You see, the whole premise of "5 minute mug-whatever" is incredibly deceiving, because it implies that the prep is somehow easier than traditional baking. But that's not the case at all - the cooking time is greatly reduced, yes, and the amounts are smaller, but you're still lugging out all the same ingredients, taking roughly the same time to measure and mix them. In fact, traditional baking gives you more down-time while it bakes, which I view as a plus. If you're mixing all the ingredients directly in the mug, clean-up becomes simplified, but even that's not always the case. In short, most of these recipes are fine if you need a warm, sweet snack RIGHT AWAY. However, very few hold up as truly useful or even tasty in their own right. But there was one - a wonderful, savory surprise that just about made all this madness worthwhile.
But I'll get to that. First, please realize that for your sakes, I'm splitting this post in two, because there are eighteen different mugs to judge. At first it may not seem like much, but let me tell you, it becomes overwhelming fast. And hey, no laughing at my iPhone photos of everything. You want pretty food photos I suggest you check out Tracey's delicious cookie post. Now with that disclaimer out of the way, let's get to the reviews:
Nutella Mug Cake, Chocolate and Caramel Mug Cake, Chocolate Fudge S'mores Cake, Chocolate Peanut Butter Mug Cake
These recipes are grouped together because 1) Apart from various toppings, they look identical coming out of the microwave, and 2) The idea is the same: gussy up that standard chocolate mug cake recipe with whatever flavors suit you. How do they taste? Fine, across the board, but fine was as good as it got for me. The s'mores cake lost point for having SO MANY steps. In that instance and with the peanut butter cake I found myself preferring the ease of an actual s'more or a batch of homemade peanut butter cups. The Nutella cake tasted surprisingly little of Nutella, and the caramel from the chocolate caramel sank to the bottom, leaving the rest of the cake spongy and kinda boring. Would I make any of these again? Can't say I would. However, I will note that my children happily devoured each one of these after I was done tasting them, so you might keep these in mind as an extra-special after school snack.
Chilaquiles
I had insanely low expectations for this one. Salsa, chips, and cheese did not sound particularly good to me at the time. (What's wrong with me? I don't know.) Looking over the recipe, I thought for sure I would end up with a mug of overcooked egg dotted with soggy chips. When it came out of the microwave, I still wasn't very optimistic.
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It's so...appetizing...[/caption]Though with the recommended garnishes it certainly perked up a bit.
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Amazing what a little makeup can do.[/caption]And then I took a bite. Guys. This one is good. Really! The chips add a variety of textures while the cheese and salsa give it plenty of flavor - more than the sum of its parts, for sure. It's satisfying and very simple to throw together. Admittedly, I'd call it more of a cross between migas and chilaquiles - like a tex-mex breakfast casserole - but you can bet I'll be turning to this in the mornings for something fast, hot, and filling. Also - 180 calories? Please and thank you, Microwave Miracle.
Cookie in a Mug
Pretty solid. I liked how the whole recipe was mixed in the mug itself, with ingredients I already had on hand. The end result was a cross between a cake and a cookie, but would certainly satisfy a pizookie craving once a scoop of ice cream is added. Not a bad option for a sweet midnight snack, and unlike most of the cake recipes that towered like souffles and easily made two servings, the amount filled about half of my 12 oz mug - not too much, but still plenty.
Banana Bread in a Mug
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It's even uglier in person, trust me.[/caption]This was a DISASTER. It is quite possible that I did something wrong, but I'm afraid I'm just a bit too traumatized to try this one again. Everything about it was unappealing, from appearance to smell to texture to taste to the fact that I had to mix the dang thing in separate bowl only to end up with some horrible slug monster on my kitchen counter. I made the mistake of promising banana bread to my daughter only to have her poke the thing suspiciously and promptly return to her memory game. For what it's worth, I am reasonably certain I followed the instructions correctly, but the recipe makes a large amount of batter, so maybe my smallish mug couldn't cook it properly. From what I could gather, even if this had somehow turned out right, I doubt it would have tasted much like proper banana bread as much as a banana snack cake. Consider yourself warned!
Sticky Date Pudding in a Mug
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Just like the picture, guys.[/caption]Kind of a random dish to translate to mug cookery, don't you think? But it is an Australian recipe, so I'm guessing this is a popular dish over there. At any rate, I did not have dates on hand (although I often do, so I might try this again when I do have some) so I attempted this with raisins instead. Also, I'll admit I cheated and simply drizzled on some caramel sauce from the fridge rather than making my own. And? Not bad. The crumb was tender instead of spongy, and the raisins added a homey sweetness, like what you get from an oatmeal raisin cookie. This is another recipe that would benefit from some ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream on top. Would I make this again? Maybe, if only to see if it's markedly different with dates.
Mac-N-Cheese in a Mug
I've seen this done with some success on another blog, but I gotta tell ya - no such luck. While this is definitely the right recipe - there's one floating around Pinterest that tells you to microwave the pasta, milk, and cheese all at the same time, but don't do it! - I still couldn't get the cheese and milk to blend together to make a proper sauce. The pasta did cook fine, and I'll probably use that in the future to make a fast noodles-and-spaghetti-sauce snack, so there's that. Also, if you're the type that likes their mac and cheese with literally just macaroni with some melted cheese, then this should make you happy. If you use evaporated milk instead of the called for 1%, I'm pretty sure it would work much better (because science), but who has small amounts of evaporated milk waiting to be used up? Finally, if you do attempt this, I suggest adding in some salt, because I found it very bland.
Allllll right! We're halfway there! See what I mean about this taking a long time? Stay tuned for microwave snacks 10-18 to find out which one tasted like something entirely different from what it advertised, which one is actually pretty healthy, which one should not even be on the list, and what bonus recipe I give you instead! Have you tried any of these recipes before? Did they turn out better or worse for you?
Update - Part Two has arrived! Check it out here.
