Microwave Chocolate Pudding Cake

By Samantha Seneviratne

Updated July 23, 2024

Microwave Chocolate Pudding Cake
Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Samantha Seneviratne.
Total Time
20 minutes
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
10 minutes
Rating
4(902)
Notes
Read community notes

Making a cake in the microwave may not be traditional, but it makes the whole process easy and superfast — and this recipe produces a warm, gooey, pudding-like dessert. Simply mix the cake ingredients together, top with the cocoa, sugar and boiling water, and microwave on high. (Don’t forget to take the ice cream out of the freezer to soften slightly while the cake cooks.) In the microwave, the bottom sets into a supermoist chocolate cake while the topping transforms into a rich chocolate sauce. As microwaves and dish size can vary, knowing when to pull the cake out is the only tricky part. It’s done when you can see a firm cake start to bubble to the surface. Don’t worry: A little underdone is just fine, too. This dessert will continue to set a bit while it cools. The instant coffee is optional but it really does add depth to the chocolate flavor.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings

    For the Cake

    • 6tablespoons/86 grams unsalted butter, cut into pieces
    • ¼cup/60 milliliters whole milk
    • 2teaspoons pure vanilla extract
    • ½teaspoon instant coffee or espresso (optional)
    • ¾cup/165 grams packed dark brown sugar
    • 1cup/128 grams all-purpose flour
    • ⅓cup/32 grams unsweetened natural cocoa powder
    • 1teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
    • ½teaspoon baking powder
    • ¼teaspoon baking soda

    For the Topping

    • ½cup/110 grams dark brown sugar
    • ¼cup/24 grams unsweetened natural cocoa powder
    • ¼teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
    • ¾cup boiling water
    • Ice cream, to serve
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

387 calories; 13 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 67 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 45 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 309 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Prepare the cake: Add the butter to a 1½- to 2-quart microwave-safe soufflé dish or casserole, then melt the butter in short bursts in the microwave.

  2. Step 2

    Whisk in the milk, vanilla and instant coffee, if using. Whisk in the brown sugar, then add the flour, cocoa, salt, baking powder and baking soda and whisk until just combined.

  3. Step 3

    Make the topping: In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Sprinkle over the cake batter.

  4. Step 4

    Pour the boiling water over the top.

  5. Step 5

    Cook in the microwave at full power until you can see the set cake start to emerge through the sauce in various spots and the sauce has thickened, 5 to 7 minutes. (It’s OK to periodically stop and check doneness partway through cooking.) The cake will continue to set as it cools.

  6. Step 6

    Serve warm, with ice cream.

Ratings

4 out of 5
902 user ratings
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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Susie Katz

Yes,I'd like to make this in individual ramekins. Cooking instructions, please?

Michellio77

Would a 9 inch ceramic or glass ceramic pie plate work for this? An 8x8? I am confused what a 1/2-2 quart souffle dish would look like or why I would specifically need to use that? I know they are oval but I am trying to understand what size that would be...tx.

queenbnyc

Let’s be real-the majority of us will be making this alone at 1 AM and need cook times for individual ramekins.

ziren

1 quart = 4 cups 1 1/2 quarts = 6 cups 2 quarts = 8 cups Take a measuring cup and use water to determine the capacity of your pie plate. A soufflé dish is round and has straight sides. Possibly chosen because it's most like a round metal cake pan, which can't be used in a microwave. IMO a straight sided dish (such as a casserole dish) might result in a more consistently cooked cake than a slope sided dish. May need to adjust cooking time based on dish dimensions & batter depth.

Marcia

Here's what I did for individual ramekins. I had 6-ounce ramekins. Melted a slice of butter in each as directed. Halved the recipe and mixed in separate bowl. Put 1/4 of the cake mix, then 1/4 topping in each ramekin. Poured an estimated 1/4 of the boiling water into each one. Baked in my microwave for 5 minutes. They turned out great. I haven't made this in a bigger dish, so I'm not sure how it compares, but there was dense cake and gooey molten chocolate. Worked for me!

Michele

could you make this in the oven? We don't use a microwave.

Katy

Would love to know if a vegan version will work, with plant based butter and milk?

Madeleine

Can this be prepped ahead of time and then just add thr boiling water and pop in micro?

pearls kid

Could this dessert be made with Almond flour?

Laura

Does this cake require natural cocoa powder, or will it work with dutched cocoa powder?laura

Beverly

Look up Nigella Lawson's Sticky Toffee Pudding. Her recipe calls for baking it in the oven.

Eva C

it was so awesome and easy to make

Allison

An 8x8 glass or ceramic would be perfect for this. In fact, many traditional -oven- recipes call for an 8x8 pan.

Caroline

This looks delicious! Are there any changes I should make if I want to bake it in the oven instead?

marcos

Agree! What would be the microwave times for individual serving bowls?

Cecee

Would like to just make half

sienna j

In case anyone was wondering this reheats well!! I did one minute bursts until I was happy with the temp :)

RoseMarie

To those who found it too salty, perhaps you were using Morton’s kosher salt, which is twice as salty as the Diamond kosher salt specified in the recipe. Or even worse, used regular table salt which in an equal amount would be even saltier.

M

Halved the recipe. Made in a le crueset pie plate. Microwaved for 5 minutes. Perfect.

Babs

Easy to make. VERY sweet.

Sara G

Did this with 1:1 gluten free flour. Great! Next time did this with half olive oil and the GF flour. Even better. Awesome little recipe for a go-to last minute yummy! Thanks

Erin Keating

I cooked this for five minutes in my 1200 watt microwave and it was perfectly cooked. Make sure you use a light hand with the dry ingredients for the cake otherwise it will be a little dry and/or salty. But overall, just great. Once it’s served in bowls with whipped cream or ice cream, no one’s gonna know you used the microwave!

Lo McMahon

This cake is everything you want in a dessert and the ratio of effort to reward is remarkable. This recipe must have been written by a scientist - it’s so incredibly perfect. One note that ice cream with this is mandatory otherwise it’ll be too rich. Thank you!

Chelsea

Ramekin instructions: Made this twice to make sure I got it right. I quartered the recipe and then split that into 2 small ramekins so it wouldn’t overflow. Melted the butter in each, then divided each quartered ingredient amount between the 2 ramekins. Used a little less brown sugar cause I like my desserts less sweet. Added a little more hot water than the adjusted recipe called for. Microwaved for exactly 1 minute and it was perfect!

Ksand

Too salty. Maybe half a teaspoon in the cake instead of 1tsp.

Ms. W

Too salty. But also too sweet and the chocolate flavor didn't really stand out.

Kim Gans-DeLuca

Would this work with gluten free flour?

salty

So salty. Cut down to 1/4 to 1/2 tsp.

Emala

If your cake was too salty, I bet you used Morton kosher salt. It it is finer than Diamond and will measure more and thus add more salt flavor. I wish the Times would specify Diamond and not say "such as." The difference is important.

The sahm

8x8 does not work. It bubbles over in the microwave just a tiny bit. The taste: husband liked it, I think it was okay. A little bland. I usually appreciate a more deeper chocolatey flavor. This just tasted like a mild chocolate cake with chocolate pudding… I won’t make it again.

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