Black Forest Mug Cake (gluten-free, dairy-free)
I’ve been in my new place for a couple of weeks now and I’m still not settled. For someone who didn’t have furniture, I sure do seem to have a lot of stuff – it’s crazy. Especially as I’m somewhat of a purger who moves every few years so I always ask myself – “do I really need this?”
Now, in my defense, most of my boxes have been kitchen items (which I’m blaming on the blog). Even so, I’ve still been purging and making many trips to Goodwill as I reduce the clutter. It’s freeing for sure.
But imagine my surprise when I realized yesterday, oh, it’s Valentine’s Day next week. Ooops (says the food blogger who’s not really good about holiday prep). Didn’t we just have Christmas? Yep. That’s what happens when you’re head down focused on the task at hand – weeks just fly by.
I debated whipping up a big, layered cake or something dramatic with lots of red fruit. But here’s what I got to thinking. Valentine’s is really about you plus that special someone. Or, for all the single ladies out there, your lovely self. So who needs a dessert that feeds 12? It’s like, all anyone really needs is a mug cake. And that’s the lightbulb moment which led to today’s recipe.
My chocolate mug cake recipe has been a runaway hit and if you’d like to keep things really simple, you could absolutely just stick to that for Valentine’s day. Or, you could add a couple of minutes (literally, like 10) and create this gorgeous black forest mug cake. It’s a black forest cake. From a mug. And really boozy. You’re welcome.
Surprisingly, it’s got all the delicious cherry, chocolatey flavors of a traditional German black forest cake, but in a gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo-friendly, single-serving little package. The best part, this mini black forest cake takes no more than 15 minutes, start to finish – as long as you remember to chill your can of coconut milk (for the coconut whipped cream) the night before.
On Valentine’s day, here’s what you do. Pit and slice 8-10 cherries and let them soak in a couple tablespoons of kirsch or kirschwasser (cherry brandy). Next, make my chocolate mug cake recipe. While your mug cake cools, whip up a batch of coconut whipped cream. Then, all that’s left is assembly.
Remove the mug cake by inverting it onto a plate. Trim the top to create a flat surface and slice the mug cake in half. Use a spoon to drizzle some of the kirsch from your soaked cherries onto the bottom layer. Top it with a dollop of whipped cream and several cherry halves. Add your next layer and repeat, with some whole cherries on top and chocolate shavings. Voila. A single-serving black forest cake perfect for Valentine’s day dessert (or really, any dessert).
Enjoy!
Black Forest Mug Cake
from votes Prep: 5 minutes Cook: 10 minutes Total: 15 minutes Servings: 2 servings PrintPinReviewSaveSaved
Description
This black forest mug cake is an easy, mini black forest cake with all the cherry, chocolatey goodness of the traditional version. It’s also gluten-free, dairy-free and paleo-friendly.
Ingredients
1 cup cherries, pitted and halved2 tbsp kirsch1 recipe chocolate mug cake1 recipe coconut whipped cream
Garnish
4 whole cherries2 tbsp chocolate shavings
Instructions
Place the pitted and halved cherries in a small bowl with the kirsch. Stir and set aside. Make the chocolate mug cake recipe. While the mug cake cools, make the coconut whipped cream. Invert the cooled cake onto a plate. Use a knife to flatten the cake top and cut the cake in half. To assemble the cake, drizzle a little bit of the kirsch from the soaked cherries onto the bottom cake layer. Top with coconut whipped cream and several cherry halves. Add the top cake layer, drizzle more kirsch, dollop more coconut whipped cream and top with whole cherries and chocolate shavings.
Nutrition
Calories: 391kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 94mg | Sodium: 36mg | Potassium: 272mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 29g | Vitamin A: 45IU | Vitamin C: 5.9mg | Calcium: 18mg | Iron: 1.2mg Course: Dessert Cuisine: German Keyword: Black Forest Cake, Black Forest Mug Cake, Mug Cake, Mug Cake Recipe
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