THE IMPENDING ARRIVAL
OF WINTER
***
Last night was one of those nights which seem to belong more to mid-Winter than late-Autumn, when the cold winds reach past your jacket and layers of clothes, chilling you to the bone.
You know, the kind of night where everyone on the street has their hands stuffed in their pockets, and their faces turned downwards to the ground in order to keep the cold from reaching them. Heavy showers from the day before had led to a drastic fall in temperatures, after an unusually humid and warm afternoon.
This was one of those dreadful nights that mark a before and an after, leaving no room for doubt that the change in seasons was nearing, ushering in the impending arrival of winter, my least favorite season.
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A season when trees line the streets like empty shells, devoid of life or color; a period when the sun withdraws from the sky earlier than necessary; and when the only thing you look forward to is the passing of the months, to be able to transition into spring, where the ground brings forth new life again.
You probably know by now that my Asian upbringing and culture has trained me to prefer savory to sweet anytime, but every once in a while, I’m struck with the insane craving to eat something incredibly, decadently sweet and rich. Times when I’m feeling homesick or extremely tired and need a quick and potent boost of energy; times when I need a break from too many salty and savory foods (rarely); or times when it’s so cold out there, only something thick and warm and sugary can thaw me back to life.
The problem with these moments is that I barely have anything that sweet in my kitchen; it’s sort of like an emergency supply that you never think you’d need. So naturally when these sugar-craving moments unexpectedly strike; in the most forceful and random ways possible, I’m left searching around in vain for something to soothe the craving.
***
5-MINUTE
MOLTEN CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE
**
But, thank God for the Internet – probably the most marvelous and amazing invention of the last century.
Thank God for generous food bloggers who share their tried and tested recipes, so people like me can learn from them, and in case of emergencies, whip up something quick.
A couple of weeks ago, I chanced upon a recipe that seemed too good to be true – you know, just like the late-night advertisements that promise you weight loss in 7 days, or other ads that tell you it is possible to get a degree in 3 months.
When I first saw this recipe, I snickered to myself – who was the recipe trying to kid? I mean, it promised a molten chocolate cake in 5 minutes (too quick and too instant!), and wait, here comes the best part – all cooked in the microwave oven (real cooks don’t cook in the microwave oven, do they?!).
Ok, here’s my secret. I’ll be honest. Deep down, I’m quite the sucker for these kinda of ads, and easy, fuss-free recipes (in the microwave or not) – I’ll try them no matter how doubtful I am of their results!
So with the recipe bookmarked and saved for a future sugar-craving emergency, I promptly forgot about this molten chocolate cake.
BUT…
The craving struck last night, unplanned, unforeseen and completely randomly again.
This time I was prepared – I went to the recipe I’d bookmarked in Melissa’s blog ChinDeep, and set about preparing this cake – timing myself to see if all it really took was five minutes to make.
Oh my word. My goodness. It held true to its promise.
In a world of never-ending advertisements that guarantee services and products that they eventually don’t deliver, this was a complete miracle. A MIRACLE!
It really took just all of FIVE MINUTES to create.
From batter to molten chocolate cake.
All in one mug.
Made in the microwave oven.
This was heaven.
Bliss in an instant.
Molten Lava Chocolate Mug Cake (Serves 1)
Adapted from ChinDeep’s Grand Marnier Molten Chocolate Mug Cake recipe
Ingredients:
1) 4 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
2) 4 tablespoons of sugar
3) 3 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder
4) Pinch of salt
5) 3 tablespoons of whole milk
6) 3 tablespoons of neutral cooking oil (most cooking oils except olive oil)
7) 1 egg
8) 2 tablespoons of semi-sweet chocolate chips /chocolate shavings (plus a bit more for garnishing)
9) 1 mandarin orange (or any citrus fruit you fancy)
Steps:
1) In a medium-sized microwave-safe mug, combine flour, sugar and cocoa powder
2) Mix well to get a homogenous mixture
3) Add milk, cooking oil, egg and chocolate chips/chocolate shavings
4) Mix all together until you get a thick, homogenous batter
5) Microwave on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds
6) Peel mandarin orange (or any other fruits you like) and arrange the pieces of fruits above the mug cake and sprinkle remaining chocolate chips/chocolate shavings over
7) Serve immediately when still warm
In a medium-sized microwave-safe mug, combine flour, sugar and cocoa powder:
Mix well to get a homogenous mixture:
Add milk, cooking oil, egg and chocolate chips/chocolate shavings:
Mix all together until you get a thick, homogenous batter:
Microwave on high for 1 minute and 30 seconds, then peel mandarin orange and arrange the pieces of orange above the mug cake and sprinkle remaining chocolate chips/chocolate shavings over:
Wow! Turned out well.. I skipped the chocolate chips cos I didn’t have any and left in fr shorter time to make it more molten.. LOVED IT!!! Thank you Feli <3
Hi Jazmine!! So happy to hear that you loved the molten chocolate mug cake!! It’s so nice to have a recipe that can feed your chocolate cravings in just 5 minutes, isnt’ it?? Thanks for stopping by and letting me know how it turned out for you dear!!
These are delicious! I have tried many different recipes and this is by far the best one yet! Great recipe 🙂
Thank you steph! Glad you liked the molten chocolate mug cake!
My cake was rubbery any suggestion s
Hi Sam, you could try microwaving it for a lesser amount of time, or using a bit less flour (it really depends on the type of flour and the potency level of your microwave oven!). Try microwaving in 30 sec increments until it reaches the texture you like. Hope that helps!
I just tried this exactly as it is written and it turned out more like a souffle than a cake and cooked all the way through. Unfortunately not the texture I was looking for. 🙁
Hi Audrey, I’m sorry to hear that it didn’t turn out as you expected. Sometimes it also depends on how long you leave it in the microwave, and depends on the intensity of the microwave you use. I know that if you leave it a minute or two less, it’s more moist, and I remember putting it back to the microwave and it came out drier, more cake-like after that. Hope that helps! Thanks for your feedback anyway!
Just tried it, except as my mugs are small I had to cut the recipe in half. And then I got to the egg….well, can’t cut an egg in half very easily, so I just used one egg and halved the rest. It turned out less like a cake, but more like a souffle – even rose like one! Really good, thanks!
Hi Sharon! So glad it worked for you! I also realized that if u if you tweak the microwave time, it really changes the texture! If u leave it abit more it might be more cake like and drier, taking it out earlier from the oven makes it more wet and molten!
Have fun playing around with this recipe!!
I’m 100% making it today itself 🙂
Make it! Hope u like it!
Soooo it’s SO FREAKING HOT HERE IN NJ! I still can’t believe it when I read about winter over there – but I do know that one of my favorite treats on a cold night is a mug cake. So easy yet so delicious! 😀
Stay warm my friend! <3
Haha I remember it being summer here and u talking about winter in NJ! Seasons are pretty crazy things huh?? Stay cool in the heat!!
Wow! This is definitely one to try! The other chocolate mug cake recipes look dry, but this one is amazing! Thanks 🙂
Hello Shafeeqa! hope you’ve been well!! I suppose this one is not as dry because I used cooking oil – giving it a more humid texture. 🙂 Try it and let me know if you like it! 😉 Have a great day!
Hi Felicia! All is well and hope you are too 🙂 I’m loving your desserty posts, and your writing of course! Xxx
Awww, that’s so sweet of you! I’ve been good, just incredibly busy, but busy’s always good 🙂 Keep on taking those amazing photos of yours … so people like me can be inspired all the time! BIG HUG!
Thank you Fel you are the sweetest!! 🙂
I liked your writing,first, and then the “magic” recipe……
Thank you , Feli!
Hola Anna!
Muchas gracias por tus comentarios tan lindos siempre!! Y obiamente, muchas gracias por tomar el tiempo de leer casi todos mis posts!
beso grande,
feli
Wow ! This is indeed a quick fix for sugar craving. I love the way you introduce the recipe..
Hello mummy! so cool right? Never knew cakes could be made in the microwave! Now i’m gonna explore the world of microwave cooking!
This long weekend with Vesak holiday on Friday, Daddy, Valerie and I will be heading north to KL to visit Aunt Catherine and your cousins, Johnathan and Bryan while Ron attends his leaders camp in church.
Have a great time exploring microwave cooking! hugs and kisses!
Ahh mummy, wish I could join you guys too! I’m sure it’ll be fun, send my wishes to Aunt Cat, Jon, Bryan & Uncle Wong!! BIG HUG