Black cherry, almond and chocolate egg cakes

Makes 12

For some people the idea of 'leftover' chocolate is an anathema. For others, these are a cunning (though sadly no less calorific) disguise for a little post-Easter indulgence.

Ingredients

425g tin of black cherries in syrup

100ml syrup from the cherries

50g organic cocoa powder

150g golden caster sugar

150ml light olive oil

3 large eggs

100g ground almonds

50g rice flour

1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

12 miniature chocolate eggs (or use broken bits of a big chocolate egg)

2-3tbsp chopped almonds

Method

Drain the cherries – keep the liquid and put this aside.
Preheat the oven to 180oC/160oC fan/gas 4. Line a muffin tin with paper cases.
Heat 100ml of the cherry syrup in a small pan on the hob or in a heatproof jug in the microwave, until steaming. Pour it into a small bowl and whisk in the cocoa powder to make a smooth paste.
Put the sugar, olive oil and eggs into a large mixing bowl and whisk for a few minutes until it thickens slightly into a pale golden custard-like cream.
Add the cocoa paste, keep whisking to incorporate, and then add the ground almonds, rice flour and bicarbonate of soda and mix well.
Divide the drained cherries between the muffin cases (you’ll get at least 3 in each case), place a little chocolate egg on the cherries and then pour the batter on top. Sprinkle with the chopped almonds.
Bake for about 20-25 minutes until just set on top and a wooden skewer comes out fairly clean. Leave to cool for a few minutes in the tin, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool. If you fancy, you can 're-melt' the centre of your cake by giving it a quick blast in the microwave.