Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (2024)

by Cara | Dessert and Treats, keto recipes | 29 comments

Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (1)

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Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (2)

If you aren’t familiar with mug cakes, they are delicious little no-fuss low-carb (2 net carb per cake) cakes that can be made in tiny batches. I used ramekins here, but you could easily use a coffee mug to cook them in… hence the name :)

As I’ve talked about previously, we don’t use erythritol in our kitchen, so the challenge for us was to come up with a cake that we could sweeten using stevia without having it taste weird. Enter lemon cake! Lemon goes well with both coconut and stevia, allowing us to make this with coconut flour and sweeten it with stevia.

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New to keto? Click here to see how the ketogenic diet works for weight loss, as well as other health benefits. You can also see exactly what you can and cannot eat, and learn the essentials of how to start!

GAPS Notes

If you need a quick gluten-free dairy-free cake, this is right for you as well! If you’re not watching carbs, a mild raw honey (use 1 tablespoon per packet of stevia called for) works well in this recipe as well. You may need to increase the baking time a touch when using honey.

Heavy whipping cream is not GAPS-friendly since it contains lactose, so use coconut milk instead.

Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (3)

If you’d like to make a small batch of cupcakes, this recipe will fit into 6 cupcake liners. After they have cooled, pop them in the freezer and your GAPS kiddo (or yourself) can bring them along to classroom celebrations and birthday parties without feeling left out.

My daughter’s teacher has already requested I bring half a dozen of these for her to keep in the classroom freezer, which I’m thrilled about!

About the ‘cake’ consistency

Being low-carb, these cakes are not the exact same consistency as wheat cake made with real sugar and flour. But they can really satisfy a cake craving and are delicious on their own. These mug cakes are a little more custardy-soft than traditional cake.

Mimicking treats can be a challenge when you are low-carb or allergy-free baking. Sadly, we cannot make healthy food taste and feel exactly the same as the food that got you sick in the first place, so we make-do with yummy substitutes. But they are just that, substitutes.

Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (4)

Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe

Course:Dessert

Cuisine:keto

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: 110 kcal

Author: Cara Comini

This ketogenic diet-friendly mug cake recipe serves 4, perfect for when you want a sweet treat for the family (or to freezer for yourself for later!) but don't want loads of leftovers.

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Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 375* F

  2. Grease 4 custard cups or ramekins with butter or coconut oil (I use these, they are 5 oz but any cup between 4 and 6 oz should work)

  3. Combine eggs, lemon juice, coconut milk or heavy cream, lemon zest, stevia, sea salt, and coconut flour and stir well.

  4. Allow to sit for 5 minutes (this is the trick to getting coconut flour to not be clumpy) and then stir again until completely smooth.

  5. Add in baking soda, and stir again.

  6. Evenly pour batter into 4 custard cups and then place in the oven.

  7. Bake for 20 minutes, or until edges are starting to turn golden brown, 'cake' springs back when you gently press on it, and a knife or toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

  8. Cool, and then top as desired with stevia-sweetened whipped cream, or whipped coconut cream to make it dairy-free.

Recipe Notes

To make a single serving of this mug cake, use 1 egg, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, the zest of 1/4 a lemon, 2 tablespoons cream, 2 tablespoons coconut flour, 1 packet stevia, a tiny bit of salt, and tiny bit of baking soda (small pinch of each). Place in a mug or a 6-ounce ramekin. Microwave for 1:30 on high, or bake as directed for the full batch. The nutrition values for the individual cake haven't been calculated.

Nutrition Facts

Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe

Amount Per Serving (1 g)

Calories 110Calories from Fat 63

% Daily Value*

Fat 7g11%

Carbohydrates 5g2%

Fiber 3g12%

Sugar 1g1%

Protein 6g12%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (5)Hi! I’m Cara and I want to help you get started on the ketogenic diet!

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  1. Corinneon May 22, 2018 at 10:46 am

    Yum! Do you use coconut milk from a carton or can? I ask because heavy whipping cream would be thicker than coconut milk from a carton. Perhaps either way works?
    Thank you for the recipes and helpful information you freely share!

    • Caraon May 22, 2018 at 10:48 am

      Good question! I used it from the can, the full fat kind :)

  2. Lillianon June 5, 2018 at 10:55 am

    One cake… that sounds delicious. One cake… along with so much food for thought. (I recall the first time I added lemon juice to my yogurt… and the surprise of how sweet it tasted!)

    • Caraon June 12, 2018 at 8:07 am

      3 tablespoons :)

  3. Cherieon July 10, 2018 at 5:08 pm

    Lemon anything is my all time favorite dessert. Could you make the 4 servings but put it in a tart pan?

    • Caraon July 12, 2018 at 7:15 am

      It’s pretty flexible, I bet you could! If you try it I’d love to see how it turns out :)

  4. GFree Skippyon July 25, 2018 at 6:36 pm

    Soooo. The recipe for the single serving has the heavy cream going into the mug with all of the other ingredients. However, the instructions above give no indication that the heavy cream is a part of the recipe other than a topping. Should the cream be one of the combined ingredients or a topping only?

    • Caraon July 26, 2018 at 8:12 am

      Good catch! The coconut milk/cream is mixed in with the lemon and coconut flour batter. I just updated it – thank you!

  5. Rebeccaon August 17, 2018 at 1:19 pm

    I use liquid Stevia. Do you know how many drops of liquid Stevia would equal three packets?

    • Caraon August 17, 2018 at 7:38 pm

      It depends on the concentration, if there’s a ‘serving size’ on your bottle, use that for 1 packet :)

  6. Ashley Langstonon August 19, 2018 at 6:52 pm

    Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (8)
    Can you use lemon extract instead?

  7. Karen mooreon August 19, 2018 at 7:00 pm

    Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (9)
    I made this in a loaf. Didn’t have a lemon to get the zest. It I also made a thin lemon glaze to go on it. It was pretty good. I think next time I will use heavy whipping cream instead of coconut milk. It was almost too much coconut taste for me.

  8. Jessicaon September 12, 2018 at 4:54 pm

    Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (10)
    The single serving mug cake turned out the consistency of Malt O Meal. I cooked it an additional 1 minute. Let it get cold,and added homemade whipped cream. Salvageable ar best…

  9. Torreyon September 29, 2018 at 8:50 am

    Do you know if I used almond flour instead of coconut would I need to do anything differetly? If I remember, you cannot exchange these flours equally….?
    Thank you.

    • Caraon September 29, 2018 at 10:54 am

      You would need to use more almond flour – maybe 4 times the amount? I’m not quite sure.

      • Marlenaon May 2, 2019 at 3:12 am

        I can’t eat eggs. What can I use instead?

      • Janieon April 29, 2020 at 5:43 pm

        One place it says 2 carbs in the nutritional guide it says 5. I’m on a strict carb diet so I need to know which one is correct. It looks delicious can’t wait to try it. Thank you

  10. Sharonon November 28, 2018 at 6:25 pm

    I buy organic heavy whipping cream from Trader Joe’s. Since it is all cream with no milk whatsoever, there is no lactose (milk sugar) in it. I’m lactose intolerant and I can eat this cream all day long without having any problems. So if you want to use dairy cream in this recipe and you cannot because it might contain lactose, look for high quality whipping cream that contains no milk.

    • Caraon November 29, 2018 at 12:45 pm

      Close, and it probably has so little that it doesn’t bother you, but if it had no lactose whatsoever it would be butter :) It still has a little in (which might bother very sensitive people) but not much at all.

      • Alyssaon December 1, 2018 at 8:27 pm

        If you over whip whipping cream, you get….butter!

  11. Saraon December 26, 2018 at 10:10 pm

    Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (11)
    Omg, this was Delicious & Moist. I would definitely make again. I used heavy whipping cream and swerve.

  12. Alexciaon January 25, 2019 at 7:56 am

    Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (12)
    Delicious! I made mine using erythritol instead of stevia and it turned out great!

  13. Elizabethon February 27, 2019 at 2:06 pm

    Can these be made a day ahead and stored in fridge. How long can they be stored. Thank you

  14. Annaon March 5, 2019 at 11:24 pm

    good morning..I don’t like to receive your mailletters longer .

    Can you stop this..

    Thanks..

    • Caraon March 6, 2019 at 7:58 am

      Hi Anna, if you want to stop getting my newsletters, there is a link that says ‘unsubscribe’ at the bottom of each one – if you click that they will stop :)

  15. CTon March 27, 2019 at 4:14 pm

    I use pure stevia powder, not packets that have other fillers. What amount of pure stevia would I use?

    Any type of sugar alcohol massively upsets my stomach, so pure stevia is the only low carb sweetener I can use. I prefer NuNaturals brand, if that helps.

  16. Beverlyon April 28, 2019 at 9:21 am

    Would like to try these yummies in my Instant Pot! Any ideas on amount of time? Use steam setting?? Thanks

  17. Jill Roberts @ Wellnessgeeky.comon August 5, 2019 at 1:53 am

    Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (13)
    That keto lemon mug cake is so Instagrammable and adorable! As you know I made it a short while ago and it was lovely! Thx, Cara for sharing!

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  1. Keto Desserts ⋆ Citrus & Stripes - […] These little gems of greatness are actually surprisingly easy to make! They require so few ingredients and can be…
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Keto Lemon Mug Cake Recipe (GAPS & Dairy Free Option) (2024)

FAQs

Can I use water instead of milk in a mug cake? ›

It is entirely possible to change this recipe to make it without milk. If it is an issue with lactose intolerance or other dietary restrictions, you can use almond milk, cashew milk, or oat milk. An almond cashew blend is my particular favorite. If you'd prefer not to have any milk at all, you can use water instead.

Why did my mug cake turn out rubbery? ›

A rubbery mug cake is indicative of being overcooked, or incorrect measurements. Please be precise with the measurements and stop cooking once the cake is soft but not wet on the top.

What is a keto cake made of? ›

Eggs: Eggs are a staple in keto baking as they add structure and moisture to the cake while providing essential fats and proteins. High-fat ingredients: Keto cakes often contain high-fat ingredients like butter, coconut oil, or heavy cream. These ingredients provide richness and help maintain the desired texture.

Why did my mug cake not work? ›

You're overfilling the mug

It's best to use a mug that is 12 ounces or larger. Any size will do, as long the mug has enough room to get all your ingredients in without overfilling it. Most recipes are designed for mugs this size, so if you only have smaller mugs, you'll need to cut down on the ingredients a bit.

What happens if I substitute milk for water in a cake recipe? ›

Yes, you can substitute milk for water when preparing SuperMoist cake mixes, however, the cake may be slightly drier than if prepared with water. Also keep in mind that milk will add calories and change the nutrition slightly.

How do you replace milk in a cake? ›

Dairy Substitutes for Milk
  1. Cream or Half-and-Half. Cream is richer than milk, so to avoid heavier dough or batter use a ratio of about 60 percent cream to 40 percent water. ...
  2. Evaporated or Powdered Milk. ...
  3. Sour Cream or Plain Yogurt. ...
  4. Water (or Water and Butter) ...
  5. Nut Milk. ...
  6. Soy Milk. ...
  7. Oat Milk. ...
  8. Rice Milk.
Apr 3, 2023

Why don't mug cakes use eggs? ›

It's easy to see why—most classic cake recipes call for two or three eggs and serve at least 10 people. So for a single-serving mug cake, just skip the egg; a whole egg will overpower the small amount of batter (and it's pretty tough to divide an egg in quarters).

Why does mug cake become hard? ›

Leaving the cake inside the microwave after baking -

Overheating the cake is one of the reasons why your cake turns out to be hard and tight.

Why does my mug cake taste bitter? ›

One of the most common misfortunes among bakers is that they are using too much baking soda or baking powder. Know that too much baking soda or baking powder in cakes will not just lead to a metallic and bitter taste, but it can also make a big mess in the oven as it will rise beyond expectations.

Is cream cheese keto? ›

Cream cheese: Cream cheese is very popular in the keto diet. At only 84 calories per 1 ounce serving, it has 1 gram of carbs and 2 grams of protein but packs 8 grams of fat per serving. It can be a keto-friendly snack or meal addition when more fat is needed.

Why is it called Elvis Presley cake? ›

Before it's served, you'll add a layer of cream cheese frosting and sprinkle candied pecans on top for some crunch. Internet lore would have you believe this pineapple-topped concoction was Elvis Presley's favorite cake, that he even asked his grandmother to make it for him as a kid.

Can you substitute water for milk in a mug cake? ›

Because this recipe calls for water, it already naturally works without milk. To make a fully dairy free and egg free mug cake, just choose banana, coconut oil, or vegan butter instead of dairy butter.

What can I use instead of baking powder in mug cake? ›

Substitute each teaspoon (5 grams) of baking powder in the recipe with 1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) baking soda and 1/2 teaspoon (2.5 grams) vinegar. Summary: Each teaspoon (5 grams) of baking powder can be replaced with a 1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) baking soda and a 1/2 teaspoon vinegar.

Why is my mug cake so dry? ›

Many protein mug cake recipes suffer from dryness because they don't contain enough fat. They use wheat or oat flour, protein powder, and no eggs or oils. Naturally, it's going to be very dry with these ingredients.

Is it better to use milk or water in cake? ›

Baking tip #2: adding milk to your box cake mix in place of water adds a dense texture to your dessert leaving it moist and flavorful like a homemade cake. Or, if you prefer, you can add buttermilk, giving your cake a tangy flavor to balance out the sweetness.

Can you use water instead of milk in chocolate cake? ›

Can I use water instead of milk in chocolate cake? You can use water instead of milk but keep in mind that milk contains fat and protein, which add to a cake's texture and flavor. If you go with water, you may need to adjust the other ingredients in the recipe to compensate.

Can I substitute water for milk in coffee cake? ›

You can use water instead of milk if desired. This will also work in an 8-inch square baking dish.

What does water do in baking cake? ›

Water is a basic component of living matter and is essential to cooking and baking processes. In baking, it helps with hydration of gluten and starch molecules and dissolving salts, baking powder, sugar and others.

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