Cinnamon Almond Cake in a Mug

One of the hardest parts of eating and cooking gluten free for me is dessert. Baking gluten free can be very frustrating. Especially when you are new at gluten free baking. I am still learning how to bake gluten free and I have been gluten free for almost six months. As difficult as baking gluten free can be,  this recipe is very easy to make and other than the almond flour/meal, all of the ingredients are easy to find at your local supermarket. This cake is not only great for dessert with some ice cream or whipped cream, but also on its own for breakfast.

Luckily, if you own a food processor, blender, or coffee grinder, you can easily make your own almond flour, almond meal, and other nut flours at home. For almond flour, you pulse blanched almonds in your blender, coffee grinder, or food processor until ground. Almond meal uses regular almonds and will be less fine in texture than almond flour. When pulsing the nuts, be sure not to over grind the nuts or you may end up with almond butter. Then sift the almond flour into a bowl using a sifter and store for later use. For additional instructions and visuals for making almond flour and almond meal, read this: http://www.pastrypal.com/2010/12/pastry-technique-make-your-own-almond-flour/. This method can be also used to make other nut flours.

Cinnamon Almond Cake in a Mug – Serves 1 to 2

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of unsweetened applesauce
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons of dark brown sugar, unpacked
• 1/8 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon of almond flour or almond meal (I used almond meal from Trader Joe’s)
• 1/8 tsp of salt

Directions:

1. Put dark brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and almond flour into a small bowl.
2. Mix everything in the bowl together.
3. Add 1 large egg, vanilla extract, and unsweetened applesauce into bowl.
4. Stir until all ingredients are completely mixed together.
5. Spoon mixture into a coffee mug. Make sure you use at least a standard sized mug or a bigger mug.
6. Microwave for 1 minute and 15 seconds to 2 minutes, depending on the wattage of your microwave (I have a 1300 watt microwave and my cake took 1 minute and 15 seconds). After the first 30 seconds, you may have to open the door of your microwave every 15 to 20 seconds for a few seconds due to the cake rising while cooking.

As you can see, the cake deflates some after being removed from the microwave,

Enjoy! Great on its own or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, some vanilla or cream cheese frosting, or whipped cream.