Jamie Oliver has a vast selection of recipes that are straightforward, speedy, and require few ingredients — his mug cake recipe is no exception. Mug cakes are just as they sound: a simple cake batter that’s microwaved in a mug.
Jamie Oliver’s mug cake recipe features banana and chocolate, an excellent way to use up leftover chocolate from Christmas. Despite initial thoughts that the addition of bananas might make the cake dense, the texture was surprisingly good and the taste delightful.
The chef described the recipe, saying: “I’m bigging up the microwave here to create the easiest, most reliable cake in minutes. It’s perfect for those days when you need a warm hug in a mug. Feel free to mix up the flavours.”
The recipe yields enough for four small cups, but with slightly larger cups at hand, it made three. While Jamie suggests that the prep and cooking time for this recipe is 10 minutes, it was possible to whip it up in just under three minutes.
Ingredients
- One small ripe banana
- 75g self-raising flour
- 50g soft brown sugar
- Vegetable oil
- One large free-range egg
- Chocolate of choice (I used broken-up squares of Cadbury Dairy Milk)
Method
Start by peeling a banana and mashing it in a bowl by hand or blitzing it in a food processor. The latter option can speed up the process considerably.
Add the flour with a pinch of sea salt, along with the sugar and four tablespoons of oil.
Crack in the egg and pulse (or whisk) until smooth.
Next, distribute the mixture among four small microwave-safe cups (approximately 200ml) or three larger mugs.
Break the chocolate bar into pieces and press into the mixture, then microwave on high (800W) for one minute, or until it has risen and is gooey in the middle. I discovered that one minute was the ideal time for this mug cake. I only microwaved one of the mug cakes and stored the other two in the fridge for the rest of my family to enjoy the following day.
Once the cake is done, remove it from the microwave and allow it to cool slightly.
The mug cakes are tasty on their own or can be served with a dollop of yoghurt or custard, or a small scoop of ice cream.