• Whisk the cocoa with the boiling water in a small bowl. Add the maple syrup and oil and whisk until smooth.
• Add the tapioca flour and whisk until there are no lumps. It will look like an oily mess, but adding the tapioca flour before the brown rice flour results in a smoother batter at the end.
• Add the brown rice flour (or gluten free wholegrain flour of your choice, see notes) and whisk until smooth. Finally, add the baking powder and salt and combine well.

To bake in the microwave:

• Decant the batter into a large, microwave safe mug with enough space for the cake to rise. Microwave for one minute or until cooked to your liking. Because the cake is vegan, it’s ok to have some saucy bits down the bottom or in the middle (but you can also keep cooking it if you prefer.)

To bake in the oven:

• Preheat the oven to 180C or 356F. Pour the batter into an oven safe ceramic baking dish (I use a 1 1/2 cup capacity ceramic mini casserole dish).
• Place the cake in the oven for 15-20 minutes. You can leave a few fudgy bits of allow to cook until completely done. Serve with ice cream, cream or yoghurt.