Back-to-school season always makes me want to lean hard into cozy fall treats. Now that my daughter is back at school and our days have a little more routine again, this Caramel Apple Mug Cake is the perfect quick after-school treat (for her…or for me while she’s still at school 😂). It’s warm, cinnamon-y, loaded with apples and gooey caramel, and ready in just a few minutes.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure for more info.
Caramel Apple Mug Cake Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make the coziest little single-serving fall cake:
- almond flour
- sugar
- baking powder
- ground cinnamon
- sea salt
- an egg
- butter or oil
- pure vanilla extract
- finely diced or grated apple
- caramel sauce
- (optional) pecan pieces to top
For the apple, use any kind you like. Use a Granny Smith apple if you want a sweet/tart caramel apple mug cake. I love pink lady apples, and I would personally just use whatever apple I had in the fridge.
If you want to be chef-fancy, grate the apple for a smooth caramel apple mug cake consistency.
Otherwise, chop it as finely as you want. You don’t want big chunks of apple in your mug cake – not because they’re not delicious, but the apple mug cake might not cook as evenly.
Pure vanilla extract is always yummier than the fake stuff. A little goes a long way, so it’s worth getting if you like baking.
Caramel Options for Your Apple Mug Cake
Let’s talk about the caramel sauce for a minute, cuz that’s a pretty important ingredient in this caramel apple mug cake!
I have three different caramel options for you to use in this recipe. (You can totally also use whatever caramel sauce you have in your fridge or pantry).
Classic caramel sauce:
This is the classic, tried-and-true caramel sauce that you might already own, and tastes great on ice cream. It also comes in a salted caramel version – yum.
Sugar-free caramel sauce:
This fat-free and sugar-free caramel sauce is for those on restricted diets. Some people love the taste; others say it doesn’t taste as good as the regular version.
Healthy caramel sauce with dates:
This date-sweetened caramel sauce is clean-eating and whole foods based.
It looks delicious and gets great reviews. Its only ingredient is dates, and tastes caramel-like, but if you want the classic caramel candy flavor, you might want to go with the first caramel option above.
Caramel Apple Mug Cake Tips and Substitutions
This mug cake is already gluten-free because we make it with almond flour. I wouldn’t recommend substituting the almond flour with a gluten-free flour mix or with coconut flour – the mug cake won’t turn out well and then you’ll be mad at me and I don’t want that.
If you’d like a regular flour or nut-free mug cake, you can make this apple cake recipe and drizzle caramel on top. 😋
To make this a dairy-free apple caramel mug cake, use melted coconut oil, or another oil instead of the butter.
For the sugar, you can use any kind you like: brown sugar, cane sugar, date sugar, erythritol, etc. Just make sure it’s a granulated sugar, not honey or maple syrup.
This recipe really needs the egg, so I wouldn’t recommend leaving that out or replacing it.
You can modify the amount of sweetness you use. For a more breakfast-friendly version, omit the sugar completely, and just use the caramel drizzle. Apples will provide a light, natural sweetness.
Okay, let’s make this gorgeous fall mug cake!
Caramel Apple Mug Cake
This easy Caramel Apple Mug Cake is made with almond flour, warm cinnamon, tender apples and gooey caramel. A cozy gluten-free fall dessert ready in minutes!
Ingredients
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar (brown, white, date, erythritol, etc.)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- tiny pinch of salt
- 1 egg, free range
- 1 tablespoon melted butter (or oil)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons finely diced or grated apple
- 1–2 teaspoons caramel sauce, plus more for topping
Instructions
1. In a microwave-safe mug, stir together the almond flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
2. Add the egg, melted butter and vanilla.
3. Mix really well until the batter is smooth.
4. Fold in the apple and 1 teaspoon caramel sauce.
5. Microwave on high for 60 seconds.
6. Check the center, then continue microwaving in 10–15 second increments until the top is just set.
7. Depending on your microwave and mug, it will probably take around 75–90 seconds total.
8. Let it sit for a minute; almond flour cakes continue to firm up as they rest.
9. Drizzle warm caramel sauce over the top and dig in.
Pin this mug cake recipe to save it:
