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Need a personal sized low carb cake for someone special that takes minutes to make? Try this gluten free keto birthday cake. It bakes in only 2 minutes.
Today is the income tax due date in the US, but it’s also a special day for me. I’m another year older and celebrating with a low carb and gluten free birthday mug cake that took two minutes to bake in the microwave.
I admit that this cake baking thing in the microwave didn’t really appeal to me at first, but after seeing a lovely Valentine’s Day mug cake at SugarFreeMom.com, I was sold on the idea. So, I want to thank my fellow low carb blogger Brenda for turning me around.
I didn’t want to spend a lot of time baking a cake for my birthday and I especially didn’t want to have leftovers that I’d be eating after.
I’m the only one in the family who follows a low carb diet so this personal sized keto birthday cake was perfect for me. It makes 4 cute sized slices!
I had planned to dress up the cake a little more with decorative frosting, but the batch of frosting I made was just enough to frost the cake without any left to decorate.
Had I planned things better, I would have made a double batch of frosting so I could do the traditional birthday cake frills. Oh well. Maybe next year.
Mug cakes are typically baked in a cup and left in there. Since I wanted this to be a miniature double layer frosted birthday cake, I used a 2-cup round Pyrex storage container for each cake layer.
A regular ramekin is another great dish for baking these keto birthday cake layers. If you have a wide mug, that would probably work as well. You just want to make sure whatever you use is microwaveable.
I’m not a fan of plastics or using them in the microwave so I don’t recommend baking these cake layers in plastic dishes. My Pyrex container was pretty hot taking it out of the microwave so use caution in removing the hot cakes. I used pot holders.
This is a yellow gluten free cake that bakes up nicely in the microwave. I suppose the cakes could also be cooked in an oven if you don’t mind waiting a little longer for them to be done.
Frosting the simple keto mug cake
The frosting I used was the recipe from my gluten free coconut cupcakes. The amounts given in that recipe were just enough to frost this two layer mug cake.
If you prefer chocolate frosting, there’s a great recipe listed on my chocolate frosted zucchini brownies. This is the perfect cake to bake up when you are craving something sweet but don’t want a lot of servings.
Low Carb Keto Birthday Cake in Minutes Recipe
This mini birthday cake can be a fun activity to do with the kids. The size kind of reminds me of the cakes from the Easy Bake Oven that I used to make with my older daughter. Of course, this is a much healthier cake than the mixes we used back then.
When I want a larger cake to share with family and friends also watching their carbs, I bake up a gluten-free carrot cake. Using low carb flours and keto sweeteners keeps carbs low.
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Keto Birthday Cake in Minutes
Ingredients
Each Cake Layer:
- 2 tablespoons almond flour
- 1 tablespoon coconut flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- dash salt
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil melted
- 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon almond milk
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoons low carb sugar substitute
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Optional:
- Low Carb Frosting I used Buttercream Frosting
Instructions
- Mix together almond flour, coconut flour, baking powder, and salt in small bowl. Set aside.
- Melt coconut oil in small round microwavable cup that will be used to bake cake. You can use a ramkin or 2-cup Pyrex storage container.
- With fork, stir almond milk, egg, sweetener and vanilla extract into melted coconut oil.
- Beat dry ingredients into liquid ingredients with fork until well combined.
- Microwave from 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until cake is no longer wet. It took 2 minutes to bake in my 900 watt microwave.
- Remove cake layer from pan and cool on rack.
- Repeat steps for each cake layer.
- Frost with icing if desired.
Notes
- 1/4 cup softened butter
- 1/2 cup powdered sweetener
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- coconut milk or almond milk to desired consistency (about 1 tablespoon)
Low Carb Sweeteners | Keto Sweetener Conversion Chart
Nutrition
Additional Info
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Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.
Unauthorized use of this material without written permission from Lisa MarcAurele is strictly prohibited unless for personal offline purposes.
Single photos may be used, provided that full credit is given to LowCarbYum.com along with a link back to the original content.
Lisa MarcAurele has been creating keto friendly recipes since 2010. She enjoys experimenting in the kitchen to create low sugar foods that taste like high carb favorites!
Wilma says
I’m following the recipe, but the batter will not rise. What am I doing wrong?
Lisa MarcAurele says
The rise comes from baking powder and eggs.
Lauren says
I am confused by the servings. The ingredients above are for one layer or two? Am I supposed to use these ingredients to make one layer and then do it again for another layer? So in total I would be using: (for two layers)
4 tablespoons almond flour
2tablespoon coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
dash salt
2 tablespoon coconut oil melted
4 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoon almond milk
2 egg
2 tablespoons low carb sugar substitute
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lisa MarcAurele says
I need to fix the recipe. The ingredients make one layer. For two layers you will need double the ingredients. Sorry about the confusion.
Gennesa says
I don’t use a microwave, so wondering if I could cook in a toaster oven, and if so, how long would I cook it at 350? 10 minutes? Thx!
Lisa MarcAurele says
I’d start checking it around 10 minutes for doneness.
Carmella says
I made this for my son and his heart friend and they really didn’t like it. Too eggy for them. I tried it and didn’t like it either. I ended up making a new mug cake from a pumpkin recipe and they both loved it. I don’t know, maybe too much vanilla for us.
Brenda says
Carmella I read your comment and I’m having trouble finding a recipe I can eat too. Would you mind sharing the pumpkin recipe please? Thanks Brenda
Susan says
Not my favorite. Cake has very little flavor and frosting just tastes like Erythritol. I’ll be tweaking it and probably adding liquid stevia to balance out the Erythritol in both the cake and the frosting. Looked mighty pretty though.
MyDarlin says
I used oat flour for the coconut, reduced the milk a bit bc I used Skinny Syrups Birthday Cake flavor. It made three mini waffles. Delicious!
Sandra McKenna says
Just want to clarify the nutrition info.
Does this include the frosting?
If so what would the nutrition info be without the frosting?
Thanks!
Lisa MarcAurele says
It does not include the frosting as it’s an optional ingredient.
Michell says
I am allergic to nuts. So I can’t use almond flour. What other flour can I substitute!
Lisa MarcAurele says
You can try sunflower seed or sesame seed flour.
Claire Rodgers says
Love the fact you can have great food gluten free great work . Would you please send me all recipes thank you
Lisa MarcAurele says
All recipes are in the recipe index linked in the main menu.
Janie says
Love being able to serve my husband cake again with frosting without him worrying about his levels of sugar
Golf says
What kind of flour use instead of coconut flour? I don’t have coconut flour and I can’t find it.
Lisa MarcAurele says
You should be able to replace it with almond flour in this recipe.
Zaida says
Thank you soo much for sharihg this super quick, easy and delicious recipe! I have multiple food allergies so this recipe is such a blessing. No need to feel left out at the next party / get together
Lisa MarcAurele says
So glad you got to enjoy some cake!
Gabriele Lanhan says
Shared it 🙂
Gen says
I make this almost everyday. Your recipe is perfect and I love watching the cake rise while in the oven. It smells and sooo good and super yummy too!Thank you so much Lisa!
Lisa MarcAurele says
So glad you’re enjoying this quick and easy low carb cake!
Toni TenEyck says
Wonderful recipe! I used whipping cream in place of almond milk and added some almond extract in it!
Jessica Friedlander says
Just tried this and well…I must of done something wrong. After 3mins it was still wet. The outer part tasted good which is why I gave jt 5 stars. I warmed up the eggs to make it less eggy taste.
Lisa MarcAurele says
Was the coconut flour the defatted kind? Apparently, not all products labeled as coconut flour is.
shelby says
Grumpy was having a sweet craving tonight and wanted cake to go with his Rebel Ice Cream….and he wanted vanilla. He went on the search on his own and found your recipe! I made it for him and stole a taste with a little butter pecan ice cream before I handed it to him. It was absolutely yummy! It smelled great while it was baking in the microwave also!
Lisa MarcAurele says
Happy the minute keto cake worked out!
Susie says
I doubled this keto cake recipe and baked it in the oven (not microwave). Baked at 325F. Turned out amazing. It’s for my husband’s birthday and I will top with whipped cream, thank you. Found it on Pinterest.
Edith Garcia says
How many minutes do you bake it for in your oven? And did you bake it all in one pan? Thanks
lucy says
thank you for sharing the recipe. I need a recipe for pan 12 inches. How to make it?
Lisa MarcAurele says
Not sure if you noticed, but if you hover your curser over the number of servings at the top of the recipe, you can adjust the slider to increase the number of servings. You’ll just need to bake the cake in an oven (325°F) until it tests done.
Melissa says
Made this and it smelled like egg farts did i do something wrong only thing different i did was use stevia drops instead of granulated
Lisa MarcAurele says
May have been the eggs. Sometimes they can have a sulfur smell if they are bad.
Nancy Black says
Can I use regular milk instead of almond milk?
Lisa MarcAurele says
Of course. They are pretty much one for one.
Garrison says
Made this today and added sugar free chocolate chips on top.
This was much better than I expected! Thank you so much for this recipe.
Lisa MarcAurele says
You’re welcome. Glad you enjoyed it. I like to use whipped cream and chocolate chips as an alternative to frosting.
Helen says
I tried this the other day and it was so good.
Katrina says
I hadn’t tried out the recipe, but I think I might use the Monin zero calorie natural syrup (vanilla flavor) which has zero bad after taste and zero artificial sweeteners but am not sure how much I should add? Should I add a tsp instead?
Lisa says
I’m not familiar with that syrup. If it’s about the same sweetness as one-for-one sugar replacers, you’d use the same amount as the sweetener.
Adriana says
Can it be baked instead?
Lisa says
It can be, but you’ll need to keep an eye on it and test for doneness. I recommend baking at 325-350°F.
Jennifer Taylor says
Lisa, what temp and how long would you bake this in the oven if I quadrupled this to be a regular double cake size? I’m planning on making this this weekend for my step sons birthday and I’m wanting to know how to get a regular cake size baked in the oven vs the mug option. Thanks. Jenn
Lisa says
I would bake at 325-350°F and watch it then test with a toothpick for doneness.
RaeLynn says
This was so yummy! It’s nice to see a keto friendly dessert that isn’t chocolate! 🙂 I did pour some keto friendly caramel sauce over it and it was divine!
Lisa says
The caramel sauce sounds yummy!
Ava says
It was way blander than I was expecting. It just makes me sad because I am more of a sweet taste girl.
Lisa says
You can definitely up the flavor by adding in more vanilla or another extract.
Tasia says
Hello!
Can I use all almond flour instead of using coconut flour too?
Lisa says
You can try as it should work, but no guarantee as I didn’t test it that way.
Jean Ludwig says
This cake was very tasty. Just wondering if someone has adapted this recipe to make a 13×9 pan of it? LOVED the taste, texture.
Halesypie says
I would agree!!! I would love to make this in cupcake/large cake size……
Rachel Vargas says
How do you prevent the egg taste? Did I do something wrong?
Lisa says
It is an egg based cake, but the vanilla and sweetener so help.
KetoKitty says
Try using 2 egg yolks instead a whole egg. The egg white is what gives it that srambled egg texture and taste. You may need to play with the moisture level with a little water. Nothing will completely eliminate because its egg based, but every mug cake I’ve ever made I used egg yolk and its much better. Hope this helps.
Deb says
Any suggestions on how much water to add if using 2 egg yolks instead of a whole egg? What consistency should the batter be? Hubby doesn’t care for the eggy taste and texture of many keto baked goods. Can I use more Swerve or extra vanilla to hide the taste? How much?
This sounds perfect for his birthday this week. It’s just enough for the two of us, and you can’t go wrong with a cake that bakes in less than 5 minutes! Thanks!
Lisa MarcAurele says
Extra sweetener and vanilla should help. I haven’t tried it with two yolks, but the batter is somewhat thin unless you let it sit for the coconut flour to absorb.
Veronica says
Thanks for great recipe. Would swerve or lakanto work in this recipe? And if so, how much should I add? Thanks
Lisa says
It’s the same amount. Natvia is a one-for-one sugar replacement.
Jen says
Can you use hwc instead of almond milk?
Lisa says
You might want to dilute HWC if used as it’s quite a bit thicker.
Mrs.Brock says
What is the carb count on this please?
Lisa says
It was in the recipe notes, but since you didn’t see it, I moved it to the label.
Andrea says
Made this tonight for a low carb strawberry shortcake…so good! I swapped butter for the coconut oil & heavy cream for the almond milk. I didn’t have Natvia so substituted a little Sukrin Gold and Xylitol for sweetness. So easy to make, but this has to be an occasional treat because hubby and I each wanted a whole one to ourselves!
Lisa says
Great idea!
Caroline says
can i swap out coconut flour for almond flour? If so do I have to change anything else ? Thank for your help. -Caroline
Lisa says
It’s not a 1 for 1 sub. Typically only 1/4 to 1/3 of coconut flour is needed versus almond flour and typically egg and or liquid is increased. It’s best to find a recipe using all coconut flour.
Melissa says
About how many inches wide if the mug/ ramekin that you used? Thanks!!
Lisa says
I used a 2 cup Pyrex which is about 4.5 inches in diameter.
sheri says
I made a few adjustments to this recipe and put it into my waffle iron. I added some peanut butter, skipped the vanilla. I didn’t have almond flour, so just used the coconut flour. It cooked in about 2 minutes and got crispy on the outside. I think it would have been better if I used more stevia (I just used one packet) or if I had put something on top of it like agave, etc. But it turned out surprisingly well for an experiment.
Lisa says
Sounds really interesting! I never thought to bake it in the waffle iron.
Stephanie Quilliams says
Seems unfair to mark it less than 5 stars, though. I mean, you did change the recipe almost entirely….
telissa Carpenter says
right? Gee
Erin says
Exactly!
Karen says
I’m confused about the servings. At the bottom you wrote, “each cake layer is 2 servings”. Isn’t each layer one serving so that the total cake is 2 servings?
Lisa says
I got four servings from this cake. The data is for 1/4 of the cake. If you’d rather eat a half cake serving, you’d need to double the numbers.
melanie says
I’m confused about this as well…in the info at the start of recipe it says servings 1 cake layer…then at the end of the recipe it says .5 of a layer
Lisa says
I eat 1/4 of the cake which is half a layer. Sorry for the confusion. Fixing!
sharon says
before my low carb life i enjoyed spice cake with peanut butter frosting. soo good. would love to see a makeover for that here.
Lisa says
I like that idea! Sounds yummy. I need to work on it!
Nicole Foster says
Yum! I didn’t make the frosting because I have a ton of local strawberries and wanted strawberry shortcake. This recipe was perfect for that. I loved the texture – it reminded me of spongecake. And it wasn’t super sweet which was perfect for the strawberries and whipped cream. My only problem is this is so easy and fast that I’m going to want this every night! Lol
I am loving your recipes. Thank you!
Lisa says
Strawberry shortcake is such a great idea!
Evelyn says
Thanks for a small serving recipe. I live alone. So many recipes serve 6 or even more. Not so good when you are on your own. I realize that people with families need recipes but I really appreciate a recipe that serves just one sometimes.
Lisa says
The rest of my family aren’t as strict on carbs so I’m always looking for sweet recipes that don’t make a lot. It keeps me from overeating low carb treats.
Alicia says
Oh how cute!!! Love little mini desserts. I will try this next time I have a cake attack.
Patty says
Holy Tomatoes…I’m gonna need to add some flavor to this. I’m not use to this kind of stuff, so I will work at making it more flavorful. Nice texture though.
Lisa says
You could add extract flavoring or use flavored stevia drops for some of the sweetener.
Bethany says
Made this the other night (well just the cake part) It was really good. I was looking for a non-chocolate non-snickerdoodle mug cake and this was great. I used creme and a bit of water instead of almond milk and butter instead of coconut oil. It was delish! I squeezed a bit of lemon juice in which added a yummy zing. Definitely will make again!
Lisa says
Thanks for the giving it a try and letting us know that your adjustments came well too!
Shannon @ Dinner from the Heart says
I love this!! I sometimes have a craving for cake or something like cake. This would be perfect! Happy Birthday! Today is also my son’s birthday. 🙂
Lisa says
Happy Birthday to your son! I’ll be making more of these cute little cakes. Much better than making a full size one.
Kathryn @ FoodieGirlChicago says
I like the idea of a mini cake instead of a cupcake – sounds perfect for two people.
Lisa says
This cake is pretty filling. I ate the whole thing in four sittings.
Christie says
What a fabulous way to enjoy some birthday cake without eating an entire big cake.
Lisa says
Yes! I made a full size low carb cake for my daughter early in the month and ended up eating more than half the cake. That’s why I opted for this mini cake.