Tuesday, September 23, 2008

The World's Easiest Chocolate Cake

Talk about tackling a baking activity with eight kids. That's what we did for Family Home Evening, an activity Mormons are encouraged to hold once a week. We usually have some kind of spiritual message where we try to teach our children some of the values we hold dear, accompanied by song and prayer, then we try to close the evening with a fun activity. I say try because it doesn't always work out as planned, but we are trying....very trying...(haha).

For our fun activity, we chose to do some microwave baking. I have to tell you, we had FUN with this cake! I found this recipe at "The Newlyweds" blog and I knew the kids would love it.

Here's what you do...

Set out one mug for each person, then get out THESE ingredients...



For each mug, you will need...

3 Tablespoons flour
3 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder (we used dark cocoa powder)
A dash of salt
1 egg
3 Tablespoons oil
3 Tablespoons milk
A splash of vanilla
2 Tablespoons chocolate chips

Step 1: Grease the mug.

Step 2: Mix the first four ingredients in the mugs.

Step 3: Mix in the egg, but try not to get it all over your shirt...


Step 4: Mix in the oil, milk, vanilla and chocolate chips until the mixture is smooth.



Step 5: Place in the microwave for 2 minutes and 30 seconds. During the cooking process, the batter will rise up above the rim of the cup. Do not be alarmed. This is a normal process and will not cause any harm.


(By the way, the reason this cake is so much lighter than all the others is because we were doing a spice cake experiement. Try to imagine deep, dark chocolate.)

Step 6: Let the cake sit for a couple of minutes before attempting to turn it upside down on a plate. OR....you could just sprinkle a little sugar on it like this...


...and eat it right out of the mug.

Step 7: Go all out by placing the cake on a plate and decoratively sprinkling sugar on the cake AND the plate. (Don't you love how the sugar on the plate was manipulated by hand to perfection?


(Disclaimer: This recipe would do well to have some frosting added. We just used sugar because we ran out of time. Try allrecipes.com for some great frosting and icing recipes!)

I hope you have as much fun with this recipe as we did! See ya'll tomorrow!

I am pleased to list this post at...

5 Minutes for Mom's "Tackle It Tuesday",
Tammy's Recipe's "Kitchen Tip Tuesday",
Blessed With Grace's "Tempt My Tummy Tuesday",
and The Lazy Organizer's "Talk About Tuesday".

Check out these awesome homemaking sites for ALL kinds of great ideas!

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30 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow that is cool and almost as easy as those easy bake oven cakes...jk. No really- good idea. Everyone looks like they are having fun. I love the look on Johnny's face..so cute! Thanks for sharing. Yummy

Peggy said...

Oooh, my son will LOVE this!!
I bet this would also be a fun activity for a sleepover - which we are planning to have in October. Thanks for the idea!

L2L said...

Once again you are very inspiring. My children are looking at the pics asking when we are going to try that. Guess I need to go check my mugs and see if the are microwaveable, lol.

Erica said...

Okay, that is so cute! I can't wait to try that with my little ones!

Sharon said...

Oh, that looks so yummy! And I have all of that in the house. We will definitely be trying those for dessert tonight...or maybe just one for mom after lunch. I should probably taste test first just to make sure it will turn out all right. :) OK, yeah right, I just want dessert. Yumm...

Anonymous said...

How fun! I am definitely going to have to try this one! :)

BTW, I'm not Mormon, but I think Family Home Night is a GREAT idea, especially with so many kids at different ages. My best friend grew up in a large family. Her parents often made certain nights mandatory "family time." Back then, I didn't understand, but now that we're grown, and I see how close all those grown up kids are, even though they live in different states, I finally understand. :)

Laura said...

I LOVE this idea!

The Farmer's Wife said...

yum, yum and yum! I am actually going to make this one this afternoon! cute pictures of your FHE, I know what you mean...about trying!

Sherry @ Lamp Unto My Feet said...

This looks fun and yummy! I've seen a few recipes using a cake mix, but I prefer homemade. Thanks for sharing! :D

Anonymous said...

I am glad that you and the kiddos had a good time with the recipe. We love it also. So how did the spice cake do?

The Apron Queen said...

I am sooo trying this! What a great recipe! :) Thanks

Dawn @ simply transparent said...

how fun..thanks for sharing this I could see us trying this out as my kids love to make/bake/stir anything!

laurice. said...

That's great Jen....what a fun FHE! I am so sorry to hear about your dad if there is anything I can do for you please let me know.

Susie said...

What a great tackle!! I love the idea of making your family a goal for a tackle! Also, the cake looks YUMMY!!

Anonymous said...

Oh how yummy those look! What fun to do that as a family. Great tackle. I enjoyed the pictures.

CJ, The Purple Diva said...

Pictures and COMMENTS were the bomb! Love this little recipe! LOOKS YUMMY!

Zoiey said...

If I had some cocoa and chocolate chips I'd probably make that tonight with the kids... I don't usually bake with the kids... that's my stress reliever... I go in a different place when I bake and it gets really fusterating for me when I bake with the kids...

mom_of2boys said...

Great idea! I did this with brownies and my kids wouldn't eat it. It was supposed to be the idea of hot chocolate. I might try the cake and dumping it out onto a plate. Thanks for sharing!

The Sweet Life of Us said...

I love it...Perfect for two!!!

Hesses Madhouse said...

Thanks for sharing this recipe. Can't wait to try it!

I just have to say, I love the photo with you hubby standing in the back holding one of the twins. How sweet!

Lana said...

This could possibly be the BEST foodie post ever. I absolutely will try this TONIGHT! How fun!
Thanks for joining us at TMTT!

Kathleen W. said...

This is the second time I saw this cake recipe today...I think the first was at Simply Amusing blog. It looks so good and is perfect for when you need a quick chocolate fix.

Thanks for sharing, and for showing us your whole brood at once! What a fun family.

BarbaraJo said...

What a great idea. Who would have thought microwave baking in individual servings?! I love it.

Anonymous said...

Just found your blog off of an lds blogsite... I love it... you have an adorable family!

I'll have to try this chocolate cake soon :)

Bohanon Family said...

I just got this recipe in my email the other day. I'm glad you tested it EIGHT times for me!!! :) Glad to know it works well!

Lisa@BlessedwithGrace said...

How fun. I want to try this. Thanks so much for sharing. I loved the pictures of the kids, getting involved. So glad you joined us for Tempt My Tummy Tuesday. I hope you will came back, again.

Shynea @ Penny Pinching Diva said...

I am so glad that you posted the recipe to this. This cake looks yummy, and it is something that my sons could help me make. I am going to have to try this sometime soon.

Krissy said...

DUDE! I have ALL those ingredients on hand! Now whenever I want cake, I won't have to dread making an ENTIRE cake!!! LOL SCORE! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!! lol Hey, and quick question - what size mug did you use? I think the biggest ones I have right now hold only 6-8 ounces or so.

Anonymous said...

How much of the mixture do you place in each mug?

Mom2my10 @ 11th Heaven said...

Anonymous, the recipe is for one mug. My mugs are normal sized coffee cups. Good luck!