Mug Cakes - The Lazy Gal's Baking Dream #AllMonthApril

I love a good slice of cake - who doesn't? Don't get me wrong, over recent years I've definitely restrained myself significantly (as you'll know if you've read posts such as this and this) and now love a good workout to kick-start my morning and Nakd bar as an afternoon snack probably more so, but sometimes in life you just have to treat yourself and one of my most-recent discoveries may just be my most convenience-friendly yet...

Introducing - the mug cake. A concept that's been around for a far while now, having been coined by some form of genius sometime in the last decade and made increasingly popular ever since. It really is what it says on the tin - a cake in a mug. The kinda ideal treat, allowing us to make a perfectly-sized single portion of cake that can be made, cooked and demolished all in under half an hour. You most likely have every ingredient you need already stashed away in your cupboards/fridge somewhere and there's minimal washing up afterwards. What's not to love?

It's important to note that this delicacy typically falls under two categories - your typical cake and more of a brownie texture, with the former typically including egg and the latter omitting it. Personally, I prefer the former. Not that I have any sort of aversion to egg or allergy or anything like that but there's just something more appealing to me about the finished result that uses only the basic ingredients (flour, cocoa, sugar, oil, milk etc.). Much more rich, much more gooey and much more indulgent.

Having tried/looked at a far few recipes, they all seem to follow the basic ratio, but here's my personal favourite that I've found to give the gooiest, richest result:

4 Tablespoons Flour

4 Tablespoons Sugar

2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder

2 Tablespoons Oil

2 Tablespoons Water (or you could alternatively use milk)

Pinch of salt

1. Mix together your dry ingredients - flour, sugar, cocoa powder and salt. (If you fancy not making this chocolate-flavoured, substitute the 2tbsp of cocoa powder for another 2 tbsp of flour).
2. Add your oil and water/milk to the dry mix and mix thoroughly until everything is combined and there are no lumps. Of course it is up to you whether you leave it there or add in a cheeky extra or two - chocolate chips, a spoonful of Nutella or peanut butter - the list is endless!
3. Once your mixture is ready, microwave on high for around a minute, though of course different microwaves will vary so to be safe check on your brownie around half way - 30 seconds in. You'll know it's done when the brownie is just cooked on the outside but still squidgy and slightly wet in the middle. The bets part about not including egg is you can be pretty slack on this part!

And that should be your mug brownie done - perfectly cooked but still gooey in the centre. Have you ever tried a mug cake/brownie? I'd definitely recommend it for your next cheat-day treat...