• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Kitchen at Hoskins
  • Halloween
  • Recipes
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Summer Recipes
  • Recipes
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Summer Recipes
    • Recipes
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    Home » Recipes » Dessert

    Black Forest Mug Cake

    Published: Jun 27, 2024 · Modified: May 30, 2025 by Maria Doss · This post may contain affiliate links · 8 Comments

    pinterest image.

    This Black Forest Mug Cake cooks in under 2 minutes. It features a rich, moist chocolate cake with a tender crumb loaded with fresh cherries. It is sure to satisfy your chocolate cravings!

    Jump to Recipe

    If you’re craving a unique twist on chocolate and cherry, give my chocolate cherry overnight oats a try next!

    cooked chocolate cake topped with white cream and red cherries in a white mug.

    I wanted a black forest mug cake that takes all the flavors of the traditional cake, but is made in a fraction of the time!

    Black forest cake is a traditional German black forest cake, also known as Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, which features tender layers of chocolate sponge, brushed with cherry syrup and then layered with freshly whipped cream. It's a classic birthday or celebration cake.

    Jump to:
    • Why you'll love this?
    • Ingredients
    • How to make?
    • How to serve?
    • Helpful tips
    • Recipe FAQs
    • More mug cake recipes
    • Black Forest Mug Cake

    Why you'll love this?

    I adapted the chocolate mug cake recipe from Pioneer woman, to make an exceptionally easy dessert. Fresh bing cherries adds sweet, tart and intense fruity flavor, to the rich and moist chocolate cake.

    Whipped cream adds contrast in color, texture and accentuates the flavor, like in mocha latte recipe.

    Ingredients

    Scroll down to the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and amounts.

    • All purpose flour - I prefer to use all purpose flour, which has 10 to 12 percent protein, giving stability and structure.
    • Cocoa powder - I like to use dutch process cocoa powder.
    • Sugar -White granulated sugar makes the black forest mug cake, sweet and soft.
    • Oil - Vegetable oil, which is flavorless and liquid at room temperature, coats the flour's protein, leads to a supremely moist and velvety crumb.
    • Milk - Adds richness and flavor.
    • Baking powder - Double acting baking powder contains a dry acid and baking soda. It begins it's activation as soon as it comes in contact with the wet ingredients and then again when microwaved, providing a wonderful lift in all mug cakes.

    How to make?

    You can find full printable recipe below, but here is a quick overview of the procedure along with step-by-step photos.

    brown flour mixture in a white mug.
    Step 1 - Stir flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and salt into a microwave safe mug.
    a hand pouring brown vanilla extract into a white mug.
    Step 2 - Add milk, vegetable oil and Kirsch.

    Pro tip: Kirsch or cherry liqueur, is a cherry-flavoured brandy. If you prefer not to use alcohol or don't want to purchase a whole bottle just to use a teaspoon, simply replace with vanilla extract.

    one white mug with brown chocolate cake batter topped with chopped red cherries.
    Step 3 - Stir in chopped cherries and add sprinkle more on top.
    baked chocolate cake in a white mug.
    Step 4 - Microwave for 1 minute and 45 seconds.

    💡 Ree's recipe suggests 1 minute and 30 seconds. I like a few extra seconds, to compensate for the additional moisture and weight from fresh cherries.

    Cooking time - The time can vary with different microwaves and also different cup sizes. Cook for one minute and 45 seconds for a narrow coffee mug, and one minute and 40 seconds for a wide mug.

    How to serve?

    My idea of a black forest cake definitely involves mounds of freshly whipped cream and more chopped fresh cherries. It will also be terrific with vanilla ice cream like cherry chocolate brownies, Nutella or chocolate syrup.

    Helpful tips

    • Mug - A standard size microwave coffee mug works for this black forest mug cake recipe. Please do not choose a smaller one.
    • Cooking time - If you use a wider mug, then remove about 10-15 seconds earlier.
    • Remove promptly - Remove promptly from the microwave. Cooking it longer will make the cake dry.
    • Cherries - Bing cherries give the traditional flavor.
    • Stir batter until lump free – Using a spoon, stir the batter until smooth and no lumps remain.

    Recipe FAQs

    What is the difference between a black forest cake and a chocolate cake?

    Black forest cake is traditionally made with layers of chocolate sponge cake, brushed with cherry syrup, layered with cherries, and whipped cream as frosting. Whereas, chocolate chocolate cake is made without any cherries and the frosting is usually a chocolate buttercream or ganache.

    Can I use maraschino cherries?

    Maraschino cherries are preserved and sweetened, usually from lighter-colored cherry varieties. They are perfect for creating attractive garnishes for alcoholic drinks or desserts, but they lack the true cherry flavor we crave. That's why I prefer to make this chocolate cherry mug cake when fresh cherries are in season.

    baked chocolate cake in a white mug.

    More mug cake recipes

    • vanilla chocolate chip vegan mug cake in a white coffee mug.
      Vanilla Vegan Mug Cake
    • a spoonful of red velvet cake above a white cup.
      Red Velvet Mug Cake
    • microwave oreo cake in a white mug.
      Oreo Mug Cake
    • a spoon of banana cake from a mug.
      Banana Mug Cake
    White mug with chocolate cake, topped with whipped cream and 2 fresh cherries.

    Black Forest Mug Cake

    This Black Forest Mug Cake cooks in under 2 minutes. It features a rich, moist chocolate cake with a tender crumb loaded with fresh cherries. It is sure to satisfy your chocolate cravings!
    4.9 from 12 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Dessert
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 1 minute minute
    Cook Time: 2 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 3 minutes minutes
    Servings: 1 Serving
    Calories: 632kcal
    Author: Maria Doss

    Ingredients

    Dry Ingredients

    • 3 tablespoons all purpose flour
    • 3 tablespoons sugar
    • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
    • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
    • 1 pinch salt

    Wet ingredients

    • 3 tablespoons milk
    • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
    • ½ teaspoon Cherry liquor such as Kirsch (or use vanilla extract)
    • ¼ cup chopped cherries I like to use Bing
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add all dry ingredients into a microwave mug and stir well with a spoon or fork.
    • Add all wet ingredients, mix until smooth. Stir in chopped cherries (reserving some for garnish later).
    • Cook in microwave for one minute and 45 seconds for a standard coffee mug, and one minute and 40 seconds for a wider mug.
    • Remove, let cool for a few seconds, before serving. Top with reserved cherries and sweetened whipped cream.

    Notes

    Kirsch is a cherry-flavored brandy and is a key ingredient in black forest cake. 
    Bing cherries give the traditional black forest cake flavor. You can use any dark colored cherries instead.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1 Serving | Calories: 632kcal | Carbohydrates: 61g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 44g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 24g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 165mg | Potassium: 245mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 38g | Vitamin A: 73IU | Calcium: 131mg | Iron: 3mg

    Nutritional information, based on third-party calculations, should be seen as estimates, not guarantees, as various factors like product types, brands, processing methods, and more can alter the nutritional content in recipes.

    Did you make this recipe?Mention @KitchenAtHoskins or tag #kitchenathoskins!

    The recipe is adapted from Pioneer Woman.

    Did you make this recipe? I’d love your feedback! Please let me know by leaving a comment or review below or snap a photo and share on Instagram.

    All contents and images are my original work, unless and otherwise mentioned. Please do not use my recipes or images without linking back to www.kitchenathoskins.com. If you wish to republish a recipe, please rewrite in your own words and don’t forget to include a link back to the original recipe.

    Want To Save This Recipe?

    Enter your email below, and we’ll send the link straight to your inbox. Plus, you'll get more creative recipe ideas every Sunday!

    « Recipes with Boneless Chicken Thighs
    Chicken Breast Recipes »
    • Facebook
    • Flipboard

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Ronak Mehta

      September 30, 2020 at 4:41 am

      Baked this cake for my birthday and it was an absolute hit! So moist and tasty. Thank you for doing what you do

      Reply
      • Maria Doss

        October 01, 2020 at 2:21 pm

        Glad you loved it:)

        Reply
    2. Liz

      November 28, 2021 at 8:20 pm

      Really good mug cake recipe! Have made a few other mug cakes in the past but this was way tastier and came out better than others I've made.

      Reply
      • Maria Doss

        November 29, 2021 at 5:11 am

        Hi Liz, That sounds wonderful, Maria

        Reply
    3. Susan

      February 04, 2023 at 11:20 pm

      Hi! Inspired by your Black Forest Mug Cake recipe, I adjusted for available ingredients. Needing more than one I Tripled the recipe first, added an egg, used melted butter, light cream with kefir, pinch of baking soda + baking powder, combined all purpose, almond and whole grain sorghum flours. I had sweetened dried cherries on hand and tossed them in too, so lowered the sugar amount. Also I only have an infrared oven, so I set it to the brownie setting - all totaled it took @ 25-30 minutes with this type of heat. Came out delicate and delightful! A work in progress…thank you!

      Reply
      • Maria Doss

        February 06, 2023 at 1:34 am

        Hi Susan, Loving all the modifications, have a fantastic week - Maria

        Reply
    4. Brenda

      July 03, 2023 at 7:21 pm

      5 stars
      So delicious wowwww this is my third time making

      Reply
      • Maria Doss

        July 04, 2023 at 2:49 am

        Happy to hear hun ❤️

        Reply
    4.92 from 12 votes (11 ratings without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Welcome

    Hi, I'm Maria! I'm excited to share with you creative twists on classic Indian, American, and global dishes—perfect for easy family meals or unique dishes to impress guests!

    Read more ->

    Summer Recipes

    • cooked chicken kebabs in a metal plate.
      Chicken Tikka Kebab
    • one baked mango topped with white ice cream in a fluted white plate.
      Baked Mangoes
    • two glass jars with chocolate cherry overnight oats.
      Chocolate Cherry Overnight Oats
    • a fork cutting into a slice of brown chocolate zucchini bread in a white plate.
      Chocolate Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

    New Recipes

    • white buttered noodles in a round white plate along with a black fork.
      Garlic butter Ramen Noodles
    • black plate with 3 waffles with a slab of butter and syrup.
      Easy Blender Apple Waffles
    • cooked garlic fried rice in two blue bowls along with a black spoon.
      Garlic Fried Rice
    • breakfast cookies placed on a wire rack.
      Breakfast Cookies
    • grey bowl with brown date balls.
      Date Balls
    • green sauce in a black bowl along with a black spoon.
      Cilantro Lime Sauce

    Footer

    Copyright © 2024 CANDY GINGER LLC  Privacy policy

    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    226 shares

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.