Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Line cupcake tin with cupcake liners. Set aside.
Combine cocoa powder and hot water in a small bowl and mix until you get a paste. Set aside to cool slightly.
Whisk ground almond, baking powder and salt in another small bowl. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, combine sugar, eggs and olive oil. Whisk together either by hand (requires a lot of elbow grease) or with a electric mixer until pale and slightly thickened, about 6 minutes by hand, 3 minutes by electric mixer on high speed. Whisk in the vanilla and the cocoa paste and lastly the ground almond mixture.
Divide the batter among the cupcake liners - about 1/4-cup per cupcake or 3/4-full. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out with a few crumbs. Transfer the cupcakes onto a wire rack and let cool completely before serving.