Camp Mug Chocolate Cake
A single-serving chocolate cake baked in a mug on a stove, using powdered egg and powdered milk instead of the fridge version.
- calories
- 620
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 177
- protein
- 8 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 3 min
- cook
- 12 min
- total time
- 15 min
- water
- 60 ml boiled
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dessert
- Canister stove
- Liquid fuel
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Backpacking
- Vegetarian
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| All-purpose flour | 4 tbsp | |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 4 tbsp | |
| Cocoa powder | 2 tbsp | unsweetened |
| Baking powder | 1/4 tsp | the microwave version does not need it, a stove does |
| Powdered whole egg | 1 1/2 tbsp | equals one egg |
| Powdered milk | 1 1/2 tbsp | |
| Salt | a pinch | |
| Cooking oil | 3 tbsp | |
| Vanilla extract | 1/4 tsp | carried in a tiny dropper bottle |
| Chocolate chips | 3 tbsp | optional, they survive heat better than you expect |
| Water | 3 tbsp |
Method
- Dump the dry premix into a mug or a small pot and stir out the lumps.
- Add the oil, vanilla, and 3 tbsp of water. Stir until there is no dry flour left. The batter should be thick, closer to frosting than to pancake batter.
- Fold in the chocolate chips if you brought them.
- Set the mug inside a larger pot with an inch of water in the bottom. Lid on, low flame, and let it steam for about 12 minutes.
- Poke the center with a spoon handle. If it comes out wet, give it three more minutes.
- Let it sit a few minutes before eating. It holds heat far longer than it looks like it should.
The original is a microwave recipe with a fresh egg and a splash of milk, which is fine at home and useless at a trailhead. Powdered egg and powdered milk do the same jobs here: the egg sets the crumb, the milk powder keeps it from tasting flat. Both go straight into the dry premix, so at camp you are adding oil and water to one bag.
Steaming replaces the microwave. Direct flame under a mug of batter scorches the bottom before the middle cooks, so the mug sits in a pot of water and the whole thing cooks at boiling temperature and no hotter. That is slower than three minutes but nothing burns. The baking powder is the one addition the source did not have; without a microwave’s fast blast of steam, the batter needs something to lift it.
Packing
Flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, egg powder, milk powder, and salt go in one bag at home. Oil and vanilla ride in dropper bottles. Chips in their own bag so they do not weld to the flour in a hot pack.
Variations
- No mug: line a small pot with foil, pour the batter in, and steam the same way.
- Swap the chocolate chips for a spoonful of jam pushed into the center before it sets.
- Instant coffee, half a teaspoon in the dry mix, makes the cocoa taste like more cocoa.
https://camprecipes.com/classic-recipes/chocolate-cake-in-a-mug