The fruit that blushes when you cook it

Quince are a difficult fruit to get to know. Every autumn, I buy one or two with the best intentions.

I tell myself I'll poach them or make a lovely marmalade or perhaps a batch of membrillo (Spanish quince paste). They generously perfume our kitchen with their floral honeysuckle aroma for a week. Then the scent fades, and N starts asking when I'm going to do something with those hard fruits. "Soon," I reply, "I have some great ideas." Then another week passes, and the guilt builds. Then a third week of neglect. I start to regret ever having bought those damned, overly demanding fruit. Then a fourth, and I can barely stand to look at them. Their very presence seems to expose my every shortcoming and weakness. Eventually, they rot and I happily throw them away.

So it was with some apprehension that I brought home my usual two quince this year. N saw them and muttered, "hmmm, quince." Not usually one to hide her opinions, she uncharacteristically bit her tongue, while I averted my eyes and changed the subject.

There they sat. Waiting. I snapped a picture for my blog. Then a week, maybe two passed. The aroma started to fade....

Happily, this year is different! I followed Paula Wolfert's unusual Turkish-style recipe in The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen which calls for slow-roasting the quince for 5 hours. The transformation was unbelievable! My homely, hard quince turned into a pair of ruby red slippers. The powerful aroma transformed into the most exotic flavor, tasting as if an entire garden of red roses had been distilled into a single bite. A reminder that cooking can be magical!

A little bit of research in Harold McGee's book demystified the process and put a damper on my romantic notions. I'll attempt to summarize the Professor's explanation. Quince are inedibly tannic in their raw state. When they are cooked, the same chemicals that cause this astringency on our tongues break down and bond with oxygen chemicals to form anthocyanins, the plant pigments that cause fruit and vegetable to appear red.

[Long pause]

As I was saying, the quince turn red through some inexplicable, mysterious, magical process. Perhaps they are blushing, knowing that the one who tastes them is about to fall in love.

When I served the roasted quince for dessert the other night, falling in love is exactly what happened to N. She was astonished and entranced by the beguiling taste. She was convinced I had added some secret ingredient like rose water or cardamom or vanilla. Believe me, folks, she is a tough critic and she was enraptured.

Or perhaps she was just stunned that I actually cooked the quince this year.

Paula Wolfert's Slow-Baked Quince

(adapted from her recipe in The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen)

Serves 4

2 medium quince
⅔ c superfine (baker's) sugar
⅔ c water
1 clove
1½ T lemon juice
1 apple

Preheat oven to 250˚F (120˚C).

Peel and halve the quince. Using a melon baller and a paring knife, carefully core the quince halves. They are incredibly hard, so be careful when using the knife to remove any stray bits of stem. Reserve all the peel and trimmings. Combine the sugar, water, clove and lemon juice in a shallow baking dish, such as a casserole (preferably one with a lid). Stir with a whisk to dissolve the sugar. Add the reserved trimmings and the quince halves, cut side down. Peel the apple. Using the largest wholes on a box grater, coarsely grate the apple over the quince halves. This will prevent the quince from drying out while baking.

Cover and bake for 5 to 7 hours until the fruit softens and turns pink or, if you're lucky like I was, crimson.

According to Paula Wolfert, not all varieties of quince turn quite so red. She recommends serving the quince halves with clotted cream and toasted almonds. Although I tried it that way, both N and I preferred them with vanilla ice cream. Either way, strain and then spoon the sweet cooking juices over the fruit. Leftover juices make a great spritzer mixed with water or, even better, a great version of a Bellini or Kir Royale mixed with Prosecco or Champagne! Cheers!

Food|and Drink|Recipes|Fruit|Desserts

Comments

[Melissa]

They are gorgeous indeed! Thanks for the recipe. The only thing I've ever made with quince before was a lamb and quince tagine - I kept waiting for the quince to turn scarlet, but it never did... :( I later read that this process only happens when the quince is cooked with sugar. Guess I'll need to whip up something sweet this year!

[Barbara]

OH - too gorgeous. I now have to wait 5 months for Autumn in the SH to try this.

[BNA]

Too beautiful for words! Some greedy shopper swiped all the quince at my local grocery store, so I sure hope I can find some more elsewhere.

[emi]

I have the same problem with my plums that i've been telling Dave not to touch. (you see, i had planned on making jam). I've got to go home and toss them.. gah :)

[Brett]

Melissa, actually I don't always end up tossing them. I've used them in a lamb tagine, too, and with braised duck legs (and other dishes in restaurants). But they had never turned anything more than rosy pink.

Barbara, I guess you'll have to make do with the gorgeous peaches and berries of summer. 5 months will fly by quickly, I suspect.

BNA, thanks for visiting IPO Sardines. I just checked out your New York-based blog (born 3 weeks ago!) and liked what I saw. I'm sure you can find quince at one of the Greenmarkets.

Emi, hate it when that happens! What can you do? Aside, of course, from blogging about it.

[Pam Payne]

Thanks for the recipe for the quince. We have a quince bush that is laden with the fruit every year here in Michigan, yet I didn't know what they were until this year. (Yes, I had tried eating them raw...that's why we ignored this nasty fruit.) Now that I know, I'm going to try all the recipes I've been finding!

[Pam Payne]

Thanks for the recipe for the quince. We have a quince bush that is laden with the fruit every year here in Michigan, yet I didn't know what they were until this year. (Yes, I had tried eating them raw...that's why we ignored this nasty fruit.) Now that I know, I'm going to try all the recipes I've been finding!

[siri]

Stumbled upon your site, all the way from Shanghai.... getting used to finding all sorts of unusual things here, and found a grove of quince trees growing near our villa (fancy western name for western style houses). Thanks for giving me some great ideas of how to make sure these fruits don't go to waste.

[Benjamin]

Thank you for the wonderful recipe. I put mine in the crock pot instead. The quinces and syrup are wonderful over vanilla ice cream.

[Susan]

I will try your recipe as I have a tree just full of Quinces outside my side door and have been looking to see what I could do with them. I thought I might try canning them in a syrup but I will try this recipe for sure! Thanks

[Dana]

I just moved to Germany and I bought these usually shaped fruits that I thought were some local version of an apple. It is Quince! I have heard of them, but never seen them before. So, now I must try this recipe!

[Sofia]

We made spritzers with Prosecco and left-over quince syrup too. I confess to being quince obsesed. Quite enjoying the aroma filling my kitchen as I poach my first batch of this year. (Including the first fruits of the tree I planted last year.)

[ken]

I have lived a sheltered life. I'm 70 and never heard of a quince. I really must find some and give them a try. I am currently residing in the Philippines so don't know how much success I will have. The reason I keep reading is to learn new things. Thank you.

[ruthii noble]

my neighbour spotted me picking some quinces off a bush in my front garden and came over to tell me, in a broad Norfolk accent, "you can't eat them apples, y'know". maybe i'll take some round when they're cooked! just to clarify - what is the quantity of lemon juice?

[Brett]

One and a half tablespoons of lemon juice.

[F]

How long in the crock pot, Benjamin?

[Jeff]

Pam Payne: I hope you had good results, but I note that you said a bush rather than a tree. If it has thorns and purple/red flowers, then what you have is a Japonica Quince, which is rather different; even harder and more acidic than real quinces, and IMHO not really worth bothering with. Real quince is a tree with white flowers (at least mine is; Meeches Prolific).

[twitter.com/twyrusdrama]

What do you mean by 'Clove' ?? I assume the cloves often cooked with apple and not a clove of Garlic, but surely one clove will have no effect at all??

[Heather Wood]

Gosh, thanks for the nice recipe idea! I have a single small quince tree in my garden, planted as an experiment 5 years ago because I had never seen the fruit for sale nor tasted it.

From the first autumn after I planted it, it was full of fruit and the blossom is beautiful too - it's like a wild rose flower, pale pink and very profuse, lasts a couple of weeks in late April/early May. The variety I have is cydonia oblongata Vranja. It's now about 10 foot tall, 6 foot spread. I fancy trying the Meeches prolific variety in future too.

I have harvested 5 large basketfulls this year, starting late September when they started ripening and looking like big yellow pears. The first windfalls made jelly and marmalade, the two biggest I carted down to the chef at the posh restaurant down the road (they advertise their use of local organic produce)and swopped them for some free lunches.

I have a few fruit still on the tree and a big basket ready picked, so I shall try the recipes tonight.

[Janet]

The quinces we had on our farm grew on a bush, and they made great jam! So, I might have to disagree with Jeff there. And, yes, ONE clove will be all you need (not a clove of garlic!). More would overpower, not enhance the flavor of the quince.

[Penny]

I just returned from The Yamhill Valley and bought 5 large quince from a couple of little old ladies in a "junk" shop. They cost me a whopping $1 for all five. Last year I purchased some from another Oregon farmer and roasted them but they did not turn the lovely red color. I ended up with a sauce like apple sauce which was very good. I'm going to have another go at them tomorrow using this Mediterranean recipe. Right now they are perfuming my kitchen with their delightful aroma.

[Helen Michael]

Hello quince fanatics,
love the recipe- Nigella Lawson has a similar one in her book "how to eat"- which was very nice...

I have a beautiful Vranja tree in the garden but sadly it has never fruited (too young?? nb it is huge already and more than five years old). My neighbor wondered if I should have pollinated- i thought they were self-fertile? Anyone else (eg Heather above) have any thoughts?

In return, see these links for other ideas for things to do with quince... enjoy!

http://www.historicfood.com/Quinces%20Recipe.htm
-this is a lovely historic foods website with some very old original recipes, some of which sounds hard to recreate- but such fun!!

http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/journal/2005/11/11/dulce-de-membrillo-and-a-host-mothers-love.html
-this is a recipe for membrillo paste- beloved in spain and portugal and absolutely divine with strong cheese...

Helen