Natural pectin content in fruits varies greatly. Even tomatoes have pectin in them. Unless a lot of boiling and sugar is added to help natural pectin to set, its difficult for a person just starting out to make a successful jelly or jam with no added pectin. Some don't use any added pectin, but because diabetics must watch sugar intake its not a good idea to attempt it unless you have a lot of experience. Simply boiling down apple cider to at least 1/20 of its original volume will give a syrup and possible set. Adding things like peels, seeds, septa, and any hulls that surround seed cavities can help improve a natural set. Things like pepper jelly and others with very low amounts of natural pectin will simply boil down to syrup, or scorch badly before reaching any kind of set. Many people here have just strated out trting to make a home canned food. If they follow someones very old recipe and find it to be a failure, the person may not want to try a failure again. Pectin concentrates are quite common in the US and for most fist time jelly makers its a good idea to follow a recipe exactly before attemptng to set a jelly that has no added pectin and is also low in sugar. A BWB IS necessary no matter what place on earth you live on. The UK may not think its necessary, and is perfectly safe to can without any BWB, but thats simply giving dangerous and unpredictable safety to home canned products. I push the envelope some when using a steam canner, but because the canner has a rapid recovery and most canned items are high in acid, I don't worry as much about contamination. I would NOT home can without knowing about an alternative process that is done by commercial companies, and if its possible to duplicate some of these processes. Again, all high acid foods, which, by themselves are safer to home can compared to a low acid food that requires a PC and very high over 212 degrees F heating.

Gourmet, not, but something for a different sweet. This was popular "way back when" in the full sugar, etc. version. Sugar Free Pumpkin Eclair Cake 1 can pureed pumpkin (not prepared pie filling) 1/2 cup canned fat free evaporated milk 1/2 cup skim milk 2 small packages sugar free, fat free instant vanilla pudding 1 and 1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice 1-8 oz. carton thawed sugar free whipped topping graham crackers Line an 11x7 dish with a layer of graham crackers. Mix pumpkin, milks, pudding mixes, and spices until smooth and slightly thick. Fold in half of the whipped topping. Spread half this mixture on top of the graham crakers. Top with another layer of graham crackers. Top with the other half of the mixture. Chill over night. When ready to serve, spread with remaining whipped topping and sprinkle lightly with crushed graham cracker crumbs, or pecans, or additional pumpking pie spice. I think some crushed ginger snaps might be a good topping. This could be doubled and do very nicely in a 9x13 dish or pan.

Sorry to hear they couldn't come. I was happy to help, as I'm sure everyone else was. I had a thought the other day, too. I have an aunt who is allergic to artificial sweeteners. Please, everyone, make sure you tell anyone who eats something made with them thata it's in there! She gets heart palpitations if she eats it. Heart problems run in the family. She thought she was having a heart attack when it happened. The artificial sweeteners certainly have their place, but we still need to be careful with them. Tami

Every diabetic is unique; that said one of the most common denominators is the need to count carbs. However, from there, everyone deals with it differently. Type1 on pumps can 'up' their insulin to cover a snack; folks on injections are committed depending on the duration of their shot; Type2 have many different management strategies. That said, its like a budget. If you get 20gm carbs, anyone (diabetic or not) can choose to eat them as candy, vegetables, whatever. And food with a lower carb count -- more can be consumed before hitting the target limit. Obviously some foods are better choices health-wise and also metabolically, but everyone is different. That's why it can be very difficult to determine what is, exactly, a diabetic-friendly dessert. As mentioned earlier, many sugar free items actually have a higher overall carb count than their "regular" counterparts. For some people, their bodies digest other components of food (fats, proteins) differently as well, and that may or may not affect their blood sugars. Sugar-free jell-0 has a zero carb count. Whip cream is also very low (but higher in fats).