No Sugar Added Spreads

Why did I finish the dandelion jelly post with the words "USE JAMS AND JELLIES RESPONSIBLY?" Ok, I was going for the humour, but it was also a serious warning too. In our world, Type 2 Diabetes is on the rise. I come from a family history liberally sprinkled with both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. Both of my parents were, at one point, diagnosed with Type 2, and both my siblings have Type 2 diabetes as well. I'm a hold-out, and just as I helped my mom control hers with diet while she was living, I'm doing my best to avoid the dx myself.

To that end, I came up with three flavours of no-sugar-added spreads. They are all sweet though. They are all sweetened with fruit juice concentrate that has no sugar added. They are also fruit combinations that complement each other. Now, I will say this: sugar is not the only culprit in diabetes, of course. Carbohydrates are an even bigger source of simple sugar in the blood. Of the fruits I use, pineapple has 19.6 grams of carbs per cup (2 grams of fiber); blueberries have 21 grams (3.5 gram of fiber); strawberries have 12.8 grams of carbs (3.3 of fiber); peaches 9.3 grams of carbs (1.5 of fiber); apples 19.1 grams of carbs (3.3 fiber); 5 dates = 32 grams of carbs (3.3 fiber). Carbs in the unsweetened, concentrated juice are even higher.

I put all these numbers here because I've heard a lot of opinion from people on how filled with carbs these spreads are. But opinion doesn't do it for me, so here are the facts. Moreover, both dates and cinnamon, despite any numbers, are very good for helping people control their blood sugar. Nevertheless, and obviously, all spreads should be used in moderation.

That said, here's how these spreads are made.


Wendy's "Brown Jam" (apple/cinnamon/date spread)

2 cans of frozen, unsweetened apple juice
2 cups chopped cooking apple
2 cups chopped dates
1 generous teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tbsp. lemon juice

Put all this into a large saucepan and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and cook until thickened. Doesn't take long with this one. Scoop into sterilized jars and lid.

Notes:
A cooking apple is a hard apple, like Royal Gala, not a soft apple, like MacIntosh.
Buy pitted whole dates to chop yourself; pre-chopped dates are often coated with sugar.
Instructions for preserving are to the right if you've never done it before.

Strawberry/Pineapple Spread

1 can unsweetened pineapple juice
2 cups fresh strawberries
1 can crushed pineapple canned in its own juice
2 tbsp. lemon juice

Again, place all ingredients into a large saucepan, bring to a boil, then cook until it's thickened to the consistency you like. (Bear in mind if will thicken more as it cools.) This one takes a little more cooking down than the brown jam. You may wish to put a drop or two of non-glycol red food colouring into this to help it keep an appetizing hue. Place in sterilized jars and lid.

Blueberry/Peach Spread

2 cups fresh blueberries
1 can of peaches canned in fruit juice, not sugar syrup ~ do not drain
1 can unsweetened apple juice
2 tbsp. lemon juice

Same as above... except with the blueberries in there, this needs no colouring.

One more important note: When you preserve properly, the jar lids should pop, creating a seal that will enable you to put these jars of spread in your pantry till you need them. After opening, you not only need to refrigerate them, you need to use them up within a couple of weeks. Without all the sugar that's usually in jam, these will not keep forever, the way jam does. So when you open it, enjoy it. These spreads can also be used in baking to use them up, if needed ~ like putting a fruity center into muffins, for instance, or the brown jam makes great "date" squares. The others are also great for drizzling over whole-grain pancakes or waffles in place of a sugary syrup. Enjoy. :)