat in the microwave and spread a thin layer of butter on top to prevent drying out.
- Freeze: Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in the freezer. Let it thaw in the fridge and then reheat in the microwave until just warm.
Toppings For Keto Vanilla Mug Cake
This cake in a mug is scrumptious all on its own, but for a truly decadent dessert, top it off with the ultimate sugar-free toppings:
- Whipped cream – To keep this keto friendly, use sugar-free keto whipped cream rather than regular whipped cream.
- Frosting – Try keto cream cheese frosting, classic sugar-free buttercream frosting, or even keto chocolate frosting.
- Sweet Sauces – Drizzle sugar-free chocolate syrup, creamy sugar-free Nutella, runny peanut butter, or gooey sugar-free caramel syrup over the top.
- Ice Cream – Top this vanilla cake in a mug with your favorite keto ice cream. Try chocolate or strawberry, or for dairy-free options, coconut milk ice cream or almond milk ice cream.
- Fresh Berries – Sliced strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, or blueberries are all keto friendly.
- Sprinkles – For a colorful finish, top with keto chocolate chips or sugar-free sprinkles!
More Mug Cake Recipes
If you liked this recipe for vanilla cake in a mug, you’ll want to try some of my other mug cake recipes:
Recommended Tools
- Mug – As the name suggests, all you need is a mug. Alternatively, you could use a ramekin.
- Measuring Spoons – These are my absolute favorite measuring spoons. They nest together for storage and fit inside spice jars.
Vanilla Mug Cake
Vanilla Mug Cake (Keto & Gluten Free)
This keto vanilla mug cake recipe takes just 5 minutes, with healthy, simple ingredients like almond flour, coconut oil, and vanilla.
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Ingredients
Tap underlined ingredients to see where to get them. Please turn Safari reader mode OFF to view ingredients.
Instructions
Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.
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Add the almond flour, coconut flour, sweetener, gluten-free baking powder, sea salt, and egg. Stir until well combined. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon.
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Microwave for about 90-120 seconds, until firm. Serve with sugar-free whipped cream (or coconut whipped cream for paleo), or frost with your favorite frosting.
Last Step: Leave A Rating!
Share your recipe picture by tagging @wholesomeyum and hashtag it #wholesomeyum on Instagram, or in our free low carb support group, too – I’d love to see it!
Related Easy Recipes
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 mug cake (entire recipe)
Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.
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156 Comments
Allen
0Hi. Interested to try this recipe. I don’t have a microwave. Can I do it in a conventional oven? If so, what temperature and for how long?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Allen, Yes, you can use an oven. You’ll find those instructions in the post.
Becca
0This was so easy to make and amazing flavor. I have picky eater so it’s hard to find delicious options. I served I with Blueberries. Just wow!!!!
Rose
0I love 5 minutes treat and this mug cake is exactly what I was looking for on a late night craving.
Kris
0So easy, tasty and satisfying! Will make again!
Rebecca
0These are the perfect quick little treats when a craving for something sweet hits! My husband and I have made them probably way too many times. 😂 They are irresistibly easy and so delicious!
Addison
0This mug cake was so quick and easy! Such a great little dessert.
Claire
0Amazing! I ordered your almond flour and your coconut flour and I think they made all the difference! The cakes were light and fluffy.
Mary
0Made this for breakfast this morning. Served with strawberries. Very filling.
Mar
0Delicious and so easy to make 😋
Sunny
0I really liked this recipe, except for a few things. I didn’t really want the “paleo”, so I substituted the oil for butter and the almond milk for cows milk.. HOWEVER, I have yet to find a keto mug cake recipe that taste eggy or bitter (if it’s chocolate)… why do none of these recipe add enough artificial sweetener? I use swerve; should I be using monkfruit instead?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Sunny, I suggest using my Keto Sweetener Guide to make sure you are using enough sweetener. If it is not sweet enough feel free to add a little extra sweetener.
Philip Blosser
0This is the first time I’ve given a rating, but my daughter and I have decided that you are the Julia Childs of Keto! There’s nothing on you site that we’ve made that isn’t absolutely ambrosia! Even this simple microwave-oven recipe. God bless you!
Eric
0As someone who can’t eat sugar, these recipes are phenomenal… I used this as a base for a strawberry shortcake and it turned out fantastic.
Anna
0I followed this recipe with vanilla extract and am not sure if because I used a mini ceramic casserole dish instead of a mug that it wasn’t baking properly on the bottom. It was mushy on the bottom part even after microwaving an additional minute. So I removed it and flipped it on a dish and microwaved another minute. Still was a bit mushy but tasted good and added whipped topping. I will try again in a mug because I know that was definitely the issue.
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Anna, You may have to microwave longer because all microwaves cook a little differently.
Ariane Reeves
0Excellent flavor and texture!
Laura
0Why do several of your cake recipes call for both almond flour AND coconut flower? Can we use just one type for the whole amount or does it affect the taste or consistency of the batter?
Wholesome Yum D
0Hi Laura, Yes, the mixture of the two flours does make the texture of the cake more like wheat flour cake. To replace the coconut flour with more almond flour, you’d need to reduce the almond milk. Coconut flour absorbs a lot of moisture, so the batter would be very liquid without it unless you omit some (or possibly all) of the milk. Unfortunately, I don’t have an exact amount to use, since I haven’t experimented with that version yet.
Alice
0Can I use vanilla paste instead of the bean?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Alice, Yes that will work just fine. Just be sure to watch out for sugars in vanilla bean paste if you are low carb or keto.
Lori
0Wow! This is so good exactly as the recipe states. I undercooked mine by about 10 seconds because I like it moist. Ate it with the cream cheese icing and blueberries. This is going to get me through a lot of hard craving days! Thank you!
Lucy
0This was great ! I used whipping cream
Instead of almond milk, doubles the vanilla
Extract , loaded it with bake believe white chocolate chips, and made a frosting by whipping heavy cream to stiff peaks. It was great with my coffee
Emily Boronkay
0This is fantastic. I make it with vanilla extract.
Thank you for saying to smooth it with a spoon because following the directions, my ‘batter’ is soupy. I have ended up adding an extra tbsp of coconut flour every time I have made it. Possibly a large egg here is larger than yours. But that extra tbsp creates a batter and 90-100 seconds later I have deliciousness!
Thank you
Karl
0Thanks for the recipe. I replaced the almond milk with pumpkin I had on hand and added some pumpkin pie spices. It was converted to a decent fall treat. I’d experience more to perfect it but it was a good start.
Di
0YUMMY thank you I needed something sweet and this was perfect
April
0This mug cake was so simple to make, yet tasted so good! I cooked it for 90 seconds and the texture was perfect – not too moist or too dry. I used vanilla extract and included a few sugar free mini chocolate chips. The bits of gooey chocolate with the vanilla made a great flavor combo. I think next time I may try lemon extract with a few blueberries. I can’t wait to try the chocolate version!
Amber
0I didn’t have vanilla beans, but I saw “cake batter” flavoring in the store and used 1/4 teas. of it in place of the vanilla. Used powdered erythritol mixed with some cream and a drop of vanilla. Made it very yummy! I will definitely try it with vanilla beans.
Eve
0This worked much better the second time, when I didn’t forget the baking powder. I won’t make that mistake again, although it still tasted good. Next time I think I’ll cook it longer, based on the suggestions to other people who had problems with gooey bottoms or centers. My microwave must be less powerful than some others. I was too lazy to make cream cheese frosting this time, so I just spread on a bit of plain cream cheese. Maybe next time I’ll make the frosting.
Also, as one other person commented, it is large enough to be supper by itself, unless you have someone to share it with.
Anthea Herring
0Flavor was good, but I misjudged the size of the container needed and it nearly blew up in the microwave lol. I used a capful of Madagascar vanilla and it was delightful!
Pinchi
0I am new to keto. This was a real treat for me as I love vanilla cake. My husband loved it too! Thank you
Staci
0This really hit the spot! WholesomeYum continues its track record of GREAT recipes!
Only flaw was it was about twice as big as I needed, so it became dinner when I should’ve been eating meat & veggies. 😉
next time I’ll cut it in half and save half for tomorrow. 🙂
Karen Whyte kemlo
0What did I do wrong? Tested like an egg that had been hard scrambled.. Soggy but tough…. Not a cake texture… Followed the recipe exactly I’m sure it’s something I’ve done wrong…
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Karen, It sounds like your mug cake overcooked. I would shorten the cook time closer to the 90 second mark.
M
0I have been looking at recipes for mug cake for a while. I’m following a low carb diet due to being diagnosed with diabetes. Well, I gave in and tried this tonight. I shared it with my 13 year old son. We both loved it. It was so tasty and the recipe was easy to follow. I didn’t have vanilla pods so I used your advice and used sugar free vanilla extract I found on Amazon. I’m trying to look for your book on Amazon as I will definitely buy it. What is it called? Thank you again for sharing this recipe
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi M, I’m so glad you loved the recipe! The book is called The Easy Keto Cookbook. You can get it through the link.
Lily
0The vanilla definitely came through, but unfortunately so did the egg. I did measure the other ingredients out, and suppose large is a relative term for egg size – maybe putting a metric or imperial measurement of a beaten egg would help?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Lily, It would be really difficult to find the perfect sized egg every time.
Sue
0I made French Toast for my non-keto family and I struggled to not eat any, so I tried this for the first time. I added a bit of maple extract and the vanilla extract (no vanilla bean) it was great! Instead of frosting I melted some butter with Lakanto monk fruit syrup and poured it over. Yum! Craving satisfied! I believe the coconut flour further nailed it for me. I get tired of almond flour. Love your blog and the book!
Sr. Mary Magdalene
0Your recipes are so simple, fast and with few ingredients. I have made Paleo tortillas, strawberry shortcake in a mug and want to try donuts-but have no donut pan. Thanks so much
Nicole
0Like most people, I tend to experiment. I have already tried a couple different other mug cakes and they were drier than I preferred. This one looked intriguing to me. I made the following changes. I used butter instead of coconut oil, I used honey as my sweetener and I used diary free creamer for my milk (coconut and almond). I also did an almond extract flavor instead. I am def going to try this with lemon extract too. Regardless, it was very moist and tasty and filling. Thanks!
Kristin
0So yummy! I topped mine with a thin layer of sugar-free strawberry preserves. I will definitely be making this again!
Eric
0I made an anise icing for this mug cake. Tablespoon of sweetener teaspoon of water quarter teaspoon of anise extract and one-and-a-half tablespoons of cream cheese. I allowed the mug cake to cool a bit inverted it on a plate, and drizzled the icing over it. With a mug of coffee it was excellent. I found that waiting a few minutes before microwaving the mug cake, it Rose a little higher in a mug making it lighter in texture.
Ginny
0I did a trial run on the Vanilla Mug Cake using the suggested amount of vanilla until I can get the beans and everything else as listed. The icing was great and the cake flavor pretty good (I really am looking forward to those vanilla beans)! But I think the texture of mine turned out a bit spongy compared how the photo looks. Any suggestions for that cakier texture?
Wholesome Yum M
0Hi Ginny, If you are looking for a cakier texture, you can add a small amount of coconut oil or butter. Around 1 tsp should help.
Chantelle Weiss
0This is one of our favorite family desserts, it’s so easy to throw together and tastes amazing. I make some homemade whipped cream to out on top, the perfect afternoon sweet treat or fantastic dessert. Yum!
Kisa
0We have made this several times. My daughter and her best friend (they’re 13) just made these for a family dinner and everyone but the dads wolfed them down. To say they’re delicious is an understatement.
Ivie
0I was so suspicious of this mug cake concept but I must say it is actually THE best keto pastry I’ve ever had! I’ve bookmarked this recipe to my home screen. Ugh I’m in love
April
0Tried this today but instead of using vanilla I used a little less than 1/2tsp banana extract and added about 4 walnut halves chopped. First taste of banana I’ve had since starting keto 6 months ago. Super moist and tasty! Thank you
Sierra
0I tried this and it turned out a bit eggy! What type of sweetener (powdered or granulated) should I have used? Even though it was eggy, it still tasted good. Just had a strange texture!
Wholesome Yum A
0Hi Sierra, this recipe uses granulated monk fruit allulose blend (I always specify powdered if a recipe calls for it, though). The texture is definitely different than a conventional cake because of the rapid cook time.
Kassandra S Hunt
0I absolutely adore all of your recipes. The mug cakes (chocolate and now vanilla) have really made a huge difference in keeping me on a low carb diet. Wholesome Yum is my go to website to find delicious food that complements my lifestyle. I have preordered your book and look forward to having all of those yummy recipes at hand. Thank you! Thank you!
Maureen
0Hope you can help me. In a lot of your recipes you put ‘tablespoons’ Do I put a heaped tablespoon in or just a level one? I follow a lot of your recipes but that is the one thing that fazes me ! Therefore I’m a little unsure when it comes to this recipes or any cake making. I’ve ordered your book off Amazon just hope it comes through to the U.K , can’t wait !!!
Maya | Wholesome Yum
0Hi Maureen, It would be a measuring spoon sized 1 tablespoon, and you’d measure it level, not heaped. Hope this helps! Thank you SO much for ordering my book – it means a lot to me – and yes, it’s available on Amazon UK as well. 🙂
Yvette
0Oh my goodness this recipe is fantanstic!!
I was searching to make my husband a treat for his birthday but still stay Keto and this hit the nail on the head!
Thank you so much.
Julia
0This was the best texture keto mug cake recipe!!! I have tried many-all of which are too oily, too dry, or flavorless! This recipe hits the nail on the head. 10/10
Mela
0Best vanilla mug cake i have ever make!! So fluffy and delicious. The flavour and texture is so incredible i wish i could eat 3 more haha! I only put half tbs of sugar as i added 1 scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. And turned out perfect! I can definitely see myself making this every weekend.
Kathy
0It raised really awesomely in the first minute, then collapsed. Any thoughts as to why?
Wholesome Yum
0Hi Kathy, the sudden temperature change in the batter helps your cake rise quickly, but it can also cause sinking. It can also happen if your baking powder is too old, so check to make sure it’s fresh!
Marsha
0If I won’t use coconut flour, should I increase the almond flour a bit?
Wholesome Yum
0Hi Marsha, I’ll share my reply from another commenter who asked the same question: “To replace the coconut flour with more almond flour, you’d need to reduce the almond milk. Coconut flour absorbs a lot of moisture, so the batter would be very liquid without it unless you omit some (or possibly all) of the milk. Unfortunately I don’t have an exact amount to use, since I haven’t experimented with that version yet.” Let me know if you try it!