Low or No-Sugar Jams and Jellies (2102)

Many people are changing their cooking habits to reduce the amount of sugar in their diets. But unless you use special recipes and jelling agents, your jams and jellies may fail if you eliminate or reduce the amount of sugar.

A special kind of pectin, called low-methoxyl pectin, can form a firm gel by using a calcium compound with smaller amounts of sugar, or with no sugar at all. Several brands are now available. Each product has a slightly different formulation, so you will get the best results if you follow the instruction sheet packed with the pectin product.

You can use artificial sweeteners containing saccharin when you make jams or jellies with some of the specialized pectins or with plain gelatin. However there is usually some bitter aftertaste. Aspartame, sold under the brand name "Equal," is not currently recommended for use in homemade sweet spreads because it tends to lose sweetness after heating.

There have been trials combining aspartame and sugar in jams with low-methoxyl pectins. If you want to experiment, try making a single recipe using half the usual amount of sugar and the amount of your artificial sweetener equivalent to the sweetness of that amount of sugar. Whenever you reduce sugar in a jam or jelly, no matter what jelling agent you use, you are likely to notice less stability in the color. Sugar helps preserve color in fruits. Artificial sweeteners cannot duplicate this function

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