Can you think of any more decadent dessert option than a molten chocolate lava cake? Even just thinking about the perfectly gooey center of melted chocolate surrounded by a moist chocolate crust is enough to get my mouth watering. This recipe aims to deliver that luscious experience in a keto-friendly and incredibly convenient way. This gooey keto molten chocolate lava mug cake is the end result of that endeavor. It packs the delicious flavor of a molten lava cake into a quick and easy to make mug cake recipe. This article explores a simple and satisfying recipe for a keto chocolate lava mug cake, perfect for those following a low-carb lifestyle or anyone craving a quick and delicious chocolate treat.
Why a Keto Lava Mug Cake?
For chocolate lovers on a ketogenic diet, finding satisfying desserts can be a challenge. Traditional lava cakes are loaded with sugar and flour, making them unsuitable for keto. This recipe offers a guilt-free alternative, allowing you to indulge in a warm, gooey chocolate dessert without derailing your diet.
Key Ingredients and Their Benefits
This recipe relies on a few key ingredients to achieve the perfect balance of flavor and texture while keeping the carb count low.
- Sugar-Free Dark Chocolate: You’ll be getting a double-whammy of chocolatey goodness in a totally healthy way thanks to the use of both sugar free dark chocolate and cacao powder. The very first thing that you’ll be doing when making this mug cake is preparing your ooey gooey chocolate lava center. The use of dark chocolate instead of a more sugary option like dairy milk chocolate provides some excellent benefits as well, as polyphenols found in dark chocolate have demonstrated some excellent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Some of you may be thinking that the antioxidant and healthy fat content of dark chocolate sounds great and all, but you’re really not a fan of how bitter it can taste.
- Cacao Powder: I love using raw cacao as a healthy chocolate source because it tastes great and it’s an absolute nutritional powerhouse. Much like the dark chocolate, raw cacao powder contains cocoa polyphenols that have potential benefits that range from helping to prevent cancer to reducing your risk of heart disease by lowering both blood pressure and bad LDL cholesterol levels.
- Egg: Room temperature egg.
- Butter: Add butter to a ramekin or microwave safe mug and microwave for 30 seconds. Swirl the butter around to grease the sides so the cake won't stick when baked.
- Cream Cheese (or Heavy Cream): Originally I used heavy cream for this recipe but today I used cream cheese instead and I like the texture better. You can use either if you want and if you are dairy free you can substitute with coconut milk or coconut cream. I tried half and half once but it made the batter too runny. Add melted butter and heavy cream to a microwave-safe mug. Whisk until fully combined.
- Swerve Confectioners Sweetener: I like powdered sweetener in this recipe and I use Swerve brand as they are my favorite sweetener. However you can use whatever brand you want and if you don’t have a confectioners sugar you can use a granulated sugar sweetener. Make sure to use powdered erythritol and not granular. Granular will not have enough time to melt with the short cooking time. If you don't have any powdered erythritol on hand you can easily grind up the granular in a food process to make it powdered.
- SweetLeaf Vanilla Cream Stevia Drops: I love to add this to make keto desserts because it increases the sweetness level significantly and it adds vanilla flavor. If you only have regular liquid stevia add a ½ teaspoon vanilla extract. Or if you don’t have any stevia you can add more of your sweetener.
Step-by-Step Recipe
This low carb chocolate lava mug cake recipe takes less than 5 minutes to make because you make it in the microwave. Make sure to follow the steps listed for mixing the ingredients in the order I list in the instructions. It will make whisking the batter much easier.
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 ounce cream cheese, softened
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon Swerve Confectioners Sweetener
- A few drops of SweetLeaf Vanilla Cream Stevia Drops
- ¼ of a small bar of Aldi Moser Dark Chocolate or other low-carb chocolate
Instructions:
- You need to use softened cream cheese. If yours is right out of the refrigerator I would suggest putting it into a very small microwave safe dish and microwave for just 15 seconds and it will be softened. Set that aside. NOTE I used to use heavy cream but today I used cream cheese and like it better.
- Add butter to a ramekin or microwave safe mug and microwave for 30 minutes. Swirl the butter around to grease the sides so the cake won't stick when baked.
- Next add in the unsweetened cocoa powder, Swerve sweetener, stevia and softened cream cheese and whisk to combine.
- Next add in egg yolk (not the whites) and mix well again.
- Take the candy bar and break into little pieces.
- Add to the center of cake batter and push in with finger.
- Microwave for 30 seconds and then let cool for a few minutes before eating. It should look like the picture below. You want the texture to be a gooey center from the candy but firm on the top.
Important Notes
- Microwave Wattage: Microwave timings vary according to power level / wattage. I used a 1100 watt microwave. Mine took 70 seconds (900W). Unlike ovens, microwaves cook from the inside out. If you have a lower watt microwave, this will need to cook a little bit longer than 1 minute. Please remember that all microwaves are different, so yours may cook different than mine.
- Chocolate: Your chocolate squares should be about 1 inch x 1 inch. You can add 2-3 (one-inch) squares depending on how much melted chocolate you prefer. I found 2 (one-inch) squares to provide a decent amount of chocolate inside. If you are substituting another chocolate bar or chips make sure it is low in carbs. You only need a little, tiny bit. You can also forgo this step completely and it will still be delicious.
- Sweetener: Make sure to use powdered erythritol and not granular. Granular will not have enough time to melt with the short cooking time.
- Mixing Order: Make sure to follow the steps listed for mixing the ingredients in the order I list in the instructions. It will make whisking the batter much easier.
Serving Suggestions
After it’s done cooking, you can either enjoy your chocolate lava mug cake right out of the ramekin or gently turn it over onto a plate. Whatever you choose, be prepared to indulge in an incredibly decadent and healthy chocolate dessert - all in only three minutes!
Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers
- Toppings: You can top the cake with ice cream, whipped cream, sugar-free syrup or powdered erythritol. You can always add a bit of homemade whipped cream or a few slices of strawberries, but it’s delicious as is. And if you don’t care about carbs, add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the warm cake!
- Flavor Variations: Note for an easy low carb way to change up the flavor you can try flavor extracts like coffee, caramel, coconut, strawberry or almond extracts etc. Or try some instant espresso powder to add more depth of flavor. These add flavor but not calories or carbs. You can also try some creamy peanut butter in the middle or some of their nut butter if you want.
Baking in the Oven
To cook this cake in the oven, I'd go for 180 C / 350F (conventional) and around 9-11 minutes. To bake this cake in the oven, I'd go for 180 C / 350F (conventional) and around 9-11 minutes. This way, you'll get a "proper" molten center. Simply prepare the lava cake as directed, but transfer into a greased, oven safe ramekin. Do not over bake the lava cake. As there is no flour or milk, it can dry up very quickly.
Nutritional Information
The nutritional information for 1 whole keto chocolate lava cake is:
- With chocolate bar: 524 cals / 46.6g fat / 16g carbs / 12.8g fiber / 11.4g protein = 3.2g net carbs
- Without chocolate bar: 484 cals / 43.5g fat / 13.8g carbs / 12g fiber / 10.6g protein = 1.8g net carbs
The estimated nutrition carbohydrates count excludes sugar alcohols. The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist.
Read also: Keto Calorie Counting: A Detailed Guide
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