Quince

Kath starts with ...
I have a quince with it's first crop-4 huge quinces. Have never grown them before-aiming for quince jelly-When do I pick them? Do they soften or change colour when ripe & has anyone made the jelly-any tips or recipes? thanks heaps
Kath

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Jantina says...
Ingredients Quinces,water, granulated sugar,lemon. Method,wash quinces and cut into chunky pieces leaving core and skin on(too easy!) 2,Cover with water and cook gently until they are pale pink and soft. 3 leave to stand until cold.4,Pour into a scalded jelly bag (made from something like cheesecloth)hang over a dish and leave to drain overnight. 5.Measure, and for each cup of liquid add a cupful of sugar. To each 6 cupfuls of liquid add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. 6, Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves, bring to the boil and boil rapidly until jelly sets. 7, Pour into clean jars(which need to be about the same temp. as the jelly so they don't crack)and cover. Be careful not to burn yourself too. I have a quince paste recipe too if you want it but 4 quinces won't make much. Let us know how you go.

Jantina says...
No probs. Wash quarter and core 2.25 of unpeeled quince.Cover with a small amount of water and cook until soft. Press through a sieve.Measure and for each cup of puree, use one cup of sugar. Cook slowly for one hour, or until thick and dark red, stirring frequently. You can use it like this or continue to dry it. Pour into a greased shallow pan or mould and cool. Leave the container in the sun to dry for several days. Turn out of mould and turn the fruit to dry on all sides. When quite dry slice into 3mm slices, dry a final time and roll in fine sugar. Yum.

Jantina says...
Sorry Kath, it actually says 2.25 litres which in spite of the air spaces would be similar to 2.25 kg because 1 ml= 1gm. And I can't see why you couldn't dry it in a VERY slow oven. A car in the sun also works well. I await the result with interest.

gemma says...
Hi Kath, I would love to try growing a quince. Do you ever have spare seeds and if so would you consider putting some in the post? Cheers, Gemma

snottiegobble says...
I inherited a quince that was nearly eaten to the ground by calves so it was more like a shrub! I reduced it to 3 good stems & it built up to produced lots of huge fruit after about 3 years. We made beautiful quince paste,& jelly, but it never went pink so must have been another variety!

snottiegobble says...
Yes Amanda, that perfume they give off is amazing! I dont know why cosmetic companies havent cashed in somehow?

MaryT says...
YUM, Amanda. Wish I had some - I have a tree but though it flowered once, no signs of fruit emerged. Sigh.

MaryT says...
I am philosophical, Amanda. It might surprise me one day. So far most of the citrus are doing OK but I know I will always have to buy fruit and vegetables. I did cook a mountain of Quince once when I was a Wwoofer. Tried all sorts of recipes and had a lot of fun. I agree, their fragrance was magical. Hope your tree will continue to yield great harvests for you.