So, I’ve had a pretty rough week. 6 days ago I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. I now not only have the pleasure of injecting myself with insulin 4 times per day, but I obviously have to regulate my sugar intake and count carbs. Not ideal for an enthusiastic baker and cook, who already has a wheat intolerance (I’m currently being tested for coeliac disease). Clearly the universe does not want me to eat cake.

I don’t scare that easy, universe. I am going to continue to bake and cook as much as ever, but will be experimenting with sweeteners as a replacement for sugar and other sugar reducing methods.

Any recipes cooked post diagnosis are going to include a calorie and a carb count per portion, as I’ll need to calculate those anyway.

One recipe that contains a shed load of sugar and was definitely made pre-diagnosis is this Mojito cake – based on my favourite cocktail that I can now no longer drink! (boo hoo!)

This cake is kept moist by the mojito flavoured syrup that soaks into the cake, which goes perfectly with the zingy lime buttercream.

If I made this again, I’d be tempted to add some lime curd between the cakes, just because I love lime and I think it would add another dimension to the cake.

Recipe from Olive magazine. Serves 10-12.

590 cals, 83.8g carbs per serving.

• 6 eggs
• 260g golden caster sugar
• 115g melted butter
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 260g plain flour

for the syrup

• 150g light muscovado suagr
• 2 limes zested and juiced
• 75ml white rum
• medium sized bunch mint

for the icing

• 200g butter at room temp
• 400g icing sugar
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 2 limes, zested and juiced

1. To make the syrup, put the sugar, 40ml water, lime juice and rum into a pan and bring to a low simmer to dissolve the sugar. Boil for one minute.
2. Add the zest and mint leaves and stir. Leave to sit until use to infuse the flavours.
3. Heat the oven to 200c/fan180/gas 6. Butter 2 x 20cm cake tins and line with baking paper.
4. Beat the eggs in a metal or glass mixing bowl, then add the sugar and beat lightly. Put the bowl over a pan of just boiled water and whisk with an electric whisk for 10 minutes until the mixture is thick and has tripled in volume. It needs to reach the ribbon stage, where a trail across the top of the mix does not sink in.
5. Add the butter and vanilla extract down the sides the bowl and fold in with a large spatula, being careful not to knock the air out.
6. Add the flour in three batches by sifting on top of the batter and folding in.
7. Pour the batter into the tins and bake for 15 mins until cooked and slightly browned on top.
8. Turn out onto a wire rack and cool. Once cooled, strain the mojito syrup and brush liberally over the top of the cakes until two thirds of the syrup has been used.
9. To make the butter icing, cream until smooth, then beat in the icing sugar, lime juice and zest.
10. Smooth a thin layer over the first cake and place the second cake on top.
11. Smooth the rest of the icing over the cake, starting over the top and then down the sides.