for the diabetics, you may want to look into agave syrup- it's a vegan alternative to honey that has a lower glycemic index.

here's one recipe without any flour, using nut butters and agave for sweetness:
http://shmooedfood.blogspot.com/2006/04/honeybee-no-bakes.html

Spiced nuts might be good.

Those looking to cut down on gluten and/or sugar might be interested in French baking. Many pastries and cakes are made with almond flour and egg whites. They can be tricky, of course, but I imagine they would be suitable for a two-hour car ride. You might be able to lower the sugar asked for in the recipe, or substitute with something artificial, Stevia, honey, maple syrup, or agave nectar (as suggested above.)

I would also recommend recipes using bean flours or beans. I've had surprisingly amazing results -- beans yield dense baked foods that are wonderfully moist (it also ups the fiber and protein content.) I've made chocolate cakes myself using chickpeas, but I've also seen black bean brownies (on 101 Cookbooks), lemon cake made with chickpeas, and black bean and tofu cupcakes.

These "raw" sugar plums have absolutely no refined sugar in them -- they're sweetened with just natural dried fruit/juice and a dash of honey http://bit.ly/6Fgnff -- **it's the third recipe at the bottom**. I think they're a great holiday alternative that are really special, made with fantastically flavorful and healthful ingredients, but they still seem like a sinful treat.

I've made this clementine cake, and it's delicious and gluten-free and butter free. I found this recipe that subs agave nectar for the sugar, so it can be sugar-free too.

Never tried it but is it possible to do a meringue with a sugar substitute?

Meringues/Pavlovas are a super fun treat and deal well with the substitution of other sweeteners... Maybe some mini pavlovas and berries? With whipped cream? All G/F and like I said, relatively simple to replace the sugar with Splenda or what have you...

Baked fruit, cobblers and crisps (make the topping with rice flour and/or quinoa flakes for celiacs), and poached fruit are good ways of getting something sweet without having to add much (or any!) sweetener.

I made a crustless sweet potato pie yesterday. Just bake sweet potatoes (skin-on) until soft, peel & mash, then mix in eggs, milk, a little butter, whatever spices you want, and a little sugar. Top with pecans and brown sugar and bake again in a glass dish. No flour anywhere! You could do the same with fruit.

Coconut flour is really low in the carb department, but still is nice & sweet. You have to experiment with it though, as it's so high in protein, it can make for some really dense treats.

And there are some recipes for zucchini bread/cake/cupcakes that use ground nuts instead of flour, so they're low-carb (and taste amazing).

Hi everyone I want to thank you for your wonderful Ideas, as they have really opened up some great alternatives. I'll have to get working ( and quickly as I don't have much time until Christmas).
Matt

Would chocolate covered strawberries work?

From Jacques Pepin's "Fast Food My Way", this easy dessert looks very elegant. Make it with low fat graham crackers and part-skim ricotta. Be sure to break each cracker in half, so the piece on each plate is a square cracker. You can also do this in stemmed cocktail glasses by putting the cheese in the glass, topping with fruit and honey, the breaking up graham crackers and sprinkling them on top. This combination also works nicely for small parfaits (cheese, fruit, honey, cracker pieces, cheese, fruit, honey & top with cracker pieces).

"Ricotta honey mix. For a fast and easy dessert, place a graham cracker on each plate and put a large spoonful or scoop of ricotta on top. Pour a couple of tablespoons of honey on over and around the ricotta and sprinkle on some diced dried apricots and dark raisins. This dessert is better still with the addition of a few drops of Grand Marnier."

Enjoy!
Jan

Nigella Lawson did an Apple Almond cake a few years back that I just adore. And I've made it without the sugar and it's still just as good. Here it is (Definitely feel free to skip making apple sauce for good store-bought, you'll need about a cup):

Damp Apple and Almond Cake
Nigella Lawson
Serves 12
INGREDIENTS
• 3 apples eating apples, such as Braeburns
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 8 eggs
• 1 3/4 quarters cup superfine sugar
• 3 1/4 cups ground almonds
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 cup flaked almonds
• 1 teaspoon confectioners’ sugar
DIRECTIONS
Peel, core and chop the apples roughly. Put them in a saucepan with one the lemon juice and sugar, and bring the pan to a boil over a medium heat. Cover the pan and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes or until you can mash the apple to a rough puree with a wooden spoon or fork. (You should have about one heaped cup of puree.) Leave to get cool.
Preheat the oven to 350°F; and oil a 10” springform pan with almond oil or a flavourless vegetable oil and line the bottom with parchment paper.
Put the cooled puree in the processor with the eggs, ground almonds, superfine sugar and a tablespoonful — or generous squeeze — of lemon juice and blitz to a puree. Pour and scrape, with a rubber spatula for ease, into the prepared pan, sprinkle the flaked almonds on top and bake for about 45 minutes. It’s worth checking after 35 minutes, as ovens do vary, and you might well find it’s cooked earlier — or indeed you may need to give it a few minutes longer.
Put on a wire rack to cool slightly, then remove the sides of the pan. This cake is best served slightly warm, though still good cold. As you bring it to the table, push a teaspoon of confectioners’ sugar through a fine sieve to give a light dusting.

Oh, I forgot to mention that you can safely skip the parchment and a blender works well both to pulverize the almonds and in place of a food processor for mixing everything. It's kind of souffle-ish, but gets lovely and dense when cold.

I second that clementine cake! It's super delicious. For those who want the original Nigella recipe (with weight quantities!), see here: http://www.nigella.com/recipe/recipe_detail.aspx?rid=20002. Note that if you grind your own almonds, make sure they're ground quite finely - and definitely serve with cream or ice cream or something. Nom nom nom.

also, here's a recipe (untried) for chickpea cookies

they do contain a lot of sugar, but no wheat flour.

if they are anything like the cookies at the persian bakery in my town, they are melt-in-the mouth AMAZING.

Homemade cheesecakes are wonderful when made with Splenda. Use ground pecans or walnuts pressed into the bottom of the pan with melted butter for a crust and it's diabetic AND gluten safe. Flavoring is up to you; favs in my house include chocolate-peppermint topped with mini candy canes and a cinnamon swirl.

Spiced nuts are good, but cinnamon roasted ones are more dessert-ish. Again, add Splenda instead of sugar when roasting. Or melt a few of the low carb chocolate bars and make homemade nut clusters. These could be made diabetic happy and regular to save cost.

(My husband and my mum are diabetic, so we deal with this a LOT. Just remember, flour is evil to diabetics too. It's not just sugar.)

Lizliterarius would you have a good recipe for the cheesecake with splenda and do you think Almonds would be just as good as a crust. As far as eating nut they are my favorites. I'm a diabetic to and cheesecake is what I long for.

This sweet potato bread is AMAZING. And super easy. Everyone (gluten-free or not) has loved it. I usually put the batter in a food processor for a minute after combining to ensure that it is smooth. I have never tried the topping, and I usually do a little less sugar than is suggested, though I don't think leaving it out all together would be the greatest idea. I also usually just use cinnamon and nutmeg as the spices, because that's my favorite combo and it goes very well with the sweet potato. The texture is sort of like a light banana bread. It's delicious fresh, and also keeps well refrigerated.

http://glutenfreelicio.us/2009/09/05/savory-sweet-potato-bread/