Add 95g almond meal, 30g unsweetened cocoa powder, 3 tsps cinnamon, 0.5 tsp baking powder, 0.5 tsp salt and 0.125 tsp stevia to a bowl and mix well with a knife or metal spoon, ensuring there are no clumps.

If, like me, you can’t get hold of IMO Syrup, then just make your own. Add 40g IMO Powder to a small jug or ramekin and then add 2 tbsps water and stir briskly & thoroughly with a knife – you should end up with a semi-opaque white syrup. If you find that it’s clumping together, simply put it in the microwave for 10 seconds and stir again – you should find it’s now much smoother. If you need to, you can substitute the original amount of IMO powder and water for 60ml of rice malt syrup.

Line a muffin tray with paper muffin/cupcake holders (or make your own by cutting 5″ squares of baking paper and screwing them into the muffin-shaped tray with an appropriately-sized bottle or can) and use a dessert spoon to blob the mixture into the holders – this recipe should easily make enough for 6.

The buttercream is entirely optional, but it does make your muffins look a lot prettier. While your cakes are baking, add 60g very soft butter 0.25 tsp stevia and 2 tsps xylitol into a bowl and whisk together with an handheld electric whisk for 30-60 seconds or so, until the butter is completely smooth.

Once mixed, but in the fridge for 5 minutes or so just to cool it down a little (but don’t leave it in there too long or it’ll go solid!). Prepare a piping bag (I use these handy disposable ones); put in a pretty fat nozzle and cut off the end of the bag so that the nozzle fits snugly into place. Now remove your buttercream from the fridge and spoon into the bag, gently squeezing it down to the end. Test a little on a plate first to make sure it’s coming out the way you want, then pipe onto your muffins, moving your hand in a quick, sure motion from the outside in, pulling up to a peak.