I find a lot of great ideas on Pinterest… but pinning something doesn’t do anything unless I actually, you know, try the idea. So I thought it’d be fun to challenge myself to do at least one Pinterest experiment every week — and blog my results.
I can’t promise that I’ll always have a Pinterest Experiment post up each week, because you know how I sometimes get distracted or on blog tangents. But I’m at least going to try. By the way, you can follow my personal Pinterest account here, if you’re interested.
I saw this yummy-looking 100-Calorie Two-Minute Mug Cake on Pinterest recently.
100 calories? 2 minutes? Chocolate? Sign me up.
I’m pretty positive that the end result was a little more than 100 calories. I did use applesauce, but I substituted a whole egg for the egg white — because I couldn’t bear to just dump the yolk down the sink. And I substituted 2 Tablespoons raw sugar for the stevia. Finally, I added in some chocolate chips and sprinkled the cake with powdered sugar.
It was still pretty low calorie, I’m guessing. It wasn’t spectacular, but it was certainly edible. I think I’d try half applesauce/half oil or butter, if I made it again. It just tasted a little on the bland and not-sweet side.
Or, maybe some extra chocolate chips and another Tablespoon of sugar would help, too? Possibly a scoop of ice cream and some chocolate syrup also? Oh wait, that would probably negate the low-calorie-ness altogether, though. 😉
Have you tried any ideas or recipes you’ve found on Pinterest recently? If so, I’d love to hear how they worked out for you. Feel free to leave your blog link in the comments if you blogged about your experiment!
I make something similar all the time. Here is my recipe. I use weight b/c it’s easier to do with my food scale.
In a microwave-safe mug, combine:
19g no sugar added applesauce
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp water
After combined, add 36g of any boxed cake mix of your choice.
Microwave for 1 minute, 50 seconds (I don’t know the wattage of our microwave).
Tada! You have a not-so-bad cake. I have also made this one:
19g NSA applesauce
1 Tbsp water
1 heaping tsp peanut butter
Combine the above well.
Then add 36g yellow cake mix and nuke for 1:50. Like a cake version of a peanut butter cookie (well, to me anyway).
Oh, and to really make these mug cakes complete, feel free to add chocolate chips, marshmellows (especially when the cake is warm so they will melt some), whipped cream… (yeah, I know this exceeds the 100 calorie limit)…
Just wanted to say that this post made me laugh. Thank you! And that the post idea sounds great. I haven’t joined pinterest yet because we recently moved into a fixer upper and we’ve got plenty of things to do already!
I tried some amazing Refrigerator Oatmeal this week. I found a pin that had 6 different flavors, plus a link to another 6 or 8. I tried three–Mango-Almond, Chocolate-Cherry, and Peach Melba. They were all delicious; my kids loved them and asked if we could have this every day for breakfast! I made a few substitutions–it’s very versatile. It took me about 15 minutes to throw together 3 pints, and it was ready in the morning. Awesome!
I have tried several Pinterest recipes, but only one has NOT been a major flop. I believe it was a chicken green chile sour cream enchilada type meal that was delicious.
I actually started a board on Facebook and invited all my friends to share things they’ve done! I love, love, love trying new things I find on Pinterest whether they’re recipes, crafts, sewing projects, etc! It’s been fun to see what others have ACTUALLY tried!
The board on Facebook is: Pinterest Made Me Do It!
DIY: WINE BOTTLE TIKI TORCHES ~ Ward off summertime bugs in this classy fashion!
http://www.jennifervandahm.com/2012/01/diy-wine-bottle-torches.html
By the way, I also use pinterest to collect ideas or internet pages in one place. For example, I posted some furniture I already have along with some of my internet browsing for a side table. That allowed me to share my ideas with my design-savvy friends, and to determine if there were any common attributes.
Great idea, I need to move some pins from the “recipes to try” board. Here is one for Meyer Lemon Pudding that I did try and loved:
http://www.thegalleygourmet.net/2011/01/meyer-lemon-pudding.html
Note, I substituted some of the Meyer lemon juice with regular lemon juice, because I love my lemon recipes to be tart. If you love lemon, try this recipe!
Well, it *looks* ridiculously yummy 🙂
We do something similar except not remotely healthy, and it’s a brownie instead of cake. Sooo yummy!
Just make it like the Weight Watchers Diet cake!!! I used a little less then 1/2 can for a coffee cup, turned out Great!
Here’s my favorite mug cake: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2011/11/06/one-minute-chocolate-cake/
I make it all the time. It’s vegan, it can be made relatively healthy and low-calorie-ish (sub applesauce for some or all of the oil), and it’s delicious. I don’t know how many calories it is but when I make it with half oil and half applesauce and a few other tweaks, I’ve calculated it to 5 Weight Watchers Points Plus, which isn’t bad at all.
love this addition to your blog!! FUN!
Try this one instead: http://www.mysisterskitchenonline.com/2012/08/07/how-to-make-a-single-brownie-in-one-minute/
I loved Barb’s version. (And if you like it, you should feature her, to. She is my favorite foodie. 😉 This is not a spam comment. I just love that blogger.)
I think your substitutions added quite a few calories. Egg yolks have almost all of the calories, so keeping the yolk added about 60 calories. Also, sugar has 45 calories per tablespoon, so using two tablespoons of regular sugar instead of Stevia adds another 90 calories. A tablespoon of chocolate chips is 70 calories, and adding a teaspoon of powdered sugar on top is another 15 calories. So, I would say that your version is around 345 calories. Not blow-your-diet-out-of-the-water, but still a whole lot more than 100 calories. It adds up fast, doesn’t it?
The best mug cake that I have found so far is sooooo easy! you take a regular cake mix and mix that with an angle food cake mix. Then all you do is add 1/3 cup of the mix and 2 T of water put in the microwave 1 min you now have a “cupcake”. The kids love it I tried it with a chocolate cake mix but you can use any flavor it says. Next time we are going to try lemon 🙂 but this mix is going to last us awhile even though the kids have had one pretty much everyday for the last 3 days!
My mom uses this recipe and I was going to post it here once I got it from her! Glad you posted it. It’s a good one!
A few weeks ago I made “crockpot ravioli casserole” from becomingbetty We really liked it and it was enough to freeze part and eat the other part. Or to make when you have a family over for dinner. My kids couldn’t even tell there was spinach in it.
How about adding a generous shot of whipped cream, a dusting of cocoa powder, more chocolate chips, AND another tablespoon of sugar. And hot fudge?
I tried one of these mug cakes off Pinterest. My result tasted like a chocolaty egg! Not appealing. 🙂
http://www.grouprecipes.com/72684/microwave-cake-in-a-coffee-mug.html
This is my favorite cake in a mug recipe. I don’t think it is near 100 calories though. But its big enough to share, and better than eating a piece of cake every day for a week.
http://www.number-2-pencil.com/2012/03/chocolate-chip-cookie-in-cup.html?m=1 that’s my all time favorite snack in a mug, chocolate chip cookie in a mug. Yum Yum! Sure beats baking 2 dozen and eating a whole dozen your self.
I would post my favorite brownie recipe but I cannot seem to find it. 😉 should have pinned it on pinterest.
That looks yummy! I can’t stand dumping the yolks either and think they are very good for you anyway, so we eat them up.
Your pictures look so good, by the way.
I would definitely want to add ice cream or whipped cream to this!
http://www.grouprecipes.com/72684/microwave-cake-in-a-coffee-mug.html
I love this one. It turns out great, not sure that its any where near 100 calories but it works and is yummy. It was too big for me, but I split it with my hubby and it sure beat baking a whole cake or eating pieces of cake all week. Chocolate chip cookie in a mug is by far the best quick treat.
My girls and I did a Pinterest experiment tonight. We found a pin that says to take a ceramic mug (got ours at the Dollar Tree) and draw on a design with Sharpies. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes to set the design. It worked out pretty well–I let each girl decorate a side with their name on it. The only thing to note was that some colors change during the baking process. Our bright lime green turned into more of a kelly green after it was baked. I might do more of these for Christmas gifts for the grandparents.
I’ve been pondering having a Pinterest Party for my friends, where we bring the supplies to make something we’ve seen on Pinterest, then share how it works with the other partygoers. Then I could start doing less pinning and more crafting! I’ll be anxiously following your experiments.
That’s a neat idea with the mugs.
I saw this pin as well and thought about trying for Christmas Gifts. It would be a cute teacher gift if you could get all the student signatures on it!
My daughters made a bunch of these and the Sharpie has washed off. They re-did the drawing, re-baked them for a longer period of time, but it still washed right off. I think it might work better with a pen especially for porcelain.
The best “minute” cakes that I’ve found are from Chocolate Covered Katie. Hers don’t use egg, and I think that makes all the difference in the final (microwaved) texture!
I agree. I make her chocolate cake for one all the time. It is fantastic!
I tried the cinnamon french toast bake. It looked so yummy! It turned out to be a nasty glob of cinnamon rolls and egg chunks with icing drizzled on top. I could not bring myself to pour syrup on top of everything like the recipe called for. Blah!
http://atxglutenfree.com/2011/05/gluten-free-chocolate-mug-cake/
I made this chocolate mug cake and it was great although i made some substitutions: I used regular flour and baking soda instead of the gluten free, raw sugar instead of the sugar it said, and regular milk. I ALSO added semi sweet chocolate chips and walnuts 🙂 it was delicious. I think the chocolate chips made it extra delicious cuz they were melty in the middle. Definitely not low calorie, but it sure satisfies the craving 🙂
baking powder*
This looks really good. I will have to let the kids give this a try. They would like to make a cake in a cup and if it isn’t too sweet that is a plus. Thanks for sharing, I have always wondered about the coffee cup cake recipes.
I have a board for things that did not work. There aren’t a whole lot of things in it, but that way I can keep track and my friends can dismiss the “duds” that looked interesting, but didn’t turn out.
I love that idea for things that don’t work. I have a board for things that I’ve tried.
Yeah, tried to make the coffee cake in a cup and had the same reaction you did. It was edible, but didn’t satisfy the craving! Plus, you pretty much had to drag out all the same ingredients as if you were making the real thing. I made a huge mess and was left wanting. :/
I made the brownie in a cup and thought the same thing. It needed icecream to go with it… It was really rich and dense.
Also tried the mac n cheese in a mug. Disaster for me and very messy. I may try it again when we aren’t starving for lunch because it took longer to cook than I thought and overflowed in the microwave.
Getting a sliver out by putting baking soda on it…. didn’t work
Varying success with recipes.
Raw food freezer to crockpot recipes worked, but needed some flavor improvement (the ones I tried)
I’ve never made this recipe but I’ve made 1/8 of a 9×9 wacky cake in a mug in the microwave and it turned out pretty good. I added a spoonful of peanut butter and it was super yummy!
I did a similar series last year where I would try a new dish each week and challenge my readers to follow suit. Some of the recipes were from pinterest and others were ones that I stumbled upon. It was a fun thing to do each week.
Right now, I have so many recipes pinned that I plan to get to…someday 🙂 This is a great challenge to get your readers involved in as well. Perhaps I’ll have something to share next week.
In the meantime, I remember one of my favorite pinterest finds was for smashed boiled potatoes. Here is the pinterest link:
http://pinterest.com/pin/288160076127113162/
This is a great idea when you just have to have something. It sure beats baking the whole cake and eating it.
This is a great idea!! I will say the best thing I have made off of pinterest are the Carmelitas. They were amazing!!!
Don’t dump the yolk, carefully put it into a snack size food storage bag and freeze it. I do that with extra egg whites, too. When I get enough egg yolks I made creme brulee and when I get enough egg whites, I make angel food cake!!!