I have a best friend. On here I call her Muffin.

Muffin has a history with illness; a much more storied, dangerous, and exacting one than mine. Our friendship began when our bodies were strong and our spirits unstoppable. We’re so thankful now that we were reckless, and lived dangerously and fully back then. Now we’re so careful, so precise, and so used to premeditating physical complications and energy black holes. This recipe is from her, and for her.

Muffin and I met in college through a friend whom she grew up with and whom I dated for almost ten years. We had many friends in common for a long time, and still do, along with fifteen years of college escapades, camping, trips to lakes and ashrams, and the trials and travails of growing older together.

Muffin’s my favorite person. She’s taught me so much about patience, grace, faith, and friendship. If I have one soulmate in life, it is she.

Because of her physical state, Muffin’s diet is extremely limited: absolutely no grains, fruit, soy, alcohol, corn, vinegar, sugar of any form (including fruit sugar), dairy other than clarified butter, nightshade vegetables, any vegetable with a high level of starch… the list is long and specific. There’s little to give her a variety in texture, or flavor, or things that feel celebratory. When I see her, I try to feast her with roasted duck breast or lamb ribs, decadent dishes and high-quality ingredients. She’s such a special person, and I wish there were more that could be fun for her when it comes to food.

This recipe is one of the last bastions for something cakelike for her. Her mother developed it from the basic premise that carob, flax and ghee (clarified butter) taste good together. In her awesomeness, she worked the recipe until it had the texture of a cake or quick bread, with a subtle sweetness from coconut flour. I tested and adapted it every so slightly, and it’s now a staple in my own home as well.

It’s safe for those with food allergies, or who need gentle food while going through a medical procedure. It’s grain, soy, nut, dairy, and sugar free, and has no sugar replacement either. So the result is an ever-so-slightly sweet cake that tastes better and better the more you eat it. If you’re trying to get off of sugars, too, this is a fun way to transition out, since it offers the satisfaction of a chocolate cake without any threatening ingredients, and will help reduce sugar cravings over time.

If you’re looking for something a bit more traditionally sweet, feel free to frost it. But I’d say try it on its own first, and get the satisfaction of decadence that’s actually body-supportive.