This two-minute gluten-free paleo pumpkin mug cake is a quick and delicious way to use up your leftover pumpkin puree!

A paleo and gluten-free pumpkin mug cake topped with coconut cream in a black coffee mug. The red banner says it is paleo, gluten free, and grain free.

A paleo and gluten-free pumpkin mug cake!

I love this dessert because it makes an amazing dairy-free treat with real food ingredients—you don’t use cake mix, refined sugar, or butter—and it comes out fluffy and packed with fall flavors! If you’re craving a fluffy and moist single serving of pumpkin cake, this delectable treat can be made in your microwave in less time than it takes to clean your dirty dishes! Plus, this recipe will use up the leftover canned pumpkin purée that you have in the fridge after making one of my other pumpkin recipes.

Can you bake this in the oven or air-fryer?

Yes—but the mug cake won’t rise as high and it will taste more egg-y. Plus, the beauty of this single-serve microwave pumpkin mug cake recipe is that you can cook it from start-to-finish in less than 5 minutes. If you’re gonna bake a single mug cake in the oven for  18-20 minutes, you might as well make a full batch of Pumpkin Muffins or Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins and freeze the leftovers for future treat cravings.

Still, if you really must make this mug cake in the oven, pour the batter into an oven-safe 6-ounce ramekin and bake it in a 350°F oven or toaster oven for 18-20 minutes or a 325°F air fryer for 13-15 minutes. The tiny single serve cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Can you make a nut-free mug cake?

Yes! Although almond flour is my favorite base for this mug cake, it can be made to work with either sunflower seed flour or Otto’s cassava flour as a 1:1 replacement. Warning: the sunflower seed flour will react with baking soda and turn the mug cake green(!) so use a scant ½ teaspoon of baking powder in place of baking soda to keep the cake crumb color a light brown.

Can you make an egg-free or vegan mug cake?

Unfortunately, I tried making this recipe with a couple of different egg substitutes—Bob’s Red Mill egg replacer and a flax egg—and both produced a dense, gooey cake rather than a light and fluffy one. I really don’t think this recipe works well without an actual egg because it’s essential for the structure of the mug cake.

Other Ingredient Substitutions?

As I mentioned in my Matcha Mug Cake recipe, baking is a science that requires precise measurements, so if I haven’t specifically mentioned a potential substitution, it’s because I don’t know if it will work. If you make a substitution and find success, please share your results in the comments so others can benefit from your knowledge!

Ingredients

  • Blanched super-fine almond flour
  • Pumpkin pie spice blend: No pumpkin pie spice blend? You can use ground cinnamon with a smidge of ground nutmeg, ground ginger, or ground cloves.
  • Baking soda
  • Diamond Crystal kosher salt
  • Maple syrup: My preferred sweetener for this recipe is maple syrup but you can also use honey. You can probably use coconut sugar as well but you may need to add a little extra liquid of the right consistency. I haven’t tried a sugar-free keto sweetener in this recipe yet.
  • Canned pumpkin puree: My favorite brand is Libby’s and you only need a tablespoon!
  • Avocado oil or melted coconut oil
  • Vanilla extract
  • Egg: Unfortunately, you can’t leave out the egg because it is essential for the structure and spongey texture of the mug cake.
  • Chocolate chips (optional): If you wish, you can add a sprinkle of chocolate chips into your batter before you zap it!
  • Whipped coconut cream (optional): Feel free to dollop some whipped coconut cream, whipped cream, or ice cream on top!

How to make a paleo pumpkin mug cake

In a liquid measuring cup, add the almond flour, pumpkin spice blend, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until uniform.

Adding the dry ingredients for pumpkin mug cake to a liquid measuring cup and whisking it together.

Add the maple syrup, pumpkin puree, avocado oil, vanilla extract, and egg…

Two shots of someone adding vanilla extract and an egg to the liquid measuring cup filled with the ingredients for paleo and gluten-free pumpkin mug cake.

…and whisk the batter vigorously until smooth.

Someone whisking the pumpkin mug cake batter in a liquid measuring cup.

If you want the mug cake to look pretty, pour the batter into a microwave-safe mug (6- to 8-ounce size is optimal). However, you can totally microwave the cake in the glass liquid measuring cup if you want to cut down on dishes to wash.

Pouring pumpkin mug cake into a black coffee mug.

Place the mug in the center of your microwave (it will rise more evenly in that spot), and cook on high power for 1-2 minutes.

A 900 watt microwave will cook the mug cake in 90 seconds. Adjust the cooking time depending on the strength of your microwave—decrease the time if you have a higher wattage microwave and increase it if you have a less powerful microwave.

Someone placing a black coffee mug filled with pumpkin mug cake batter in the center of the microwave.

The paleo pumpkin mug cake is finished cooking when it puffs up and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Your cake may rise up and collapse down, and that’s okay!

A pumpkin mug cake that is golden brown inside a black coffee mug.

Let the cake cool for a few minutes and top with whipped coconut cream and a dusting of extra pumpkin spice blend, if desired.

A black coffee mug filled with paleo and gluten-free pumpkin mug cake cooked in the microwave.The cake is topped with whipped coconut cream and dusted with pumpkin spice blend.

Gobble it up!

More paleo and gluten-free mug cake recipes


Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2022).


PRINTER-FRIENDLY RECIPE CARD

Pumpkin Mug Cake (Paleo, Gluten Free, Dairy Free)

4.71 from 55 votes
Prep Time3 minutes
Cook Time2 minutes
Servings 1
This two-minute gluten-free paleo pumpkin mug cake is a quick and delicious way to use up your leftover pumpkin puree!

Ingredients 
 

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Instructions 

  • In a liquid measuring cup, add the almond flour, pumpkin spice blend, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until uniform.
  • Add the maple syrup, pumpkin puree, avocado oil, vanilla extract, and egg and whisk the batter vigorously until smooth.
  • If you want the mug cake to look pretty, pour the batter into a microwave-safe mug (6- to 8-ounce size is optimal). However, you can totally microwave the cake in the glass liquid measuring cup if you want to cut down on dishes to wash.
  • Place the mug in the center of your microwave (it will rise more evenly in that spot), and cook on high power for 1-2 minutes.
    A 900 watt microwave will cook the mug cake in 90 seconds. Adjust the cooking time depending on the strength of your microwave—decrease the time if you have a higher wattage microwave and increase it if you have a less powerful microwave.
  • The paleo pumpkin mug cake is finished cooking when it puffs up and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Your cake may rise up and collapse down, and that’s okay!
  • Let the cake cool for a few minutes and top with whipped coconut cream and a dusting of extra pumpkin spice blend, if desired.

Video

Notes

You can bake the mug cake in the oven or air fryer but it won’t rise as high and it will taste more egg-y. Plus, the beauty of this single-serve microwave pumpkin mug cake recipe is that you can cook it from start-to-finish in less than 5 minutes. If you’re gonna bake a single mug cake in the oven for  18-20 minutes, you might as well make a full batch of Pumpkin Muffins or Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins and freeze the leftovers for future treat cravings.
Still, if you really must make this mug cake in the oven, pour the batter into an oven-safe 6-ounce ramekin and bake it in a 350°F oven or toaster oven for 18-20 minutes or a 325°F air fryer for 13-15 minutes. The tiny single serve cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Nutrition

Calories: 314kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 19g | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 20g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Like this? Leave a comment below!

About Michelle Tam

Hello! My name is Michelle Tam, and I love to eat. I think about food all the time. It borders on obsession. I’ve always loved the sights and smells of the kitchen. My mother was (and is) an excellent cook, and as a kid, I was her little shadow as she prepared supper each night. From her, I gained a deep, abiding love for magically transforming pantry items into mouth-watering family meals.

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64 Comments

  1. I haven’t tried it yet. I like to grind up oatmeal real fine like flour, so I use it instead of flour when I bake. Do you think that will work the same as the almond flour? Nut allergies.

  2. I made this and it turned out dry. I thought I followed the directions exactly, and cooked it for 90 seconds. I’m wondering what I did wrong. Any thoughts?

    1. I’m not sure why your cake turned out dry. The texture is like a sponge cake so not super moist but it shouldn’t be super dry either. How strong is your microwave? If it is more than 900 watt, you may need to cut down on the cooking time accordingly.

  3. 5 stars
    Hands down, this is my favorite go-to breakie. I prepare 2 separate containers (wet and dry) and take to work for my breakfast. I am the envy in the lunch room as the smell fills the room as it cooks! Most, spongy and delish! I only use 1 tbsp of maple syrup and up the vanilla a tad.
    Perfection every time!