Lisa's right about the browning liquid. It's for meats only, and I'm sure it would add a very weird flavor to sweet things. As for buying the ThickNThin, I ordered mine off the Atkins website. You might balk at the $17 price, but a little goes a long way and I'm sure this container will last me a year or two at least. Like Lisa said, you can also try other thickening agents like guar or xantham. I haven't used those but I'm sure they all work about the same.

On another note, Atkins also makes a ThickNThin called "Not Sugar" as well as the "Not Starch." Does anyone know the difference?